Police boss offers boost to community crimebusters

* Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner for North Wales Ann Griffith, Assistant Chief Constable of North Wales Police Richard Debicki,  PACT Chairman David Williams and Police and Crime Commissioner for North Wales Arfon Jones.

A special fund which uses cash seized from crooks to help community crimebusters in North Wales is set to take its hand-outs to over £200,000 in five years.

The Your Community, Your Choice Awards are again putting up over £40,000 for local groups and North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones is urging local groups to bid for the cash.

The Community Fund is again being set up jointly by Mr Jones, North Wales Police and the North Wales Police and Community Trust (PACT).

Each of the region’s six counties will have £2,500 apiece for two groups with £5,000 each for two organisations that operate across North Wales.

The successful groups are chosen by public vote and entries close on Saturday, September 30, with the Your Community, Your Choice entry form available on the North Wales Police website with a link to it on the Police Commissioner’s website.

A shortlist of applicants will be chosen by a special panel and voting opens to the public on October 30 and runs until December 1 with that vote deciding the winners.

The cash for the awards comes partly from money seized by the courts through the Proceeds of Crime Act with the rest from the Police Commissioner’s Fund.

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones said: “These awards are important because they involve the community and the communities decide where the money can best be spent.

“A lot of what we fund is aimed at providing something for young people to get involved with in their spare time rather than being tempted to commit crime or indulge in anti-social behaviour.

“We want to support communities so they are able to take responsibility for their own areas.

“Smaller community groups like them can do a great deal to make communities safer, reduce crime and reduce re-offending, It also sends a good message to the communities because it shows we are listening to them.”

His message was backed by Assistant Chief Constable Richard Debicki who said: “This is the fifth year of the scheme and it has been a great success because it gives the public and local communities the chance to have a stake in how local issues are addressed and how we together tackle crime and disorder.

“I get particular satisfaction that part of the funding comes from the proceeds of crime, so that money is taken out of the pockets of criminals and their ill-gotten gains by the courts and is put back into community initiatives.

“It’s turning bad money into good and it’s making a real difference because it is local people who recognise and understand their local issues and how to solve them.

“This is a really positive aspect of the scheme and it helps bring us closer to those communities.”

PACT Chairman David Williams said: “I believe the scheme has been tremendously successful and I welcome the symbolism and synergy between accessing the ill-gotten gains of criminal activity in North Wales and redistributing it to communities in north Wales to support projects which will have a beneficial impact on the local population.

“I have visited some of these projects and I found the commitment and determination shown to be inspirational.

“The aims of the Your Community, Your Choice scheme support the objectives of the Police and Crime Commissioner’s plan so it creates a potent strategy to enhance the well-being of towns and villages across north Wales.”

PACT Manager Dave Evans added: “Applicants have to be a properly constituted community group or a registered charity and the main criterion is that the project helps to support the Police and Crime Plan by delivering safer neighbourhoods.

“It gives us the opportunity to engage with a wide variety of community groups and also importantly gives out local neighbourhood policing teams the opportunity to engage with those groups and support them with their projects.

“I would recommend that applicants considering a bid liaise with their local neighbourhood policing team to discuss it and make sure it is as comprehensive as possible.”

* Completed applications must be returned by e-mail to yourcommunityyourchoice@nthwales.pnn.police.uk by 5pm on the closing date of September 30.

Free course to help businesses beat cycber crime

A free course is being offered to protect businesses from the growing threat of cybercrime.

Denbighshire County Council is providing a workshop to businesses on Cyber Essentials, a UK Government backed, industry-supported, foundation for basic cybersecurity.

The one-day course will cover the Cyber Essentials framework, best practice to mitigate cybersecurity risks and understanding external and internal cyber threats to businesses.

Businesses in the county are being offered a free place on this course, normally £70 per person.

The course will take place at Caledfryn, Smithfield Road, Denbigh, on October 2, starting at 9.30am.

* To book or for more information visit https://goo.gl/Nxntxe

Lottery cash will help improve well-being of elderly

South Denbighshire Community Partnership (SDCP) supported by Citizens Advice Denbighshire (CAD) has been awarded a grant of £349,847 over a four-year period by the Big Lottery Fund.

The cash will enable the partnership and Citizens Advice Denbighshire to work together with the communities of Corwen, Carrog, Glyndyfrdwy, Llandrillo, Cynwyd, Melin y Wig, Betws Gwerfil Goch and Bryneglwys to reduce isolation, improve wellbeing and increase resilience primarily for older people and those unable to access services.

Specifically this will support existing and develop new social activities and events, improving access to welfare benefits and grants, extending our community transport to include a dial a ride and meal delivery service, whilst at the same time providing opportunities for local people to learn new skills and be involved in the design, running and delivery of services.

Michael McNamara, Chair of Trustees of SDCP, said: "Although the grant has been awarded to the
organisation, the benefit is for the whole Edeyrnion community. I would like to compliment the team from for their hard work in extensive consultation and community engagement which has enabled them to submit a comprehensive operational plan.”

