Free electric blanket testing session at Llangollen Library

Denbighshire County Council’s Trading Standards team are to host a free electric blanket testing session at Llangollen Library on Thursday February 26.

The team will be screen-testing the blankets and will test any double or single electric blanket as long as all leads, controls and plugs associated with the electric blankets are brought along for testing.

No appointments are necessary, and the drop-in session will run from 10am-1pm. If electric blankets are found to have failed the safety test, a new one will be provided free of charge (subject to availability). Any blankets over 10 years old will automatically fail.

Councillor Alan James, Lead Member for Local Development and Planning said: “Electric blankets have become more and more popular as the colder weather has increased. Whilst they are great for keeping warm, it is important that they are maintained properly to ensure that they are safe.

“I would encourage Denbighshire residents to pop into one of the drop-in sessions to learn more about these blankets.”

* For more information about Denbighshire County Council’s Trading Standards Team, click here. 

* For more information about this event please contact 01824 706057.

Applications to fund open spaces and play areas now open

Applications are now open for funding to help improve open spaces and play areas across Denbighshire.

Funding totalling £101,064.42 is available to support local projects. The amount of funding available in the Llangollen Town Council area is £3,603.

The funding comes from commuted sums, which are payments made by developers when it is not possible to provide outdoor open space as part of a new development. 

These funds are set aside to enhance parks, play areas and other open spaces, usually within the same town or community where the development took place. In some cases, the money can also be used to benefit nearby communities within Denbighshire.

A range of organisations can apply for funding, including:

• City, town and community councils
• Community and voluntary groups
• Charities
• Public sector organisations
• Amateur sports clubs
• Denbighshire County Council

Councillor Rhys Thomas, Lead Member for Housing and Communities said: “Commuted sums funding plays an important role in helping us protect and enhance open spaces and play areas across Denbighshire. This investment helps ensure that local communities continue to benefit from safe, welcoming and well-maintained spaces that support wellbeing, play and community life. I would encourage eligible organisations to consider applying and to take advantage of this opportunity to make a positive difference in their local area.”

The funding closes for applications on 20 April 2026. Further information and application forms is available online here: www.denbighshire.gov.uk/commutedsums.

Lentern soup kitchens at Holy Cross church rooms

* Holy Cross Church where Lentern soup kitchens will be held.

Lentern soup kitchens will be held at Holy Cross church rooms in Llangollen each Friday until Easter - except Good Friday - starting this week.

Proceeds from the kitchens, which run from 12noon until 1.30pm, will to CAFOD which helps stop poverty and hunger in the Third World.

All are welcome, say organisers.

The church rooms are accessed through the church in Oak Street or via the alleyway next to the butchers on Castle Street. 

St David’s Day celebrations at Llangollen and Corwen Railway

* Paul Evans with the special St David's headboard he's made for the big day.

Llangollen and Corwen Railway will be marking St David’s Day on Sunday March 1 with a full day of celebrations combining steam travel, live music and a warm Welsh welcome for visitors. 

At the heart of the day will be three steam-hauled return services from Llangollen to Corwen, giving passengers the opportunity to enjoy a journey through the Dee Valley behind an historic locomotive. 

The train will carry a special commemorative headboard, “The Saint David”, created especially for the occasion. 

This will be the first weekend of 2026 where services will run along the full length of the line following extensive track renewal in the railway’s 689-yard-long Berwyn tunnel.

 

The railway will be alive with music and celebration. Visitors arriving at Llangollen will be welcomed by performances from the Llangollen Silver Band, who will perform on Platform 1 at Llangollen Railway Station at 12 noon, before travelling on the 12.20pm service to Corwen and continuing their performance on the platform at 1.00pm. These performances will help create a festive atmosphere on the railway during the afternoon.

 

In keeping with the occasion, station announcements will be made in Welsh, reflecting the railway’s commitment to celebrating the language and culture of Wales.

