llanblogger takes a short break

llanblogger is taking a short break and will be back with all the latest news and information from the area in about a week's time ...

Crime tsar rules out "go soft" policy

A crime tsar has rejected calls to "go soft" on crimes like burglary and small-scale cannabis offences.

 

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Winston Roddick spoke out after it was suggested by a senior figure in national policing that people whose homes have been burgled should no longer expect officers to turn up at their door to investigate the offence

Chief constable Sara Thornton, who leads the National Police Chiefs’ Council, also said forces might not always investigate complaints about people growing cannabis.Mr Roddick, pictured below, said: "There has been commentary in the press that cutbacks will necessitate police forces to decide not to attend at the burglary of someone's homes.

 

"I wish to make it clear I will never endorse this approach. The violation of one's home is one of the most traumatic crimes that anyone can suffer.

 

"I place security at home amongst my highest priorities. Domestic burglary levels in North Wales have, through hard work and dedication, been reduced to very low levels. Our intention is to continue prioritising this.

 

"We certainly shouldn’t go soft on either of these crimes, burglary in particular, because burglary by definition threatens people’s homes. One of my principal crime policies is that people should feel safe and secure at home. If you don’t feel safe and secure at home, you won’t feel safe and secure anywhere.

 

“So although the Chair of the Chief Constable’s Council has said the police won’t be enforcing burglaries when investigating them, that is not the North Wales Police policy, quite the contrary. North Wales Police will pursue burglars.

 

"Similarly, our policy towards drugs has not changed. The people we serve have every right to expect us to provide a comprehensive and professional service in these cases.

 

"In relation to cannabis, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. In the last week or so there were no less than three reported cases in the newspapers showing how North Wales Police had enforced against three separate growers of cannabis.

 

"In one, there were many plants worth quite a lot of money. In another one, there were only five plants and in the other there were about a dozen plants.

 

"Those examples show that North Wales Police will enforce no matter how many plants you’re growing and each one of those persons was arrested, prosecuted and fined or imprisoned, so that is the answer, yes,  North Wales Police will enforce against them.

 

"Policing is a local matter. It’s the responsibility of the local force. The decision to enforce will be taken locally and not by the national council of chief constables." 

Fresh announcement from Llan doctors

DR A D EVANS & PARTNERS

Announcement re Temporary Number

On Friday 11th September, our existing phone number is due to switch from our Regent St building to the new building on Bishops Walk.  However, we are anticipating that there may be some difficulties with the switch.  We wish, therefore, to inform patients that should they experience any difficulty in contacting us on 01978 860625, we do have a temporary number that they can use.  This temporary number is 01978 862639.

We open in the new centre on Bishops Walk on Monday 14th September.  We are hoping that our usual telephone number will be up and running as soon as possible but we ask that patients use the temporary number in the meantime.

We would like to thank our patients for their cooperation and understanding during this period of upheaval.

Beatriz's new food range in memory of her mother

* Beatriz Albo with one of her tapas meals.

A scientist who swapped the laboratory for the kitchen by launching a cooking sauces brand has won a vital grant enabling her to expand her business.

Dr Beatriz Albo is returning to the lab to develop an exciting new range of Spanish tapas meals and delicious aiolis created in memory of her mother.

Beatriz is planning to unveil the new range at the Hamper Llangollen food on October 17 and 18.

She is looking forward to returning to the annual food festival where her innovative Sabor de Amor products made their debut last year.

“Hamper Llangollen was my first food festival, so it is special to me,” said Spanish-born Beatriz, whose Wrexham business has taken off faster than she could ever have imagined.

The popular event in Llangollen’s Royal Pavilion is recognised as one of the UK's top 10 food festivals.

 

Cadwyn Clwyd has provided financial support over the past few years to ensure the festival's long term viability, this was funded through the Rural Development Fund for Wales 2007-2013, which is funded through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the Welsh Government.

 

Beatriz has just been awarded a grant to develop her long dreamed of range of tapas ready-meals at the new North West Food development Research Centre (NoWFOOD) at Chester University.