Rona Aldrich, Chair of Rural programme funding decision committee, said: “This fund will help our rural communities to address those poverty related issues which they themselves have identified as important and going forward we are looking forward to seeing how they use the funding to build
their confidence and experience.”

Alert issued over scam tax refund emails

llanblogger has received a scam tax refund email from tricksters pretending to be from HM Customs & Excise.

The email, which claims that a refund of £320.51 is due to the recipient has been confirmed as fraudulent by the real HMRC.

Received on Monday morning from the email address "MH Revenue.co.uk", it prompts the recipient to follow a link it gives if they wish to claim the refund.

The payment method, it says, will be "online credit/debit card to your account."

llanblogger forwarded the email immediately to HMRC's online security team and shortly afterwards received an email from them, which said: "Thank you for letting us know about the suspicious email / text you have received. We can confirm that this is a scam, and was not issued by HMRC.

"Our specialist team will investigate and take the necessary action. Whilst we cannot inform you of the outcome of these investigations I can confirm that we do act on each submission we receive."

And it adds: "HMRC will never send notifications of a tax refund or ask you to disclose personal or payment information by email or text message."

* Anyone taken in by similar scam messages by disclosing any personal information is urged to forward a report to:  security.custcon@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk

HMRC publicises details of current scams on our website https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/phishing-and-bogus-emails-hm-revenue-and-customs-examples
 
HMRC asks for suspect emails to be forwarded to: phishing@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk or texts to: 60559.

Railway volunteers reach end of the line in Corwen

* Railway volunteers at the buffer stop in Corwen.

Llangollen Railway volunteers celebrated getting to the end of the  line when the buffer stop was inserted onto a previously prepared site on the embankment at Green Lane, Corwen.

The stop completes the track bed for the laying of rail as the head shunt at the western extremity of the project for the Corwen Central station.

This will permit locomotives to detach from a train at the station platform and reverse around the loop line to attach to the rear of the train in readiness for the return journey to Llangollen. 

The buffer stop now in situ should be seen as a statement of intent that the terminal station project is on track for completion in 2018.

However, it is not the end of the project as there is much still to do to complete the new station before it is ready for use. 

Not least is the infilling of a breach in the embankment at the eastern end of the site, a former access to the Welsh Water Treatment Works, which currently allows for delivery of materials to the railway development. 

This summer the volunteer workers have created the 160 metre long wall for the arrival platform which has consumed some 3,800 concrete blocks and they are currently laying the edging flags to complete the work.

Their hours spent in building the station have been valued at £200k, without which input the project would be unaffordable. The further challenge for the autumn is to complete a shorter wall on the other side of the platform area.

Commenting on the work, the Project Leader, Richard Dixon-Gough, said: “Our photo-session with the volunteers placing the buffer stop at the end of the tracked bed was a notable occasion. It represented the culmination of all the hard work and endeavour over the past 40 years since the idea was conceived of rebuilding the railway between Llangollen and Corwen by volunteer effort.

"We all look forward to the first train arriving at the new terminus as soon as we can get the rest of the station completed and linked up with the railhead at Dwyrain Corwen East temporary station.”

Museum defies the rain to host successful fun day

* Les Davies paddles along the canal in his coracle.

A demonstration of the ancient skill of coracle sailing by expert Les Davies of one of the attractions at a fun day organised by Llangollen Museum yesterday (Saturday).

While Les paddled along the canal defying the rain, back at the museum there was a variety of stalls, games and competitions.

Also on offer was a demonstration of traditional spinning and a selection of pre-owned railway and historical or local interest books plus a paint-a-butterfly competition upstairs in the art gallery.

* Beautiful craft items on display at the museum.

* The prize stall outside the museum.

Month of art exhibitions in Llangollen

There are three places to visit in the town as part of this year's Helfa Gelf/Art Trail.  

First is Plas Newydd which has an exhibition of Wrexham Artists  in Y Caban. 

It features the work of eight artists who cover a range of media including painting, ceramics, mixed media and photography. 

Every weekend there will be one of the Artists in Y Caban for viewers to talk to and maybe see them at work.

The second Helfa Gelf venue is Llangollen History Museum on Parade Street which has six Llangollen artists exhibiting who use a range of media including drawing, mixed media, painting, photography, print making, sculpture and textiles. 

The  exhibition is open from until the end of the month and artists will be on hand there on each of the remaining weekends in September. 

Third venue is Gwalia Ceramics in Oak Street which is a gallery selling contemporary works by a variety of selected ceramic makers from Wales and beyond.

There is also  an exhibition of Artists in Y Capel in Castle Street (T.I.C.)

Helfa Gelf is funded by the Arts Council Wales, supported by the National Lottery, and is sponsored by the Welsh Government plus support from the local Authorities across North Wales has allowed the development of the Helfa Gelf Art Trail.

The Helfa Gelf Art Trail takes place in Gwynedd, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham counties from Friday to Sunday throughout September 2017. For further information about the event please view our website at https://helfagelf.co.uk/