Happy New Year to you all!

llanblogger wishes a Happy and Prosperous New Year to all our readers.

Thank you for joining us during 2012 and we hope you stay with us as we head into 2013.

First Minister's New Year greetings

First Minister Carwyn Jones has wished Wales a Happy New Year and is calling on the country to come together to face the challenges of the global economy.

Mr Jones (pictured left) said: “As we say goodbye to 2012, let us look forward with optimism to 2013. No one is denying Wales, like the rest of the world, will continue to face some very real economic challenges. This will require all of us to work together, to unite as a country to face these tough times.

"I believe that despite the current climate we can come through these times stronger as a nation.

"I give my personal commitment to continue to make sure the Welsh Government does all it can to support our economy and help create jobs. I will sell the message to the world that Wales is ready and open to do business.

“We will continue to invest in our infrastructure, help our young people find jobs and maintain our drive to improve standards in our schools so we have the skills needed for the 21st Century.

“New Year is a time to put aside differences, a time for us to focus on family and friends and a time to look to the future.

"I wish all of you a Happy New Year!”

Talk Talk to sponsor Llangollen FC

Llangollen Football Club has received a £600 financial boost from TalkTalk, he home phone and broadband provider.

The club will be sponsored by TalkTalk for the next 12 months and the funding will be used to buy new training equipment.

Residents in Llangollen, Dinbren and Berwyn will also benefit from a £50,000 investment by TalkTalk, which is expanding its Next Generation Network to provide residents with access to fast, reliable, better value and more secure broadband.

Built into the broadband network itself and unique to TalkTalk is the network-level security service HomeSafe™.

Homesafe gives customers control over the type of websites their household can access across every single device that connects to the internet in their home.

Robert Evans, Chairman at Llangollen Football Club, said: “We are very pleased that TalkTalk has chosen to support Llangollen Football Club over the next twelve months. The donation has been used to purchase new training equipment."

Tristia Clarke, commercial director at TalkTalk, said: “By investing in the exchange in Llangollen TalkTalk will be able to bring our great value offers to even more families in the area and give customers access to our fantastic security service HomeSafe™.

"In this amazing Olympic year, TalkTalk is also delighted to be supporting sport at grassroots level up and down the country. Llangollen Football Club is a fantastic example of a local club engaging and enthusing the next generation to enjoy sport. We wish them every success with future endeavours."
  
By installing its own equipment in the local exchange, TalkTalk claims it can offer even better value services and innovative products to its customers.

The NGN enables speeds of up to 14mb and customers who have recently been upgraded to the new network experience an average increase in broadband speed of 50%.

Bids invited for Oakleigh by mid-January

* Agents say bids for Oakleigh should be in by January 18.

Anyone interested is buying Oakleigh, the former mental health facility in Abbey Road, Llangollen, now has just a couple of weeks to put in an offer for the property.

That’s the message from agents acting for the vendor, the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board.

The imposing property, which stands off the A5 in front of the eisteddfod field, has been empty for some years and is now being sold off by the board as surplus to its requirements.

A spokesman for agents Legat Owen’s Chester office, which is handling the sale, recently told llanblogger that Oakleigh had an asking price of £350,000 and that they had been contacted by a number of potential buyers.     

We have just heard again from Stephen Wade, director business space for Legat Owen, who said: “In view of the level of interest in Oakleigh we are inviting Best Offers by 1.00pm on Friday 18^th January 2013.

“Anyone wishing to be bid should register their interest with our office and we will provide them with a form for the submission of an offer.”

The sale details show that Oakleigh covers 306 square metres (3,293 square feet) on a site of 0.28 hectares (0.69 acres).  

The description continues: “Oakleigh comprises an attractive two storey period propertyfof brick construction under a pitched timber framed roof with clay tile covering.  

“Internally the property retains many of its original features.  

“The property has a rateable value of £10,000 and is available for sale freehold.  

“The property offers potential for a variety of alternative uses subject to securing the appropriate planning permission.  

“Planning permission has recently been granted for a change of use to a residential dwelling.”

Continued heavy rain leads to warning

The Daily Post is reporting tonight that on its website that Environment Agency Wales is asking people to remain alert to the risk of localised flooding as forecasts indicate that more heavy rainfall is likely to affect large parts of Wales.

See the story at:
http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/2012/12/29/warning-to-remain-alert-as-more-heavy-rain-set-to-hit-wales-55578-32514450/

llanblogger now back in action!

Following our Christmas break, the llanblogger editorial team is now back in action and looking forward to providing readers with all the latest news - local, regional and national.

If you have got anything you share with readers, either from over Christmas or looking ahead into the new year, just get in touch with us at the usual e-mail address - llanblogger@gmail.com.

We're waiting to hear from you!

Landslip leads to reorganisation of train services

* The locomotive No.802 at Glyndyfrdwy where

the Mince Pie Specials are temporarily terminating

due to a riverside landslip.

 

A riverside landslip has led to the temporary reorganisation of seasonal train services on Llangollen Railway. 

Railway officials discovered on Boxing Day that a short section of banking had fallen into the river just west of the station at Glyndyfrdwy where the heritage line runs close to the river. 

For safety reasons they immediately suspended services between Glyndyfrdwy and Carrog.  

Railway spokesman GeorgeJones said:  “Pending further investigation of the situation, and any potential for the landslip intruding on to the track, the decision was taken to terminate the winter-time series of Mince Pie Special trains from Llangollen at Glyndyfrdwy.” 

Railway chairman, Jim Ritchie, said:  “Llangollen Railway regrets the disruption to visitors' plans for visiting the Dee Valley for the train ride through to the terminus at Carrog.  

“The riverside situation requires a detailed assessment as to the repair which may be needed, but we will be unable to put this in hand until after the New Year period. 

“In the meantime, we trust our visitors will still enjoy the shorter run by steam train through to Glyndyfrdwy and take advantage of the opportunity to explore the Welsh countryside." 

Train time departures from Llangollen have been revised to start 11.15am, 1.15pm and 3.15pm through to the end of the festive season services on  January 1.