“Facilities there are fantastic, they have everything I need to help my business grow,” said the mum of two who inherited her passion for food from her family.

Her grandparents ran a restaurant in Salamanca, Spain, all their lives. Her mother was also an accomplished cook and, following her death in June, Beatriz has developed a trio of flavoured aioli sauces in her honour.

“I want to name them Elisa, after my mother. I’ve worked on the recipes at home and the family all love them. There’s a chilli flavoured aioli, another to go with paella and the third has hints of lime and mint.”

Beatriz, who lives in Brymbo, trained as a scientist, gaining a PHD and working in food research before becoming a teacher. But her first love was cooking and last year she followed her heart and made it her full time career.

She started Sabor de Amor – which means flavour of love – by producing the traditional sauces she grew up with in Spain and which she continued to cook for her family after moving to Wales. They included Sofrito, a perfect base for paella, salsa brava, tapenade and aioli. All the sauces are completely authentic, have no additives or artificial flavourings.

She said: “They are just natural ingredients which we used all the time when I was a child. People love them because of the pure flavour. There is a food revolution going on.

Consumers are looking more and more for additive free products. They want to experience simple, natural tastes and aromas. I started off producing just two sauces and now there are 12 in my range, demand has grown so fast.”

Sabor de Amor supplies local farm shops and Beatriz also attends events such as Hamper Llangollen, for which she has to work full out to ensure she has enough stock.

“I went to one festival where I sold out in the first day and had to cook more sauces overnight ready for the following day,” she said. “They were so fresh that the jars were still warm as I was selling them.”

She hopes the Sabor de Amor range will soon be available in supermarkets and is using her grant and work in the NoWFOOD lab to help achieve that ambition.

Beatriz does all the preparation, cooking and marketing of the brand herself, with occasional help from her children, Albert, 18, soon to study business management at Lancaster university, and Susana, 11, a pupil of St Joseph’s school, Wrexham. Her partner, Paul Keysell, a graphic designer created the Sabor de Amor brand designs.

Information and tasty recipes can be found at www.sabordeamor.com

Hamper Llangollen chair Colin Loughlin believes this year's festival is going to be one of the best ever.

 

He said: “Thanks to a whole host of indigenous companies, North East Wales is rapidly establishing a reputation as a centre of excellence for high quality cuisine.

 

“The food festival is a perfect shop window for the companies who form the backbone of our rural economy.

 

"The location of the Pavilion is absolutely spectacular - I can't imagine that any other food festival in the UK has a more beautiful setting."

 
For more details about Hamper Llangollen 2015 visit www.llangollenfoodfestival.com

County's statement on refugee crisis

The following position statement has been supported by councillors in Denbighshire this morning, following a discussion about the situation regarding refugees in Syria.

 

The statement, submitted by Councillor Hugh Evans OBE, Leader of Denbighshire, reads:

 

“The tragedy of the Syrian refugee crises has touched all of us. Denbighshire County Council is keen to join with the Welsh and UK governments and others to coordinate an approach to fulfil our responsibility and play our part in providing assistance and humanitarian support to those refugees displaced as a result of the war in Syria. This could include accommodating a number of families, with appropriate Government support."

Historic Plas Newydd font gets new lease of life

AN 800-year-old font in the grounds of Plas Newydd, historic home of the legendary Ladies of Llangollen, has been given a new lease of life.

The ornately-carved font, which was originally located at nearby Valle Crucis Abbey, stands within a well-house in the dell behind the mansion, just below a summer house.

* Plas Newydd gardener Neil Rowlands at the revived font.

Despite being a popular spot for visitors it had to be closed by Denbighshire County for around two years due to safety reasons when the whole area became waterlogged and muddy.

Now it has been revived by Plas Newydd’s resident gardener Neil Rowlands using the experience he gained in a previous job in the gardens of Lady Lever at Port Sunlight on the Wirral.

