Major youth event at pavilion

Pupils from across Denbighshire will be gathering for a special event at Llangollen Pavilion on today (Friday) to celebrate the 14-19 Learning Pathways Network.

This helps young people to achieve their potential and become active citizens who contribute to the economic prosperity of the region.

The Pathways to Success event will show how 14-19 Learning Pathways has impacted on the lives of Denbighshire's young people, and demonstrate the success of partnership working.

There will be young people from all secondary schools in Denbighshire present, with some sharing their story of their Learning Pathway.

Young people will be acting as guides taking visitors around to see all of the activities during the day. At the plenary session, young people will be invited to take part in a question and answer session.

There will be many presentations and activities during the day which will include a display by all schools and colleges in Denbighshire, an opportunity to see the ESF Potensial project, where partners will exhibit and learning providers will demonstrate activities with participation by young people.

There will be a School Council meeting conducted during the day where official business will be discussed, as well as a Design and Fashion master-class.

There will also be an opportunity to see the Llwyddo’n Lleol ESF Enterprise Project, school displays of bursary projects, Education Business Partnerships, and the Hospitality & Tourism Work Based Learning Pathway.

The Denbighshire Youth Bus will be present, where young people will have the opportunity to see Careers Wales on-line.

Whilst refreshments are served, there will be an opportunity to see an exhibition of Art & Textiles work by young people in Denbighshire.

The event will run from 09:30 for 10am start, then a plenary at 1:50 pm.

Griffiths moved from health in government re-shuffle

Wrexham Assembly Member Lesley Griffiths has been replaced as Health Minister in a surprise Welsh Governmnet re-shuffle announced this afternoon (Thursday).

 

Taking over the portfolio is Cardiff West AM Mark Drakeford.

Ms Griffiths has recently been criticised by some for her refusal to intervene in the on-going row over the major shake-up of health services in North Wales, including last week's controversial closure of Llangollen Cottage Hospital.  

She now takes over as Local Government Minister from Deeside AM Carl Sargeant.

Business Minister Edwina Hart keeps the economy brief as the minister for economy, science and transport.

Huw Lewis becomes the minister for communities and tackling poverty. His old role as housing and regeneration minister goes to Mr Sargeant.

Labour won power at the last assembly election in May 2011, although it fell one seat short of an outright majority.

Commenting on the re-shuffle, Llyr Gruffydd, Plaid Cymru AM for North Wales, said: “From the perspective of people in North Wales, this could be seen as a vote of no confidence in Lesley Griffiths’s handling of the NHS changes.

 

"As such it’s a welcome change and an opportunity for the government to show it’s willing to listen to the people of North Wales and alter course.

“The new minister will hopefully have new priorities, otherwise it will just be a hospital pass that means a continuation of the same old policies that are so unpopular across the North.

“This new appointment is a chance to wipe the slate clean and look afresh at local health services in North Wales.

 

"I would ask the new health minister to make an early announcement as to his intentions. Is he happy to see critically ill babies from Wales being exported to England’s health service, which Carwyn Jones himself has described as being “wrecked and privatised”?

 

"And does he support community facilities being arbitrarily axed without any alternative services being put in their place.”

Early days of the Cottage Hospital

* The padlocked front door of the hospital.

llanblogger has been delving into the excellent Welsh Newsapers Online archive for any mention of Llangollen Cottage Hospital, which closed last weekend after 176 years of devotedly serving the local community.

We wrere delighted to come across two articles - printed 22 years apart - from the long-defunct Llangollen Advertiser which has shed a fascinating light on the much-loved hospital in its early days.

The first comes (pictured below)  from February 18, 1876, not long after the hospital opened. The second, dated March 8, 1898, is a report of the hospital's annual meeting.

Here is the article from 1876:

THE LLANGOLLEN COTTAGE HOSPITAL. THE COTTAGE HOSPITAL is now, we are happy to say, complete so far as the building is concerned. It is admirably arranged for the object for which it is intended, the whole work being of a thorough and substantial character, and it now only awaits the furniture and nursing matron to enable the committee to open it for the reception of patients. The furniture will shortly be in its place; Mr. Wagstaff, with great liberality providing every requisite, thus rendering, complete this inestimable gift to the town. We understand that the services of a trained and experienced nurse have been secured by the managing committee in order to make the Hospital as efficient as possible. We trust everyone in this community and the neighbourhood will do all in their power to further the utility of this valuable institution,and support it liberally by annual subscriptions, of which a handsome list has already been obtained; but we hope before long to see many other names added to it. We must not omit to mention that two handsome gifts for the garden have been received, one being a large supply of shrubs and rose trees from Messrs. A. Dickson and Co., of Chester,—the other, tile edging, from Mr. J. C. Edwards, Trevor Hall.

