North Wales councils back new Wrexham prison

Council leaders representing the six North Wales Councils have met with Ministry of Justice officials to discuss how to maximise local employment from the new North Wales Prison in Wrexham in both the construction and operational phases.

Councillor Dilwyn Roberts, chair of the North Wales Regional Leadership Board and leader of Conwy County Borough Council, said: “All six North Wales council leaders are fully committed to the building of a new North Wales Prison in Wrexham.

"We believe that the new prison will create jobs across the region and improve prison services for offenders from North Wales.

"We are fully behind Wrexham Council who have done a fantastic job to bring a major employer and service provider to North Wales.

"We are aware that the proposed new prison has its critics on the grounds of its size, but as community leaders, councils are working with the Ministry of Justice to help them maximise local employment and deliver a prison that performs well in terms of reducing re-offending.

"Officers from all six councils are working with the Ministry of Justice, the Welsh Government and the National Offender Management Service to make sure we get the best possible prison set up in North Wales.

"In addition council leaders will meet regularly with Ministry of Justice officials to offer support and monitor progress in securing local employment and a well managed and successful prison that will grow to be best in class in the prison service for both cost and service outcomes.”

Councillor Neil Rogers, leader of Wrexham County Borough Council, said: “I appreciate the support of the leaders of councils and the major public services in North Wales for the Wrexham prison.

"The new prison will be a major boost to the region’s economy and will improve services for offenders in North Wales.

"The early and continuing engagement of all the councils and major public services in the region in planning for the prison will help to ensure that we get the best possible outcomes in terms of jobs and rehabilitation of offenders.”

Plas Madoc trust sets up bank account

A new bank account has been created to help save Plas Madoc Leisure Centre – and supporters are being asked to help get the ball rolling.

The Splash Community Trust has opened its own account as it prepares for a huge fundraising drive in a bid to reopen the popular facility.

A band night at Air Products Social Club in Acrefair last Saturday (May 17) raised about £400, and there are a host of money-spinning projects planned – including a quiz night this Friday.

The Old Black Horse in Rhostyllen has also shown its support by offering to host a fundraising race night for the trust.

Splash director Greg Ogden, who lives in Trevor, said: “We have some really exciting fundraising plans and projects lined up, and we are grateful to everyone who has contacted us to suggest ideas and offer their support.

“We need to keep this going if we’re going to succeed in reopening Plas Madoc, so if you can donate then please do so. Every pound will help.”

The quiz night takes place Flexys Club in Acrefair at 8pm on Friday. Greg added: “There will be questions on all sorts of things: Music, films and TV, sports, science – you name it.

"There will also be a raffle, and we’ve got several great prizes already including free haircuts and driving lessons, bottles of wine, a meal for two and a hand-painted antique watering can. It should be a great night!”

The trust is also working on a new website, which is coming soon and will include a ‘donate’ button so supporters can boost the coffers at the click of a button. In the meantime, if you’d like to make a donation to the Splash Community Trust – or have any fundraising ideas – contact Jenny Miller on 07921 659099. 

For more information on the quiz night call Pete Roberts on 07925 377666.

AM calls for maximum effort on rail modernisation

North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has called for the Welsh Government’s North Wales Transport Taskforce to work with the North Wales Ambitions Board to maximise rail modernisation in the region.

 

Mr Isherwood raised the matter with the Finance Minister Jane Hutt.

 

Speaking in the Chamber, he said: “The North Wales Ambition Board has appointed a Connectivity Project Manager, based in Denbighshire County Council, but working across the six north Wales counties, looking primarily at rail modernisation across North Wales from Crewe to Holyhead.

 

“How will you ensure that the task force appointed by the Welsh Government, looking at north Wales transport and chaired by a colleague who is sitting to your right at the moment, will liaise with the North Wales Ambition Board in order to maximise the potential for that capital investment in that rail connectivity across north Wales to Anglesey?”

 

The Minister replied: “It is critical that this is a joined-up Government approach to the North Wales Ambition Board, particularly in relation to transport links.”  

Rats found at the Maelor

The Daily Post is reporting today that rats have been found at Wrexham Maelor Hospital.

See the full story at: http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/rats-found-wrexham-maelor-hospital-7143382

Euro Elections - how the voting works

When voters go to the polls this Thursday (May 22) they will be asked to cast a vote to elect four Members of the European Parliament to represent the whole of Wales.

Voters will only have one vote to cast and there will be 11 registered parties listed on the ballot paper.

The candidates will be elected by proportional representation so voters will not vote for individual candidates.

Voters are reminded to take their poll card with them to their designated polling station (which is printed on the card) and hand it to the Presiding Officer or one of the Poll Clerks on duty.

Even if a voter has mislaid the poll card, he or she will still be entitled to vote providing they are registered.

A voting mark should be in the form of a cross placed in the box adjacent to the party they wish to vote for. Voters should then place the marked paper in the ballot box.

Polling stations will be open from 7 am until 10 pm.

Each of the 22 local authority areas in Wales will conduct their own counts on Sunday, 25^th May. This is because voting in parts of mainland Europe takes place on that day.

