Cruise ships could dock in Llangollen

* Cruise ships like this one could soon be docking at Llangollen Wharf.

In recent years Llangollen has benefitted from visitors from a number of cruise ships docking in Liverpool.   

Passengers are offered a day trip to North Wales that includes a visit to Llangollen but that unfortunately limits their time here and what they can see and experience. 

Under current investigation is a proposal that would bring the cruise ships over night from Liverpool around the Wirral and up the Dee, arriving around dawn for mooring at Dee Mill Wharf.

Spokesperson, David Davies, said: "This will enable passengers to spend a whole day in town with the opportunity to take a train ride, a trip on the horse drawn boat, partake of some lunch in one of our many cafes, restaurants or hotels and enjoy a local shopping experience.

"Passengers would return to their ship in time for a night time return sailing such that the cruise can then resume their programme on schedule.

"This would be a tremendous boost to tourism and trade in the town and a memorable  additional experience for all the cruise passengers, truly putting Llangollen on the world map." 

Llan event promotes best of county's food and drink

* Leanne Ing from the Cabin Kitchen.

A COUPLE who run a cake-making business in Denbighshire are tasting more success with the UK’s only white water paddle-boarding experience.

Lianne and Anthony Ing, who are both 24 were among the stars of an event to promote the best of Denbighshire’s growing food and drink industry.

Both businesses were showcased at A Taste for Local, a major networking event hosted by Denbighshire County Council at Llangollen Pavilion.

Part of March for Business, Denbighshire’s Business Month, the aim was to give people involved in the hospitality and tourism industries the chance to mingle with some of the county’s top local producers.  

 

Hugh Evans, Lead Member for Economic Development at Denbighshire County Council, was delighted with the turn out.

* Chrissie Ashworth from Temptations Cakes, left, with Karen Collo. 

He said: “We had close on 100 people at the event who were a mixture of people running their own food related businesses and those from the catering and accommodation sectors.

"Existing businesses shared information, experience and knowledge with each other while start up businesses were pointed in the right direction. There were practical examples of how to get local produce on the menu and examples of how to diversify into the tourism sector.

“The events are all part of our work on developing the local economy and delivering the wider economic development strategy for the county."

Lianne and Anthony operate Cabin Kitchen from their home in Glyndyfrdwy in the Dee Valley to supply mouth-watering cakes to cafes across the area.

Lianne explained: “It all started when we went on holiday to San Diego and California and saw people having lots of fun aboard stand-up paddle boards on the water there.

“We bought two of the boards for about £900 each and we had more boards specially made for use on white water rivers and soon afterwards started our business, Stand-Up Paddle Board UK, which offers people the chance to try them out on the fast-flowing River Dee and also the nearby Llangollen Canal.”

* Cllr Rhys Hughes opens proceedings.

“It’s a great new sport and I think we’re unique is offering the only white water paddle-boarding experience in Wales and the UK.

“In our cake-making business, called Cabin Kitchen, we bake a wide range of cakes, including gluten free, which we sell to cafes across Denbighshire."

Lianne added: “We wanted to be at A Taste for Local because it was a great opportunity to meet people in the same sort of businesses as ours and to help give what we’re doing a higher profile.”

Amongst those who picked up plenty of ideas for future business development was Karen Collo from Wrexham who was at the event on behalf of a friend who runs a string of cafes in Liverpool, Preston, Nottingham and Rotherham.

She said: “I was looking for different types of product to use in the cafes, which all have their own concept from stand-alone cafes to coffee shops.

“I found a few things which fitted the bill. One of the stalls which caught my eye was Temptations homemade cakes where the products looked very good.”

Temptations owner, Chrissie Ashworth, said: “I’ve just moved to new, larger premises in Corwen and it was good to be at the event and to show off my products to a wider market.

“I was delighted to have the chance to show them to a potential buyer.”

Guest speakers included TV hill farmer Gareth Wyn Jones who issued a rallying cry for a “farming food revolution”.

He said: “Events such as this are fantastic because we need to show people just how good Welsh food – such as our lamb – actually is.

“Because as a nation we have more and more children with obesity or diabetes, I believe education is the key to what I call a farming food revolution.

“We have got to educate them to eat more healthily and we could start with encouraging them to drink milk, which is one of the best things you can have, rather than fizzy drinks.”

Other speakers were Colin Loughlin, chairman of the Hamper Llangollen food festival, who stressed the importance of food and drink to the tourism industry, and David Shiel, senior countryside officer for the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, who referred to the strong link between the local landscape and food.

Councillor Rhys Hughes, who represents Llangollen on Denbighshire County Council, said: “The event was all about networking and allowing businesses to meet and get to know each other.

“Tourism is worth over £400 million a year to the county and today was also a way to celebrate the abundance of good quality food products and what we have to offer our visitors.” 

Denbighshire Council have other events in the pipeline, including Social Media for Beginners at Rhyl College on May 12 and Open 4 Business at Oriel House, St Asaph, on June 30.

Group to fly in from Germany for Operatic show

 * A group of operatic members who appear in the show as frisky grannies try out their costumes outside Llangollen Town Hall.

A GROUP of Germans are planning to fly almost 700 miles to catch the latest show by Llangollen Operatic Society.

There are now just a couple of weeks to go until the curtain goes up on the first of six performances of Mel Brook’s smash-hit musical The Producers at Llangollen Town Hall.

Cast and crew are working hard to put the finishing touches to songs, dances, costumes and scenery and tickets are starting to sell like hot cakes as word spreads and information and action shots of rehearsals are shared on social media.

Society members were particularly thrilled to hear that four people are planning to jet over from Germany to catch the show.