And here is the article from March 8, 1898:

LLANGOLLEN COTTAGE HOSPITAL. ANNUAL MEETING. The annual meeting of donors and subscribers to Llangollen Cottage Hospital was held in the Board Room of that institution on the afternoon of the 24th ult., as briefly reported in our last issue. There were present Capt. J. C. Best, R.N. (in the chair), Dr. R. Drinkwat' r, Messrs. S. T. Jagger, S. Morton, J. E. Griffiths, John Rowlands, Mrs. Pugh, and Mr. W. G. Dodd (hon. sec).

THE REPORT. The chairman said all had had the report sent to them, and there was really nothing of any parti- cular nature to remark upon from it. It read as follows:—"In presenting the report of another year's work the committee have no special feature to draw attention to, but to report that the institution continues to do good work in the neighbourhood. Forty-eight patients were admitted during the year, being a decrease of five as compared with the pre- ceding year. The out-patients numbered 32, as against 35 in 1896. In the district nursing branch, good work has again been done, 80 persons having been attended to in their own homes, the number of separate visits being 656.

The demand upon the convalescent funds has been larger than usual, no less than 32 patients having been sent for change of air as compared with 14 in 1896. The committee have much satisfaction in seeing that the institu- tion continues to command the generous support of the subscribers and donors. They would, however, like to see more appeciation amongst workmen of the benefits, to be derived from regular and sys- tematic subscriptions to the workmen's collection cards, entitling contributors to free entrance to the hospital when suffering from illness."

The hospital, he continued, still continued to do a good and wholesome work, and was very well supported by the, people of the district, the committee could not complain about that. There was always a difficulty in keeping up subscriptions for an institution like theirs, owing to the death or removal of benefactors and subscribers. On the other hand that might be supposed a cause for the institution being so well supported by the people of the district.

It would, however, be a mistake to take it altogether in that light. Outsiders, who only saw the report, had no notion of the trouble Mr. Dodd experienced in getting in funds by these small amounts. Of course, as they would see by the report, it was wonderfully well kept up, and much of that gratifying fact was owing to the penny subscribers, and to the work- men themselves, going about with and contributing to collecting cards.

That should certainly be en- couraged, as the committee wanted to see the working man doing a little more to provide for himself against a rainy day while he was well. The institution did not intend him to contribute when he was out of work, but if he put a penny into one or other of the collecting boxes now and again while he was well he was only doing that for which he was very likely some day and in some way to reap the benefit. To say that at the present time there were only eleven entries of regular working men subscribers was rather a slur upon the workmen of the district, and the needs of the institution ought to be taken up by them.

The name of a penny a week subscriber was recorded in the book, and was published with the other items. The expenses during the past year had been pretty much the same as before. The con- valescent fund for sending people to the sea-side had done a good work, and that fund had been more than exhausted, they had to dip into other money from the general hospital fund. He did not think there was a call for any further observations, the report had been sent to the subscribers, and he now moved that it be approved and adopted. The proposition was seconded by Mr. Jagger, and carried unanimously.

SUBSCRIBERS' REPRESENTATIVES. It was resolved that Sir Theodore Martin, K.C.B., K.C.V., Mr. S. Jagger, and Mr. Griffith Williams, be the subscribers' representatives on the Managing Committee for the ensuing year.

VOTES OF THANKS. Mr. Morton moved that the best thanks of the meeting be given to the medical gentlemen who had tendered their services free of charge to patients while in the hospital to the treasurer (Mr. W. Richards) to the matron (Miss Edwards); to the clergy and ministers of all denominations who had made Sunday collections in places of worship on behalf of the hospital; to the proprietor of the Llangollen Advertiser for inserting free of charge the artices, &c., relating to the hospital to the collectors of penny cards and alms boxes; to contributors of gifts in kind; and to Miss Edwards (Hand Hotel) for providing free con- veyance of patients to the hospital when necessary. Mr. Jagger having seconded the proposition, it was carried.

Dr. Drinkwater next proposed that the thanks of the meeting be passed to the committee and secretary (Mr.! Dodd) for their successful management of the hospital during the year. Mrs. Pugh seconded the motion, and was it carried with great heartiness. The chairman replied, and said they were particularly indebted to Mr. Dodd for his very active services and attention to the requirements of the hospital (applause).

He thought the committee ought to thank Mr. Dodd very much for the work that he did. Mr. Dodd, in reply, said that whatever services he might perform in connection with the institution the work afforded him both pleasure and satisfaction when he knew that he had the confidence of his colleagues. He could not but be pleased to see that they worked together so harmoniously. Mr. Morton then moved, and Mr. Dodd seconded, a vote of thanks to Capt. Best for his services. The Captain had taken an interest in the hospital from the very beginning, and it spoke well for him and the institution that things were going on so well.—The proposition having been carried, the chairman admitted to taking an interest, in the welfare of the institution, and hoped that all would continue to go on well in connection with it. He thought the very fact that they had not large meetings was testimony that all was proceeding satisfactorily. This concluded the business of the meeting. 

Skates backs North Wales prison plan

Clwyd South Assembly Member Ken Skates as thrown his weight behind plans for a new prison to be sited in North Wales.