When they have completed their counts, Local Returning Officers will inform the Regional Returning Officer for Wales, Bryn Parry-Jones, of the result of the count in their area.

The result for the Wales electoral region will then be declared by Mr Parry-Jones on Sunday evening at Fishguard Leisure Centre.

Local results cannot be announced before 10 pm as this is the time that polls close in some parts of Europe.

* For more information, go to the website: www.aboutmyvote.co.uk and also  www.denbighshire.gov.uk or you can join the debate on Twitter using hash tag #EPE14.

Appeal after sexual assault

Police are investigating a sexual assault which occurred overnight between 10pm on Friday, May 16 and 2am Saturday, May 17, in the Rhosllanerchrugog area near Wrexham.

 

The victim, a woman in her 20’s, accepted a lift from a passing vehicle on Market Street in Rhos which had two male occupants. It is believed that the victim was then assaulted.

 

Officers are keen to speak to anyone who saw a vehicle in suspicious circumstances either in Rhos, on rural roads or at secluded locations between Rhos and Bangor on Dee during this time.

 

Detective Inspector Jon Jones said: “We are appealing to anyone with information regarding the incident to contact us. We are especially keen to speak to anyone who may have seen a vehicle acting suspiciously in the Rhos area, a woman getting into a vehicle in Rhos or anyone who saw a vehicle parked in an unusual location for that time of night in the rural area around the B5426 Bangor Road between Rhos and Bangor on Dee.”

 

DI Jones added: “Equally, I would ask anyone who has any information that could assist us with the investigation to contact us on 101 quoting reference number R072918 or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

KLS says "hang fire on cottage hospital's future"

* The traffic "pinch point" on the A539 approach to town.

A COMMUNITY group has asked Denbighshire County Council to hang fire on deciding the future of Llangollen’s former cottage hospital until the town’s planned new health centre is opened.

Martin Crumpton, chair of Keep Llangollen Special (KLS) recently wrote to Denbighshire planning chiefs voicing his organisation’s concern that should the cottage hospital be redeveloped while the proposed health centre fails to materialise, Llangollen would be “permanently and irrevocably be left with nothing, just the GP surgery which for years has been chronically short of space for its 9,000 registered patients.”

He also outlined KLS’s concerns about pedestrian access to the new health centre, planned for the site of the derelict River Lodge, off the A539.

He received a reply from Iolo McGregor, Corporate Improvement Officer, Business Improvement & Modernisation, which said: “In order to improve the pedestrian route to the proposed health centre, we have identified a couple of locations where pedestrians will be able to cross the road in order to avoid the section of Mill Street with no pavement.

“Each crossing point will consist of dropped kerbs, tactile paving and a ‘build-out’. A build-out is where the road is narrowed on one side by extending the pavement out to the centre line of the road thereby halving the distance that pedestrians will need to cross.

“Build-outs also force traffic from one direction to give way, thereby also creating a traffic calming effect, which will reduce speeds and thus further improve pedestrian safety.

“Additionally, should users not wish to walk, during the times when the new facility will be dealing with patients, there are currently four buses an hour operating between Llangollen town centre and the hospital site. Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board has agreed to provide shelters for passengers using the bus.”

Mr Crumpton was told by the planners that the future of the cottage hospital and the possibility of the health centre failing to go ahead were matters for the health board and not the county council.  

He has now written back to the council, saying: “The public consultation for planning application 03/2014/0472 (demolition of the cottage hospital) ends soon – June 3 - and we’ve only just been informed of the measures proposed to make access to the planned health centre build along Mill Street safe.

“Our evaluation of those measures casts doubt on the viability of the new primary health centre which, in turn, makes the need to retain the cottage hospital important and urgent, if not imperative.  

“We ask you to withhold the Decision Notice on PA 03/2014/0472 until the new health centre has been completed.

“If, having evaluated our concerns, your intention is to permit the redevelopment of the Riverside Lodge then we ask for a sensible, precautionary compromise - construct the traffic-calming measures first or at least simulate them with cones and temporary lights.

“This approach has the virtue of finding if a different approach is needed, or even if there is another solution.

“That stretch has been identified as unsafe and if our fears turn out to be unfounded they would have to have been constructed anyway, so there’s no additional cost involved.

“If the measures fail and have to be removed then the costs will only run into thousands rather than the millions at risk in building a health centre which patients can’t reach safely.”

The planning application for the old cottage hospital calls for redevelopment of the site by way of the demolition of existing buildings and the erection of six social housing units with associated access and parking provision.

KLS has a number of concerns about pedestrian access to the new health centre site, including:

·         Night-time visibility of the build-outs.

·         18-wheelers, emergency services and tourist coaches being unable to drive through a narrowed carriageway.

·         Deliveries of locomotives by wide flat-loader to Llangollen Railway becoming “impossible”. It says the railway shares this concern.

·         The proximity of Wern Road, the new pedestrian crossing and the northern end of Castle Street at the bridge to t.he beginning of the pinch-point on Mill Street means it would take no more than six queuing cars to gridlock Llangollen and might lead to the A5 also being blocked, fears KLS.