 

The railway’s Station Café will also be serving a special Welsh-themed menu, and visitors will be greeted with small touches that make St David’s Day unique, including the distribution of daffodils to passengers.

* A group of the railway's proud volunteers line up on the platform ready for St David's Day on March 1.

 

As part of the day, the railway will also be launching a new volunteers’ group dedicated to promoting the use of the Welsh language across the railway, helping to ensure that Welsh is heard and celebrated on platforms, in announcements and in the everyday life of the line.

 

Joel Whittaker, a railway volunteer, paramedic and member of the Froncysyllte Male Voice Choir, said: “St David’s Day means a great deal to us, and it’s wonderful to see the railway embracing Welsh language and culture in such a visible way. 

"The Dee Valley has a rich heritage, and celebrating that through music, language and community really brings the railway to life. I’m especially pleased to see the new Welsh language volunteers’ group being launched, which will help keep the language visible and spoken across the railway for years to come.”

 

The St David’s Day Special forms part of a busy start to the railway’s 2026 season, with a growing programme of events and themed days planned throughout the year.

 

* Further details, timetables and ticket information are available on www.llangollen-railway.co.uk

New Sportage is the near-perfect SUV solution

Kia Sportage drive by Steve Rogers

Had an interesting conversation with the driver who delivered the Sportage.

He had never driven a Kia before and was so impressed he is buying a Sportage even though he is a self confessed BMW man through and through.

That is quite an endorsement and goes to show how Kia has developed from its bargain basement days to a major player, not just in the UK but around the world.

Am I surprised? Absolutely not. This is one of the most complete cars I have driven and leaves no box without a tick.

Plenty of others agree because in January Sportage was our top selling car while the company is currently the second best selling car brand in the UK. Sportage has done for Kia what Qashqai did for Nissan before it. Our obsession with SUV crossovers is still going on.

Kia’s change of direction came in 2010. The company wanted to get out of budget and into the mainstream and was not afraid to spend the money to do it. They brought in top talent including a brilliant German designer with an eye for dynamic design and his first project was the third generation Sportage. It was an instant hit and has been Kia’s best selling car ever since.

So what is it about this car that makes it so popular? Unlike many of the new Chinese brands you don’t have to spend study time with the touchscreen menus and sub menus to find out how the car works.

The Sportage cabin is a joy. The dashboard layout looks special with a curved widescreen unit split into two 12.3in digital screens, one for infotainment, the other the driver’s binnacle with a choice of displays.

Crucially all the essential functions are controlled by tactile physical switches. The heating and radio controls are separated from the infotainment screen while switches for heated and ventilated seats and the heated steering wheel are grouped neatly in the centre console. This is a car you can drive away without thinking.

Having applauded Sportage for its simplicity we did face a conundrum finding the main volume control for the radio. We looked along the dashboard, centre console, and dived into the touchscreen. Nothing. It took two days before my wife cracked it. She touched a symbol on the heating bar and, as if by magic, it turned into radio controls with the knob for adjusting the passenger heating switching to the radio volume. What a brilliant piece of design.

Sportage has only grown 25mm but modern platforms create more interior space and this is the case here so generous proportions front and back, and the seats are comfortable too with plenty of side and back support. I liked the way charging ports for back seat passengers are integrated into the front seat backs.

The range has been simplified to three grades, petrol or hybrid with a plug-in hybrid to follow along with an all wheel drive model. At just over £30,000 the entry Pure looks a safe bet with a decent equipment list and plenty of driver safety aids but for another ten grand GT Line S is a mouthwatering prospect where you want for nothing.

Catching the eye are wireless phone charging, head-up display, powered front seats, eight-speaker premium sound system and a digital key.

Here you can pair your smart phone with the key and lock, unlock, and start the car from a distance (presumably for someone else to drive) and share the function with three others. Grown up kids will probably be first in the queue!