In January the Ministry of Justice named the region as one of three areas alongside London and the North West of England, in the running to house a new facility.

The AM said there were ‘compelling’ reasons to site a prison in North Wales which consultants believe could be worth over £17m to the local economy.

However, he said there needed to be close consultation with any community proposed as a site to ensure public support for the project.

Mr Skates said: “I’m fully supportive of efforts to bring a secure and modern prison to North Wales. There are compelling reasons to site a prison in the region which currently does not have any facilities to house local prisoners, the only region in the UK not to do so.

“Research has suggested that the economic impact of a 1,500 place prison could be over £17m to the local economy and help to bring nearly 1000 much needed jobs to the area around it.

“One of the reasons I feel it should be considered is that many prisoners from North Wales are currently housed at HMP Altcourse. It means families of prisoners having to travel all the way to Merseyside to visit relatives and I feel that if we are going to build a new prison anyway, North Wales would be a good location.

“Importantly, I feel it could help reduce crime rates in the North Wales area. The odds of re-offending are 39% higher for prisoners who do not receive visits from a partner or a family member so it would help reduce the incentive for North Wales prisoners to commit more crime when they get back home after their sentence.

“What we need now is to look closely at all the potential sites in the region. However the main consideration in all of this is that wherever in North Wales we think is best for a prison it has the backing of the local community.

“As the process develops we need an on-going dialogue with the areas considered most appropriate and a rigorous consultation process to ensure all the issues and concerns people and communities might have are addressed adequately.”

The release of site criteria and the timescale for site selection has not yet been advertised by the Ministry of Justice but is expected imminently.

New Pope chosen

Argentina's Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, a Jesuit, is announced as the Roman Catholic Church's new Pope, to be named Francis I.

AM concerned over health board's financial position

The Daily Post os reporting today (Wednesday) that Conservative Shadow Health Minister Darren Millar has voiced concerns about the latest financial position of the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, which has just controversially closed Llangollen Cottage Hospital.

See the full story at:

http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/2013/03/13/concern-at-nhs-finances-in-north-wales-says-am-55578-32976498/

Walkers' weekend planned for Llan

A walking weekend will be staged in Llangollen in early May.

Trekkers will be able to choose routes of varying length, all taking advantage of the area’s scenic beauty and rich history.

The weekend will be on Saturday and Sunday, May 4 and 5 and organiser Mike Smart said: “Llangollen has a wealth of history, heritage and a beautiful landscape. In fact, it is a walkers' wonderland.

“Those taking part can choose from short, medium and long challenging walks led by professional guides who will share their local knowledge of colourful history, heritage and folklore whilst guiding you through some of the most beautiful countryside in North Wales.

“Walks range from a two-hour historic town walk to one going across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, Thomas Telford's 1805 industrial masterpiece 127ft high above the stunning Dee Valley.

“There is also a challenging 14-mile high moors wilderness walk with a steam train ride back.”

All walks start from the Tourist Information Centre in Llangollen.

Prices range from £5 to £9. For more details on the weekend and to book, visit: TREKsmart.net/llww

Former town clerk Ian Parry, who has been involved in bringing the event to the area, said: “We achieved Walkers are Welcome Town status for Llangollen about four years ago and the first year we organised a successful walking weekend based at the Pavilion.

“Main reason for seeking that status was to attract more walkers to the town and help the local economy.

“Now that I have retired I felt I should organise something to ensure Llangollen does not lose its accreditation as a Walkers are Welcome Town.”

He added: “I did set up a small Llangollen Walking Group as part of the Walkers are Welcome initiative and I need now to arrange a meeting of the group to see if we can organise some other walking events.

“If anyone is interested in joining our group they can contact me on 01978 753897, 07785 541445, or by emailing parry.ian@btinternet.com.”

£40 million boost for Welsh apprenticeships

Businesses are being encouraged to realise the full potential of apprentices for the Welsh economy as the Deputy Minister for Skills, Jeff Cuthbert, today outlined spending plans for an additional £40 million over the next two years for apprenticeships in Wales.

 

The spending plans include expanding the number of apprenticeship places, with a focus on increasing the number of Higher Level Apprenticeships, and incentives to encourage businesses, particularly small to medium businesses, to take on apprentices.

The announcement follows a report from the Business and Enterprise Committee’s Inquiry into apprenticeships last autumn, which found that although we have a strong apprenticeship programme here in Wales not enough businesses are using the programme and are losing out on the opportunity to attract high calibre apprentices and in turn support business growth.

The spending plans include:

* Creating 5,650 additional apprenticeship places, 2,650 of which are Higher Level Apprenticeships, Level 4 and above

* An enhanced wage subsidy of £3,900 over 52 weeks for employers taking on young apprentices aged 16-24 through the Young Recruits Programme, this will also be expanded to include Higher Level Apprenticeships

* A one off payment of £500 for small and micro businesses to cover the time and costs they said were a barrier to recruiting apprentices

* And £3.4 million to support those who wish to complete their training through the medium of Welsh and a commitment to engage more people onto apprenticeships within the STEM sectors.

