Euro cash sought for river footbridge to new health centre

Health chiefs are seeking European cash to fund the building of a footbridge over the River Dee to serve Llangollen’s new £5 million health centre, says an Assembly Member.

Campaigners have been complaining since plans for the centre were first drawn up as a replacement for the town’s closed-down Cottage Hospital that pedestrians would find it difficult to reach the building because of its location on a busy road with restricted pavement access.

But now Clwyd South Labour AM Ken Skates says the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board is applying for money to pay for the footbridge to connect the main part of the town with the former River Lodge site where the centre is now in the early stages of construction.   

Mr Skates says he has also asked the Welsh Government to examine the feasibility of a road bridge over the Dee to further enhance access to the site.

In  a statement today Mr Skates and Llangollen county councillor Stuart Davies have both welcomed the ‘rapid’ progress being made in the new centre.

Mr Skates, who is based in Llangollen, said: “It is fantastic news for Llangollen that the health board, local practice and Welsh Labour Government are working together to create a modern, state-of-the-art healthcare facility fit for the 21st century. The people who live here need and deserve this major investment.

“Rapid progress is being made on the building of the brand new multi-million pound centre, and I’m delighted that the health board is now investigating the possibility of a footbridge over the Dee to improve access from Llangollen following my meeting with chief executive Trevor Purt and chairman Peter Higson for talks last month.

“I am hopeful the health board will be able to utilise European money to make this happen. It is some way off, but it’s important that we keep an eye on what Llangollen needs not just now but in the medium and long-term future.”

Cllr Davies said: “I am pleased to see the progress on the new health centre and I’m particularly pleased to hear that some of the issues I have championed, such as pedestrian and road crossings across the Dee, are now being pursued by Betsi Cadwaladr and the Welsh Government.”

 

Llan to stage charity paddle event

LEGENDARY kayaker Dave Manby has organised a charity paddle in aid of muscular dystrophy in Llangollen next month.

Dave, who has been a national champion in slalom canoeing C-1 and is considered a pioneer in the sport, is probably best known for being involved on the British expedition which made the first descent of the Dudh Kosi river, which runs off Mount Everest.

On Saturday, October 18 he aims to raise over £10,000 for muscular dystrophy by staging a paddle down the River Dee from Glyndyfrdwy to the Horseshoe Falls and then by canal to Llangollen.

Those taking part will be transported to the put-in by steam train along the Llangollen heritage railway and Dave has booked the engine to do two runs of 200 paddlers up the valley.

A number of other attractions are also being arranged for the day.

A band called Spikedrivers will be playing train-inspired blues on the station platform and also doing a gig in the Sun Inn that evening.

There will be an exhibition of vintage canoes and kayaks on the platform, provided by Graham Mackereth of Pyranha Mouldings, and a lecture by Phil Harwood about his full descent of the Congo River by canoe.

Dave said: “The event is planned for open boats but there is no reason why you can’t paddle your kayak, sit-on-top, duckie, or stand-up-paddleboard down the river.

“This is a great weekend for a reunion of people you did a trip with, went to university with, or worked with in the summer.

“I’m not organising anything for the Sunday but why not stay the night and either paddle on down the canal over the two aqueducts through the two tunnels to England and the Poacher’s Pocket pub for lunch, spend the day mountain biking at Llandegla Centre, take a leisurely hike up to Dinas Bran Castle, or visit the Hamper Llangollen food festival which is on the same weekend.”

Tickets for the event are £60 and more details are available on Dave’s website at www.davemanby.co.uk

 

 

 

 

Plas Madoc public meeting planned

Volunteers behind plans to reopen Plas Madoc Leisure Centre will hold a public meeting after taking a major step towards achieving their dream.

The Splash Community Trust is calling on ‘anyone who wants to play a part in Plas Madoc’s future’ to turn out and show their support at Air Products Social Club in Acrefair at 7pm on Thursday, (September 18).

Wrexham Council has now agreed in principle to leasing the popular facility to Splash and to injecting £50,000 to reopen the doors before the end of the year.

Chairman Darrell Wright, who lives in Trevor, said: “There is a lot to discuss and a lot of planning and hard work still to come, but we are now finally in a position to look to the future with optimism.

“I would call on anyone who wants to play a part in Plas Madoc’s future to come and show their support. Despite the fantastic progress we’ve made, we cannot succeed without the help of the public – and we’ll need it now more than ever.”

Ken Skates, Labour AM for Clywd South and a Trust member, added: “We need your support to continue raising money, we need your help in spreading the word that Plas Madoc is back in business and, most importantly, we need you to use it when you have it back. “This is an exciting time and I am delighted to have been able to play a part. It’s now time for the public to help make sure it is still around for the next generation to enjoy.”

Plas Madoc campaign thrown £50k lifeline

The Daily Post is reporting that the campaign to re-open Plas Madoc leisure centre has been thrown a £50,000 lifeline by Wrexham Council.

For the full story, see: http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/plas-madoc-leisure-centre-thrown-7751462

Clwyd South AM Ken Skates, who has played a leading role in the campaign, said in a statement:

“I’m delighted that significant progress is being made and that the council has now decided that it should support our plans to reopen Plas Madoc.

 

"I would like to pay tribute to the remaining group of Labour councillors for their unwavering and unequivocal support for Plas Madoc and for the community, and for their determination over this major issue.