Kia has dropped the diesel so it's a direct injection petrol turbo through a six-speed manual or a seven speed automatic. Some will bemoan the loss of the diesel economy but you are going to have to get used to it. I averaged just over 36mpg on journeys of no more than 25 miles but clocked 44mpg on a longer run which wasn’t bad given the size of Sportage. The hybrid will eke out a few more miles per gallon.

Pushed hard Sportage will hit sixty in under 10 seconds which is good enough and there is no screaming into submission at the red line on the rev counter.

I am tempted to say Kia has crafted the perfect car but there is one small glitch. The accelerator snatches at start off which can make reversing into a garage tricky when you want to creep towards a wall. It will probably emergency stop before hitting but I wasn’t tempted to try it.

Fast facts

Sportage GT Line S

£40,335 (starts £30,935)

1.6 litre; 147bhp

7-speed automatic

0-62 9.4secs; 119mph

39.8mpg combined

162g/km. 1st VED £1,360

Boot: 591-1780 litres

Insurance group 22

Towing: 1650kg

Scheme helps people with health problems get back into work

Working Denbighshire has teamed up with RCS (formerly Rhyl City Strategy) through the ‘Beyond Barriers’ initiative to provide quick access to therapeutic support for residents across the county who face health-related challenges preventing them from entering work.

This collaboration, launched as part of the Denbighshire Trailblazer project, brings together local expertise to tackle barriers such as mental health conditions, chronic pain, and low confidence, helping people build resilience and move closer to sustainable employment.

The Trailblazer programme - funded by the UK Government and delivered by the Welsh Government - targets economically inactive people of working age who are disabled and/or have health conditions, or caring responsibilities by providing tailored interventions including one-to-one mentoring, counselling services, wellbeing provision, and specialist support for those with health conditions.

This service offers up to eight sessions of therapy, including counselling, CBT, physiotherapy, and specialist support for issues such as stress, anxiety, bereavement, and chronic health conditions. This partnership provides flexible, bilingual support that empowers individuals to overcome barriers and create positive futures.

This collaboration reflects Working Denbighshire’s shared commitment to responding to local needs, connecting people to the right support, and creating positive futures for individuals and communities. Job searching and starting work can be stressful, especially for those managing health conditions. By offering tailored therapeutic support, the initiative helps individuals build emotional resilience, improve confidence, and develop coping strategies that make the transition into work more stable.

Councillor Jason McLellan, Leader of the Council and Lead Member for Economic Growth and Tackling Deprivation said: “This partnership is a vital step in tackling economic inactivity in Denbighshire. By working with RCS, we can ensure that people who face health challenges receive the support they need to move closer to employment. This partnership creates opportunities and improves wellbeing for our communities.”

* For more information about inclusive services or employment opportunities, residents can call 01745 331438 / 07342 070635 or visit the Working Denbighshire website: www.denbighshire.gov.uk/working-denbighshire.

Penllyn Chapel sends out its latest car to Ukraine

 

* Larry, the American volunteer driver (right), drops off the Toyota in Dnipro.

The latest car paid for by members of a Llangollen church has arrived safely on the Ukrainian front line. 

Earlier this year a team including the Minister from Penllyn Chapel in Brook Street drove across Europe with a Honda CR-V to be used for ferrying battle-weary troops to and from the battle zone.

Not long after that a Nissan X-Trail 4x4 was arranged for carrying medics to the fighting hot-spots. 

Now another 4x4 vehicle, a Toyota Rav4, has been despatched to Ukraine with love from Penllyn.

Driven by Larry, an American volunteer, it was loaded with supplies, including 84 duvet covers and 124 pillow cases, bound for a hospital in Ternopil which the church supports. The sheets, all new, were donated by a photographic studio and are much in demand. 

Penllyn has been raising cash for the Ukrainian war effort with events such as the recent evening of entertainment and food at St Collen's Community Hall which brought in a healthy £2,345. 

* The Toyota packed with supplies for the Ukrainian military hospital.

* The supplies are delivered to the hospital.