The plans also include action to address the gender imbalance that currently exists across specific apprenticeship sectors and to strengthen the relationship between employers, schools and work based learning providers to promote apprenticeships as a valued career option.

Jeff Cuthbert said: "Apprenticeships play an integral role in our economy. They increase the skill set of the workforce and make Wales a more attractive place with which to do business.

"This is why I want more businesses to realise the potential of apprenticeships and why we have committed £40 million over two years to increase and support apprenticeship delivery.

"The skills developed by an apprentice are skills for life. This makes an apprenticeship programme as valued as a place at a top university, and I want people to be aware of this.

"The programme continues to support young people, the group that has been worst hit by the recession. Apprenticeship programmes keep them engaged in education, employment and training and make sure we are maximising their opportunities for employment.

"My chief desire is that apprenticeships, underpinned by high quality qualifications and the wider curricula, become the ‘gold standard’ for vocational competence in Wales - where the achievement of an Apprenticeship Certificate is recognised, valued and highly prized by all as an endorsement of the skills, professionalism and ambition of our country within the global economy."

The spending plans also include a commitment to increasing the provision of Welsh language and bi-lingual Apprenticeships. The number of programmes currently available through the medium of Welsh will be assessed and work will be undertaken with Work Based Learning Providers to specifically focus on emerging demands relating to Welsh medium apprenticeships.

The announcement comes during Apprenticeship Week (11-15 March). There will be over 30 events taking place across Wales throughout the week to celebrate apprenticeships and the positive impact they have on individuals, businesses and the economy.

The Apprenticeship Programme is funded by the Welsh Government with the support of the European Social Fund.

Cyclists warned over hi-tech thieves

Cyclists are being urged not to give too much information away as thieves may use technology to target valuable bikes.

The warning comes after Staffordshire Police revealed that some of the victims of bike theft in their area had been using websites and mobile phone apps to log their routes.

The technology allows users to view each other’s routes and track their rides. Some riders also share their routes on social networking sites such as twitter and facebook, inadvertently alerting would-be thieves to their addresses.

Thieves can use the technology to pinpoint homes and steal high-performance bikes from sheds, outbuildings, garages or cycles racks on cars.

Now Community Safety Partnerships in the area are warning to take precautions, which include:

• Check privacy settings of apps
• Check privacy settings on cycling smart phone applications and websites
• Avoid using twitter and Facebook to share routes
• Opt to start the tracking function away from home address and stop again before returning home

Llan residents feel "let down" by hospital axe

The Leader is reporting today that Llangollen residents feel let down by the closure of their community hospital after 137 years.

See the story at http://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/120716/residents-feel-let-down-as-llangollen-hospital-closes.aspx#.UT7uMcplwvM.twitter

KLS lashes out over hospital closure

Community group Keep Llangollen Special (KLS) has attacked health chiefs and politicians over the closure of the town’s community hospital. 

KLS chair Mike Edwards (pictured below) said: “As the Welsh Government released their much heralded framework Vibrant and Viable Places, we are totally dismayed at the double speak from politicians who say things like, ‘The Welsh Government’s vision is that everyone in Wales should live in well-connected vibrant, viable and sustainable communities with a strong local economy and good quality of life’.  

 

“They claim to place health and well-being high in their priorities together with stressing the importance of town centres being vibrant and viable places.  

“Exactly how will the closure of our community hospital, which was conveniently located for Llangollen residents, achieve these aims because it will clearly increase vehicle journeys for patients and their family and friends support network? 

“This proposal by BCUHB breaches the Welsh Government's policies in relation to sustainability which are enshrined in Planning Policy Wales and fails to take into consideration the views of residents and damages the environment of an AONB by increasing vehicle journeys out of the area to Mold, Wrexham and Chirk etc. 

“It is extremely sad that Llangollen Hospital has closed after 137 years, but to add insult to injury neither the health board nor the local GP Practice have had the decency to keep patients in the loop and communicate with them as to when changes would actually take effect.  

“If you turned up for a blood test at the hospital on Monday morning you would have found it closed! 

“BCUHB have proceeded with stealth leading to the view that they wished to push through their decisions before the Health or First Minister could intervene and stop the proposals.  

“However, lack of action from the Health Minister or the First Minister could also persuade people that WG are actually culpable in this plot to rob Llangollen of its Community Hospital. 

“Welsh Government and public bodies claim to want decisions to involve and be led by communities, but they actually push their plans forward regardless and totally disrespect those very local communities and their residents.”

llanblogger gets BBC TV mention

* Huw Edwards hosts BBC1s Wales Report in which llanblogger was mentioned. 

llanblogger has had a mention on nationwide TV in Wales.

Our news site figured in a studio discussion on the future of the media during last night’s edition of BBC1's Wales Report presented by Huw Edwards.