A few months ago two people from Frankfurt, named August and Monika, who were spending time in Llangollen to arrange internships for students from Germany were in the town’s Corn Mill restaurant when a group of operatic members came in for post-rehearsal drinks.

After striking up a conversation, it became clear that The Producers was one of August’s favourite shows, so it was jokingly suggested to him he might to come back and see it when it’s staged next month.

Producer, Tracey Rawlinson, said: “I arrived at the pub to find a group of members laughing and joking with August and his colleague, trying to persuade them to come and see the show.

“Whatever they said, it worked as I received an e-mail from him a few days later requesting four tickets.

“The group from Germany are planning to stay at a local guesthouse and tour around the area for a few days before attending the Saturday night performance.

“We’re so excited to have international supporters and are looking forward to welcoming them back to Llangollen and hope they will join in our post performance celebrations.

“In his e-mail August said he was really looking forward to seeing the show so much that he was jumping for joy.”

The Producers will be staged at Llangollen Town Hall from April 12-16, starting at 7.30pm, and with a matinee performance at 2.30pm on Saturday 16th.

* Tickets are now available online at the following link:  www.ticketsource.co.uk/llangollenoperaticsociety.

Campaign to prepare for social care changes

The six North Wales councils and the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board are supporting a campaign to inform residents across the region of significant changes to the way health and social care is provided in future.

The new Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 comes into effect on April 6 and represents a shift in focus for health and social care providers across the country.

In the face of challenges such as demographic changes, a growing demand for services and further cuts to budgets, the Act calls for smarter, more innovative approaches to delivering cost effective care of the highest possible standards.

Jenny Williams, Director of Social Care at Conwy Council, speaking on behalf of the partner agencies in North Wales, said: “The time for implementing the new Act is fast approaching and a lot of work is going on behind the scenes to prepare for this big change.

“The Act is very much a new way of working. It aims to make residents an equal partner in their care, with access available  to advice and information. Any assessments will clearly focus on the individual and what matters to them.

“It is really important for those who currently use health and social care services, their networks, carers and those potentially needing care that changes are on the way. They need to understand how their care and support will be affected.

“We want North Wales residents to be fully aware of the changes and to embrace the change. We will continue to provide information to residents and signpost them to websites, resident newsletters and other forms of communication over the coming weeks."

* All the latest information on the Act and the changes can be found on your local authority website or through Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board’s website.

Mike to run in triathlon for air ambulance

* Mike Edwards outside Chirk Leisure Centre with one of the Wales Air Ambulance mascots, Huw HEMS.



Mike Edwards of Llangollen is competing in the Chirk triathlon on April 17, raising funds for Wales Air Ambulance. 

The event starts and finishes at Chirk Leisure Centre and Mike is training at the leisure centre.

Mike, a long-term cyclist,  regularly hits the mountain bike trails at Coed Llandegla  and pounds the roads in the Wrexham and Llangollen areas.  

Following a heart attack five years ago Mike regained his fitness and took up the triathlon event. 

He is a keen supporter of  the air ambulance, being well aware of the value of a speedy response in his sport. 


* To sponsor Mike please contact him at Cittaslow Llangollen Twitter: @Mike262, @MikeBuyLocal(Buy Local Llangollen), Facebook: Michael Edwards : BuyLocalLlangollen, or LinkedIn: Michael Edwards and also on Google Hangout



Mike has so far raised £150 through Virgin Money Just Giving. To support him, follow the link:

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserPage.action;jsessionid=zgS4DAybgD59Scs7pGQG4xgq.lgvappprod2:server-one?userUrl=MichaelEdwards262&faId=690831&isTeam=false

Low income familes could cut water bills, says AM

Many lower income households in North Wales could be eligible for savings of up to £250 on their water bills, says North Wales AM Mark Isherwood.

And he is urging local people to check whether they could benefit.

Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water has launched a special HelpU tariff for customers in households with a total annual income of no more than £15,000.

Mr Isherwood said: “Welsh Water says that many thousands of customers could benefit from HelpU - and some could see their annual water and sewerage bill cut by a half. People who qualify only have to get in touch with the company and they’ll be helped to make the switch to the HelpU tariff.

“This is an initiative that would benefit many in my constituency and I urge people to think about whether they qualify and, if so, to contact the company immediately. We know that for many the water bill exceeds five per cent of household income and so paying it can be a struggle.

“There are big savings available to those on low incomes. If you don’t qualify yourself, perhaps you know someone else who does. Please spread the word and pass on this valuable information to them.”

Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water can be contacted online at www.dwrcymru.com or by calling 0800 052 0145.

60,000 customers already benefit from Dŵr Cymru’s social tariffs for water and sewerage bills. HelpU is the company’s only social tariff based solely on household income. It has been devised after consultation with the Welsh Government, the Consumer Council for Water, and Community Housing Cymru. 

Make sure you register to vote on May 5

Denbighshire County Council is encouraging people to visit www.gov.uk/register-to-vote to register to have their say on Thursday May 5 when voters in Wales will go to the polls to elect an Assembly Member and a Police and Crime Commissioner.

The Electoral Commission has launched its major national voter registration campaign across Wales to remind people to register by the deadline of Monday April 18.

In Wales, advertising will appear across TV, radio and online on demand video services.

This is in addition to the work that is already being carried out across Wales by the Commission and partner organisations, which started earlier this year.

The public awareness campaign across Wales aims to encourage anyone not yet registered, to do so as soon as possible.  Research shows that young people, students, and recent home movers are less likely to be registered to vote.

Registering to vote is quick and easy to do online at gov.uk/register-to-vote but you only have until Monday April 18 if you want to vote in these elections in Wales this May.