 

“Although the one-off £50,000 grant mentioned is only half of what the Trust and Labour councillors had appealed for, we have pulled off what appears to be a miraculous victory. I look forward to hearing more about how the council will support us.”

Prestige cycling event heads for Horseshoe Pass

The countdown has begun to welcome one of the UK's most prestigious cycling sportives to North East Wales.

And residents in Denbighshire and Wrexham are being encouraged to lend their support by giving a warm welcome on the day.

The Wiggle Etape Cymru 2014 race, taking place on Sunday, September 14,  starts and finishes at Bangor on Dee Racecourse and passes through communities in Wrexham County Borough before it enters into Denbighshire through the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Beauty.  

The route takes in several well-known climbs including the legendary Horseshoe Pass which incorporates a timed King of the Mountains challenge. 

This event was voted Sportive of the Year 2012 by readers of Road Cycling UK and has been widely acclaimed for its success by all of the top cycling media outlets. 

The event is being staged by Human Race, who are the UK's largest mass participation events company and fully is supported by Wrexham and Denbighshire Councils. 

Councillor Huw Jones, Denbighshire's Cabinet Lead Member for Leisure, said: "Cycling is becoming an ever more popular sport, especially in the wake of the tremendous cycling success at London 2012 and we are extremely keen to capitalise on this renewed interest in the sport.

"Here in Denbighshire we are working hard to establish the county as a centre for cycling excellence. We have the infrastructure to deliver this, with resources such as the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Cycling Centre at Llandegla right on our very own doorstep. 

"This year will be the fourth year in a row that Denbighshire County Council has been actively involved in assisting event organisers to ensure the safe running of this event and we are confident that it will continue to be a great success.' 

* For further information, please visit the website: www.humanrace.co.uk

Councillors approve £4.6 million cuts package

Councillors in Denbighshire have approved a package of cuts which could save the authority £4.6 million over the next two financial years.

At a meeting held in County Hall, Ruthin today (Tuesday), councillors discussed a raft of proposals identified by individual services to save the authority money, in light of the Welsh Government's annoucement that the authority would need to find an additional £3 million on top of the £6 million it was predicting.  

The implication of  Welsh Government's announcement is that Denbighshire County Council will need to find £18m cuts over the next two years.

Councillor Julian Thompson-Hill, Lead Member for Finance and Assets, said: "Over recent years, the Council has found its savings with little or no impact on frontline services.  We made a commitment to protect these services and jobs wherever possible and we believe we have been successful in doing this to date. However, with the significant financial savings we need to make over the coming years, inevitably there will be an impact on services, as we look to reduce or stop services altogether.   

"We have been working very pro actively as a Council on developing our budget strategy for 2015/6 and beyond,  to ensure that we are not having to take knee jerk reactions late in the year. We have developed a new system for providing our councillors with choices over where we make our reductions in budget and we have worked our way through detailed discussions on each and every one of our service areas. 

Leader of Denbighshire, Councillor Hugh Evans OBE, said: "We have done as much as we can through careful financial planning. The time has now come for very difficult decisions. 

"The financial settlement we are expecting from the Welsh Government later this year is expected to be worse than predicted, with the Minister announcing in June that we would need to find an additional £3 million on top of the £6 million cuts we were already planning to find. 

"That does mean that there are tough decisions ahead and a lot of our proposals will need to be worked up in terms of the finer detail.  Communication with our communities and residents is key and we are making a firm commitment to sharing the finer details when we are in a position to do so."

County agrees to support Conwy merger

At a meeting of Denbighshire's full council today (Tuesday), members agreed to support the idea of starting discussions with Conwy County Borough Council about exploring the possibility of a voluntary merger. 
Like all local councils in Wales, Denbighshire is currently planning for unprecedented cuts to jobs and services over the next three years, with the prospect of austerity until 2022.

At the same time, the Welsh Government's White Paper for Local Government Reform forces the council to choose between voluntary merger with another council by April 2018 - or the prospect of compulsory merger by April 2020. 

During the meeting, Denbighshire's Chief Executive, Mohammed Mehmet, told members the strategic decision facing the Council is whether, given the very challenging financial context, it is in its interest to pursue the option of voluntary merger, especially if that option could help to reduce the level of cuts the council is currently facing. 

He added: "Alternatively, the council could reject the voluntary merger option and concentrate its resources on managing the cuts and maintaining services without being distracted by a merger, at least for the next three years. The choice is a difficult one and should not be made without serious consideration." 

The White Paper consultation period closes on 1 October 2014 and members agreed that, subject to reaching agreement with Conwy County Council, both councils proceed to develop a joint expression of interest to voluntarily merge by April 2018 and to submit this expression of interest to Welsh Government by November 2014, provided the two councils can: 

 * Secure a substantial financial and support package from Welsh Government that is binding; and 

* That once the two authorities and Welsh Government agree the statement of intent in November 2015 that the agreement is binding on all three partners.

The ‘substantial financial and support package’ referred to will be negotiated with Welsh Government and put before both Denbighshire and Conwy members to consider before agreeing to proceed. 

If these conditions can be secured then that would allow both councils to reduce the level of cuts to services and avoid the possible failure of the project either because of local disagreements or change of position by Welsh Government. If they cannot be secured then the risks of voluntary merger are too high.