Main theme was how hyperlocal news sites such as llanblogger are now operating alongside more traditional Welsh newspapers,  many of which are experiencing an on-going decline in circulation.

In some places they have actually replaced newspapers, and the programme contained a short film on the Port Talbot Magnet, a news site being operated on a voluntary basis by professional journalists after the local paper closed.

One of two experts interviewed in the studio was Ken Skates, Labour Assembly Member for Clwyd South and himself a former newspaper journalist in Wrexham.  

Asked by Huw Edwards about the media situation in his constituency, he said there were a number of good hyperlocal news site, in Wrexham and “just down the road in Llangollen where we have llanblogger”.

While stressing the importance of such sites Mr Skates (pictured below, right) said he wished to see them regarded as part of the wider news provision rather than an alternative to established newspapers.

Huw Edwards posed the question whether the fall in newspaper circulations might be a quality issue.

But the other studio guest, Professor Ian Hargreaves, a former national newspaper editor and now professor of digital economy at Cardiff Business School, said this was not the case and that falling newspaper sales was down to advertising – any regional newspaper’s lifeblood – moving online.

He added that to combat this, news organisations must adapt to the way they do things in the digital age.

Ken Skates said there were “some excellent journalists” in Wales but many young people were moving out of the country because there were better  job prospects outside the country.

Part of the answer to this drain, he said, was for more resources to be invested in training opportunities for journalists such as apprenticeship schemes.

Both guests rejected the idea of extra money for training coming from the Welsh Government and Prof Hargreaves said more schemes for young journalists were needed like the one he was involved in at Cardiff Business School.

He also had a message for council officials on how to handle the new age of digital journalism.

“If they see someone coming along with a video camera to record a council meeting they shouldn’t kick them out but rather say thank goodness that someone is taking an interest in what they’re doing,” he said.

Police mount seat belt campaign from today

From today (Monday) officers from North Wales Police will team up with their counterparts from forces across the country to mount a seat belt campaign.

They aim is to be warn motorists and passengers they are risking their lives by not wearing belts and issuing fixed penalty notices to those flouting the law.

Law breakers risk a £60 Fixed Penalty Notice or being summonsed to court where they could face fines of up to £500.

Inspector Martin Best from the North Wales force’s Roads Policing Unit said: “Wearing a seatbelt can mean the difference between life and death – failing to wear a seatbelt is still apparent on the roads of North Wales and it is disappointing to see that people are still choosing to risk their lives and the lives of others.

“We have a robust strategy around enforcing the Fatal 5 offences which are failing to wear a seat belt, drink and drug driving, dangerous and careless driving including unnecessary risk taking, speeding and using a mobile phone while driving.

“We are committed to assisting in reducing casualties on the road through the use of targeted enforcement operations around high risk groups of people and locations while enforcing the Fatal 5 offences.

“The risk of being seriously injured or killed rises dramatically if a decision is taken to commit a Fatal 5 offence and I want people to be aware of the devastating affect it can have and make a conscious decision not to take any chances.”

He added: “Seatbelts are vital to the safety of you and your passengers and we will continue to take a pro-active approach all year round to educate motorists and enforce seatbelt laws.”

Supporting the campaign this year is Lesley Parry, who tragically lost her son Dewi following a road traffic collision on an unclassified road near Rhosgoch on Anglesey last summer.

The 17-year-old, who was from Llanbabo near Amlwch, was pronounced dead at the scene following the one-vehicle collision which happened on 9^th June 2012.

She said:“Dewi lost control of the car, his window was open and he wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. Had he have been wearing a seatbelt he would probably still be with us today.

“I wholeheartedly support this campaign and I urge everybody out there to always wear their seatbelt. The effect of Dewi’s death on us as a family and on many of his friends has been devastating. This can happen to anyone, please make sure you belt up.”

Inspector Best added: “Our aim is to save lives and prevent another family such as the Parrys having to deal with the aftermath of a collision in which someone is not wearing a seatbelt.”

Hospital closure fury makes the headlines

The ongoing row over the imminent closure of Llangollen Hospital features on the front page of today's Dail Post under the headlines "Hang your heads in shame" and "Health chiefs blasted for 'scandalous' closure."

See the story at: http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/

 

Latest roadworks in the area

Latest roadworks in the area notified by Denbighshire County Council are: 

Berwyn Street, Llangollen, from March 12-13, temporary traffic lights to allow tree cutting.   

Regent Street, Llangollen, until March 11, temporary traffic lights to allow water works by Dee Valley Water. 

A5, Glyndyfrdwy to telephone exchange, until March 19, temporary traffic lights to allow resurfacing work.

A piece of acting brilliance from Twenty Club

There are only four people on stage in the Twenty Club’s current production of the Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams at Llangollen Town Hall.  

But between them they produce enough raw acting talent for at least ten times that number. 

The title aptly sums up the glass-like fragility of three of the characters, who inhabit a claustrophobic apartment in an American town during the Depression of the 1930s. 