Neil said: “Three springs flow into the top of the dell with the water eventually finding its way down into the River Cyflemen. The the springs had gradually altered course which meant water was dropping onto the pathway linking the summer house to the font making it slippery and dangerous.

“We put in two French drains to divert the flow of water away from the path and the font.

“Now clean water from the springs is being delivered to the font instead of the muddy water which had been going into it.

“It’s now much cleaner and nicer to look at for people visiting Plas Newydd.

“The whole job took about five weeks and was very satisfying to do.”

Kevin Pennington, who is charge of Plas Newydd for the county council, said: “The font project was part of our aim to re-create some of the views within the estate that the Ladies of  Llangollen would have known and loved.

“It’s very important to do this as the house and grounds are an important feature of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty of which Llangollen is part.” 

Police boss hunts unsung crime-fighting heroes

A POLICE boss is asking for the public’s help to honour unsung crime-fighting heroes of the community.

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Winston Roddick CB QC (pictured) has just launched his latest round of Community Awards to recognise people and groups who help police to keep their neighbourhood a peaceful and safe place to live and work and who help in rehabilitating offenders.

And he is inviting members of the public to send him their own nominations for the main accolade on offer, the coveted People’s Award.

This aim of this award is to highlight and honour an individual or community group who have made a strong contribution towards community safety and crime prevention.

It is the only one of the awards which is nominated directly by members of the public using an online form. The closing date for nominations is September 25.

Mr Roddick,  who in his time has served as a police officer, a barrister and a judge, revealed that his inspiration for setting up the awards, which are now in their second year, came from last year’s People’s Award winner, Deana Fisher, who pioneered the successful Gwarched Bermo CCTV project which helps keep Barmouth safe.

The Commissioner said: “I went over to Barmouth with a group of police officers and others to see the system and I recall that a local councillor said to me when referring to Deana, `that woman deserves a medal’.

“That comment inspired me to say that the excellent work done by people like Deana must be acknowledged.”

Mr Roddick added:  “One of the awards I established last year is called the People’s Award. 
“This will go to an individual or group who have made an impact in helping to keep people safe and/or to reduce crime. 

“This contribution may impact the whole area, a local town, neighbourhood or even street, but it will have made a difference to the people living and working there.

“It could be someone who is working to bring communities together to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour, or is working with people to deter and reduce offending.

“While I will select most of the award recipients myself in consultation with my office, the People’s Award is special in that it is the only one which will be nominated directly by the public.

“I am therefore asking for the assistance of the people of North Wales to help me select a suitable candidate for this particular award.

“If you know someone in your community who has gone that extra mile to prevent or reduce crime, protect and support members of the community or generally helped to make North Wales a safer place to live and work, please nominate them for the People’s Award. 

“I believe I was the first Police and Crime Commissioner in England and Wales to institute such awards, so North Wales is very much leading the way with this initiative.

“Last year’s awards ceremony was a great success and allowed me to shine a light on the tremendous efforts of some very special people.

“That is why I again decided to host my community awards in 2015.”

The winners of the People’s Award and the other PCC Community Awards will receive their honours in front of police and civic leaders at a presentation on the evening of Thursday, October 22.

Last year’s inspirational People’s Award winner was Deana Fisher who was a key figure in establishing and running the Gwarchod Bermo CCTV project.

For a number of years she has been an active member in the community and spent several years as a town councillor.

She regularly volunteers her time to the project and willingly monitors/reviews the system to help keep Barmouth safe.

The CCTV service relies entirely on enthusiastic and driven volunteers like Deana to operate successfully.

There is clear evidence of a reduction in crime in the area due to her work on the CCTV project.

The member of the public who nominated Deana last year said of her: “She has almost single- handedly transformed our small town into probably the safest place to live in North Wales.”

* To nominate your choice for the People’s Award, go the North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner’s website at www.northwales-pcc.gov.uk to complete and return the online form.  Alternatively you can download the form, complete it and return it to The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, Glan-y-Don, Colwyn Bay, LL29 8AW, or by email to opcc@nthwales.pnn.police.uk and remember the closing date is September 25.