First, there’s the mother Amanda Wingfield, an ageing, out-of-tune southern belle who has been striving desperately to keep together her family following the sudden departure of her telephone engineer husband – who we never see apart from his a faded portrait on the wall – 16 years earlier. 

But given her controlling, meddling approach to life, who could blame the guy for doing a runner to the other side of the continent? 

Amanda is played with nothing short of brilliance by Rachel Morris using, like the rest of the cast, a faultless southern American accent. 

When she talks about all those “gen’lman cawlers” she used to receive in her gentile youth you really believe that she once lived in a “f-i-i-i-i-n-e” mansion set in the rolling acres of a plantation. 

Every nuance of the character is deftly conveyed, every movement of her body perfectly executed. 

In the apartment Amanda holds sway over her two children. 

One of them is son Tom, a man in his early twenties who is clearly too intelligent for his humble position on the bottom rung of the ladder at the local warehouse and squanders the days until he can escape to a new life of adventure in the merchant marine going to the movies, drinking bourbon and smoking endless cigarettes.

He fights against the smothering of his mother but never wins. 

Bringing Tom, who also steps aside to be the play’s sardonic narrator, vividly to life is one of the Twenty Club’s youngest members, Morgan Thomas.

Watching the consummate way he handles this mega-part – his character is on stage for most of the piece – it’s hard to believe he is still just 17 years old.  This is definitely an actor who is going places, and not necessarily only with an amateur group.  

Third member of the terrific trio is Anna Turner who plays Tom’s slightly older sister Laura, a painfully shy girl who lives in a world of her own which revolves round playing old gramophone records left behind by her absent father and gazing on her display case menagerie of small glass animals. 

Although she has far less dialogue than the other two other family members, Anna shines in the role, shuffling convincingly around the stage, wringing her hands and hardly daring to look anyone in the eye.

 

Her mother’s main aim is life is to get poor Laura married off – ideally to a man of substance so that she can continue to be financially supported by him when Tom makes his inevitable break for freedom just like his father did. 

She pleads with Tom to bring home any nice young man he might know from the warehouse for Laura to meet. 

He does just that – and this is when those fragile pieces of glass in the apartment start to get broken, in more ways than one. 

As this marvellously absorbing play has another two nights to run – tonight (Friday) and tomorrow (Saturday) – it would be unfair to say just what impact the fourth character, Jim O’Connor, has on the complicated Wingfield clan. 

But it is fair to say the man playing this outgoing young man of Irish descent who has the gift of the blarney, Aaron Davies, does so every bit as brilliantly as his three fellow cast members.  

With the Glass Menagerie, which is a credit to its director Natalie Evans, the Twenty Club has a smash hit on its hands. 

See it if you can.

Support our Buy Local Day today!

* Carolyn Hutchinson at Vintage Rose is one of the businesses supporting today's Buy Local Day.

Today is an important day for all those Llan people who believe it’s vital to support local businesses – especially in face of the threat from the big stores.

Community group Keep Llangollen Special (KLS) is running the latest in a series of Buy Local days and calling on as many people as possible to do just that rather than spending their money outside the town.

There will be discounts and special offers at all participating shops, pubs and cafes.

Just look out for the Buy Local poster displayed in their windows.

KLS chair Mike Edwards, who has been working hard along with volunteers from his small team to put today’s event together, said: “The aim is to highlight the three main benefits of buying locally – personal service from knowledgeable staff, top quality goods and good value for money.

“Why go to an impersonal supermarket when you can stroll round town, do your shopping and meet friends for a drink?”

One of the businesses supporting Buy Local today and all the year round is the Vintage Rose tearoom in Oak Street.

It was opened by Carolyn Hutchinson three months ago to provide tea, coffee and a mouth-watering range of home-made cakes.

Also available are wedding and occasional cakes – all with the emphasis on being home made by Carolyn who has an associated business called Libby’s Cupcakes which she also runs from the Vintage Rose premises. She named that company after her young daughter, Libby.

Carolyn said: “Since we opened the tearoom it has been going very well and local people have really been coming out to support me.

“I am backing Buy Local Days like the one today because I think it is so important to support our businesses in the town.

“I try to buy everything I need for my businesses from suppliers in Llangollen and I also operate my own loyalty card scheme for local people.

“For Buy Local Day today I am offering a free cup of tea or coffee with every cake bought by my customers.”  

For more details of KLS, see its website at www.keepllangollenspecial.org.uk and for Carolyn's website, see http://www.libbyscupcakes.co.uk/

Hospital services ro relocate at end of week

llanblogger exclusive

 

Angry Assembly Member brands move as a "scandal"

 

 

* Services will move from Llangollen Hospital this week.

 

A number of health services currently based in Llangollen Hospital will be relocating at the end of this week.

 

That is the message from the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB).

 

llanblogger contacted the board earlier this week to ask for confirmation or otherwise of rumours that the hospital will close this week or early next as a result of being axed in a major shake-up of services proposed by BCUHB.

 

One suggestion had been that the final death knell would be sounded today (Thursday). 

And, indeed, some sources say the hospital is now closed to all intents and purposes, with services already operating from Llangollen Health Centre. 

 

The board statement says: "From Monday 11^th March all outpatient and dressings clinics, phlebotomy (blood sampling) and physiotherapy appointments that were previously based in the Hospital will be held in the Llangollen Health Centre, adjacent to the GP Surgery. The Health Centre is located on Regent Street, part of A5 road to Chirk.

"A Minor Injuries Service will also be available at this location, initially running from 9:00am to 3:30pm, Monday to Thursday, the same hours as apply in the Hospital at present.

 

"The Health Board and the GP surgery are working closely together to ensure that these services continue to be available in the town, in line with the commitments given by the Health Board during the recent consultation, until the new Primary Care Resource Centre is available.

"Director of Primary, Community and Mental Health Services Geoff Lang said: “The relocation of services to the Health Centre will help us to develop our collaboration with our partners in the Llangollen GP Practice, and we intend expanding some of these services over the coming months. 

 

"This is an important step towards the integrated care we want to be able to provide for the town and we are very grateful for the support and help of the Llangollen GPs and Health Board colleagues as we develop health services for the area.”

Llyr Gruffydd, Plaid Cymru’s AM for North Wales, said: “The decision to close Llangollen hospital before alternative provision has been put in place – whether a new care centre or enhanced home care – is a scandal.

 

"In the past few days, we’ve seen ambulance backlogs at the Maelor because of a shortage of beds, so where is the sense in prematurely closing Llangollen Hospital?

 

“I am also sceptical of when we will see a new health centre in Llangollen. I very much doubt one will be in place within two years as some of the health board’s cheerleaders have claimed.”

New lease of life for Penllyn Chapel

* Penllyn Chapel in Brook Street.

 

A landmark Llangollen building with a long and varied history is set to take on a new lease of life.
Penllyn, in Brook Street, began in the early Victorian era as a school and later became the base for a number of different churches.

Now, it is take on a new role as a community centre offering a range of activities and services.

Penllyn was built in 1846 as a British School with the aim of providing basic and non-sectarian education for the children of non-conformists in the area and in its heyday had over 200 on its register.

The building was then taken over by the first of a series of church groups in the 1870s, the last of which, one affiliated to Victory Churches International, held its final services there a few months ago.

Penllyn was left to be administered by a small group of trustees who recently agreed to allow its use – free of charge – by Llangollen’s newly-established City Church.

A joint venture between St Collen’s Parish Church and the Greater Manchester-based City Church, this is a Pentecostal-based organisation with strong community-based aims.

Currently housed in St Collen’s Community Hall off Regent Street, City Church is possibly best known for its regular Community Bite sessions offering daily hot lunches free of charge to anyone is need of them from the area.

According to the man in charge, Pastor Brian Smith, the meal sessions will be transferring permanently over to Penllyn sometime within the next few weeks, with the church’s Saturday evening services moving over first on March 16.

He said: “Under the terms of a trust Penllyn has to be used for worship, and the trustees are kindly allowing us to use the building free of charge for as long as we want.

“We provide our Community Bite meal service free to anyone in the area who wants to come along.

“We serve hot meals, prepared by a chef who gives his services free of charge, such as soup and a roll or cheese on toast and all the food we use in donated to us.

“We attract anything from a handful of people to a roomful.

“Moving into Penllyn will allow us to expand further into the community as there is a kitchen in the building and room to store our food, which we do not have at the community centre.

“We will move our Saturday evening services over to Penllyn right away and, within weeks, we will also transfer Community Bite over there too.”

He added: “We want to build bridges with the community and help the community build bridges within itself as people meet new friends in the church.

“At Penllyn quite a bit needs to be done to the building, such as plastering and painting, and we are now looking for donations to help us to do that.

“We are also seeking charitable status for the church which will enable us to apply for grants.

“In the future we plan to also use Penllyn as the base for a local credit union and surgeries giving free advice to those with debt or legal problems.”     

Pastor Smith said City Church, which is part of the Passion for Jesus Ministry, had its base at Kearsley, near Bolton, and three sister churches to the one in Llangollen are located in and around Greater Manchester.

* Trustee Betty Johnson with the old documents.

The Llangollen church, he added, currently has 35-40 people who attend regularly.

In transferring Penllyn to City Church, trustees came across of number of elaborate hand-written legal documents dating back to the 1840s.

A number of these, measuring over 3ft square, meticulously detail the conveyance of the land on which it was built from its original owner to the school it originally was.

Trustees are arranging for these valuable artefacts to be handed over into the safekeeping of Llangollen Museum.

Phone calls warning issued by county council

Denbighshire County Council has issued a warning to businesses in the county to beware of receiving unsolicited telephone calls claiming that the Enhanced Small Business Rates Relief provisions will be ending on 31 March 2013.

The caller claims to be able to save the business money by gaining a reduction in the rates payable after this time for a fixed fee payment.

The council says this is incorrect. 

A spokesman said: "The Welsh Government has recently announced that the Enhanced Small Business Rate Relief provisions have been extended for a further 12 months in their current format. T

"This means that businesses will continue to enjoy the same level of relief in the 2013/14 billing year as they have had in the current year at no additional cost."

Council questioned over tax payments

A Llangollen resident claims Denbighshire County Council has done “absolutely nothing” to let people know that everyone is now legally entitled to spread the payment of their Council Tax over an extra two monthly instalments.

However, this is not the case, according to the authority.

Mike Connolly has written to llanblogger saying:  “I wonder if you would be able to find out precisely when and how Denbighshire Council plan to make the cash-strapped public aware of their right in law to pay their Council Tax for the year 2013/14 over 12 as opposed to ten instalments.

“There was previously a facility to pay over 12 instalments but this was only available to people who could prove severe financial hardship whereas the new right extends to everyone and is the law.

“I did try and find this out for myself  but the final answer I got on 7^th February 2013 was that the wording of the leaflet which would make this known was still at the ‘proof-reading’ stage. I find this rather odd given that the bills are due out any moment now.

“In particular what worries me is that all the indications given to me by Denbighshire Revenues Deptartment make clear that this facility will only be available to people who ask for it and the problem which that in turn leads to is that as they do not seem to have done anything to make people aware in advance there is likely to be a very, very limited window during which people can actually make the request and, indeed, they may even run the risk of not starting payment on time whilst they are waiting for a response in which case they may lose their right to pay by instalments at all and so, far from helping people, it might land them in even more trouble.

“I am very concerned that Denbighshire seem to have done absolutely nothing in terms of a campaign to the public to tell them months ago about this new right in law so that people could have got their applications in early and avoided the problems which may otherwise occur.

“There are many, many people in the county who have to make daily choices between buying a loaf of bread and pint of milk or putting money on their electricity meter for light and heat and the ability to make even a small positive improvement in their personal finances i.e. by paying a large household bill like Council Tax over 12 payments instead of 10 could make a huge difference.”

A spokesperson for the county council’s tax department said: “The right to 12 monthly instalments was introduced with new legislation in January this year to commence 2013/14.

“In Denbighshire we have offered 12 monthly instalments for a number of years now, (without any conditions as to financial hardship), and many tax payers are already utilising this option.

“As this is the first year that is a legal right we have included details in our money matters booklet which is delivered to all taxpayers with their annual bills.

“This right to 12 months is not limited by application time and can be applied for at any time during the financial year.”

Llan Country Market opens for new season

* Llangollen Country Market opened for the new season on Friday – St David’s Day

Llangollen Country Market has opened up for business at the start of what it hopes will be another busy trading season.

Nationally, the country market concept goes back to 1919 when they were run by the Women’s Institute (WI).

That is how they were known until about 20 years ago when they took on a more modern and business-like look.

But whatever name they have gone by, the basic principle of the markets has never changed – selling home-made food and crafts of the highest quality at the keenest prices.

Llangollen Country Market has been trading since 1977, first at the Memorial Hall and later at the Town Hall where it is still based.

It is part of a 300 to 400-strong national country market network and, more locally, is one of a society of five markets also including those at Wrexham, Ruthin, Denbigh and Rhos-on-Sea.

All the country markets are registered as social enterprises and overseen by a local committee – the one in Llangollen has 10 members.

In the “season”, which runs from early March to just before Christmas, the Llangollen operation is open to customers every Friday between 9.45am and 12.45pm, with doors open from 9am for those looking for early bargains.

Market secretary, Gill Thomas, said: “We don’t have stalls as such and everybody is organised into sections selling different things, such as crafts, plants and vegetables, jam and eggs, with several producers in each section.

“Our producers come from within a 10 to 15-mile radius of Llangollen and include people from Wrexham and Corwen.

“The things we sell are all home produced and nothing is bought in.

“All the producers have food handling certificates and everything they sell is prepared to the highest standards. We liaise regularly with environmental health officers from the local council.

“When one of our producers sells something they pay 10 per cent to the market committee who use the money to cover overheads such as renting the Town Hall for the day

“If they don’t sell anything during the day they don’t have to pay the committee anything.”

Gill added: “It’s really hard work because we have to entice our customers by offering them something which is not available elsewhere.

“However, quite a few businesses have started on country markets as it’s a good way of testing your products.

“Here at Llangollen we are doing quite well and last year, for the first time, we had a stall at Llangollen Food Festival.

“It was a bold step for us but we did it to upgrade our profile.”

Looking to the future, however, Gill believes things might get quite a bit tougher for the town’s country market.

She said: “I think we will be hit pretty hard by the new Sainsbury’s supermarket for which there is planning permission in Llangollen

“We made objections to this at every stage in the planning process because our market relies heavily on passing trade and if someone driving through the town sees Sainsbury’s first they will stop there, buy what they want, get back into their car and drive on through town without stopping to look at anything else.”