Emergency services at park after "barbecue" fire spreads to bench, reports paper

Denbighshire Free Press is reporting that emergency services were called to Riverside Park yesterday evening to deal with a fire which spread to a bench after being started by what is described as a "group" having a barbecue.

* For the full story, see:
https://www.denbighshirefreepress.co.uk/news/18455845.emergency-services-called-llangollen-barbecue-fire-started-group-ten/?fbclid=IwAR2Cg6amX7iEWTkjoTEOw3sm5bdso-1bugtKtZaQmAl30miP7fF1ywQMqAY

Raffle brings in over £500 for Llangollen Railway appeal

* Cat Meade's wheel of fortune produced over £500 for Llangollen Railway in yesterday's raffle.

Llangollen Railway has sent out a big thank you to Llangollen Raffles for raising over £500 to help it survive the coronavirus lockdown.

Its closure about two months ago due to the Covid-19 threat has plunged the heritage railway into a financial crisis.

It has so far raised over £75,000 from a public appeal and also has cash from a share issue.

But the railway says more money is needed to help keep the top tourist attraction in business.

Yesterday (Saturday) Llangollen Raffles, which was started by Cat Meade of Llangollen Coronavirus Support Group, did its bit by holding one of its largest ever games which saw all £535 in proceeds being donated to the railway.

There was a host of worthwhile prizes in the raffle, all of which were donated by businesses in the area.

Top prize included £50 in cash donated by a local resident, a limited edition print from Witzend Gallery, a box of fruit and veg from Dee Valley Produce, afternoon tea for two from Pretty Vintage Tearoom and Barista Coffee, a necklace from Llangollen Museum and a mounted vintage railway postcard.

There was a total of 10 valuable prizes available at £5 per ticket.

   

Railway general manager Liz McGuinness said: “A huge thank you to Cat Meade and Llangollen Raffles for their fabulous, very kind donation to Llangollen Railway.

“We will support future raffles as much as we can.

“We hope we can be back together soon and work together to make Llangollen the place to visit.”

* The Coronavirus group itself is celebrating its volunteers distributing over 3,000 information leaflets over the past few days.

Cat Meade posted on Facebook:  

"Thank you to ALL Volunteers who distributed today and will continue tomorrow 👍

Thank you to Cath Miller Sandra Forkin Gareth Williams and Charlie Jones who helped pack over 200 each 👏👏

BIG Thank you to Mrs Meade (aka my mum) at age 79 sat for 2 days packing over 1500 leaflets 👏👏 while Im trying to work and help 🙃

We have supported over 15 local businesses with this FREE distribution and to advise locals on support out there for you ❤

This is a REAL Community effort 👏👏👏

The support group has raised almost £3000 these past 7 weeks, which is great and has been used to continue the group. WE are aiming for another possible few weeks, so will need more support and funds to continue.

PLEASE support the group with as little or as much as you can, we want to keep supporting you." 

Hospice keeps in touch with its day unit patients

* Team Nightingale zoom in on their day patients to stay connected and provide a friendly listening ear and join in the banter with their patients.

Clinical staff are organising ‘keep in touch’ days for patients who are missing their regular visits to Nightingale House’s Day Unit on Chester Road.

Due to the coronavirus outbreak and the way that the hospice is now operating under strict guidelines, day patients with life-limiting illnesses are no longer able to visit and access the valuable face to face services previously available to them. 

These include physiotherapy, counselling, aromatherapy, art and music therapy, as well as the support and social interaction they benefit from.

In order to keep the contact going, Kay Ryan, who heads up the Day Services Unit, is organising regular online group calls to bring the patients together to ensure they are not left feeling lonely and isolated. 

It is an opportunity to chat and link in to the services that so many of them benefit from on a daily or weekly basis. 

This is in addition to the regular (sometimes daily) consultations that take place with individual patients either by phone or video call.  The number of people needing this adapted service is currently over 40.

After one patient told them they were missing the home-cooked meals made at the hospice by award-winning chef Peter Jackson and his team from CaffiCwtch they are now preparing home-cooked dinners to each day patient who wants one and lives within five miles of the hospice, delivered to their door, once a week for free.  

Feedback from the day service patients and their families have been flooding into the team and are being seen as a great motivator for all involved. As well as the regular calls, the team is sending regular resources by post and email to help maintain individual treatment plans.

Kay Ryan said: “By the very nature of our operations our Day Service Unit is an important aspect of our patient’s lives. Ordinarily the benefits of each patient being able to spend time with people who are living with life-limiting illnesses and gain comfort and support from each other is immeasurable. 

"We felt that whilst we couldn’t see each other face to face we could do the next best thing for all of us. The staff here are all missing the patients so we wanted them to feel part of the service even if they weren’t attending.

“The feedback has been very rewarding and given them the opportunity to discuss any issues or concerns they have with the group, or privately with our expert nursing and therapy teams.”

Whilst the Zoom calls are connecting the group for a chat, the Day Services team is planning planning more interactive sessions to boost well-being over the coming weeks for patients to re-engage with the activities they would normally access during their normal weekly visits.

MP explains why he supported new Agriculture Bill

Clwyd South Conservative MP Simon Baynes (pictured) has explained why he voted against changes to a government Bill that would, amongst other things, have prevented chlorinated chicken coming into the UK.

Last week in Parliament MPs took part in a virtual vote on the Agriculture Bill which covers post-Brexit food imports into the UK, including washed chicken and hormone-fed beef.

Opposition members and a group of Tory rebels backed amending the Bill but their move was defeated by 328 votes to 277.   

Ministers argued the issue of protecting food standards in post-Brexit trade will be dealt with in the upcoming Trade Bill.

But opponents of practices such as chlorine-washing chicken say this could lead to farm standards being bargained away in negotiations.

Amongst those who voted against amending the Bill was local MP Simon Baynes and explaining his position he said: “I strongly value the UK’s agricultural sector and our high domestic standards - particularly food standards. 

“The UK is a high quality and competitive producer and exporter of agricultural and agri-food products and Government analysis shows that the UK’s new trade agreements, including with the US, will bring significant new opportunities for the UK farming sector.

“This UK Government is committed to not compromising on domestic standards. No UK import or food safety standards will be diminished as part of a Free Trade Agreement. We will also not undermine our high domestic environmental protection, animal welfare and food safety standards.  

“I was not able, however, to support the approach of the amendments, as they would prevent the Government from being able to secure fair and reciprocally beneficial trade deals. 

“Trying to force all trading partners to produce to UK domestic standards will only result in fewer export opportunities for the farming sector and cut it off from world markets and we are explicitly arguing against this concept in the EU negotiations.  

“Now more than ever it is important to ensure that food supply chains remain resilient – through both domestic production and international trade. Erecting new trade barriers through these amendments would inhibit Government’s ability to ensure food supply chain resilience.”

Government says travelling to Wales for leisure is not allowed

According to the Welsh Government, The stay-at-home coronavirus regulations remain firmly in place in Wales to protect people’s health – this means travelling to Wales for leisure purposes is still not possible.

Campsites, outdoor activities and tourist attractions, together with many popular footpaths and beauty spots, such as Snowdon, remain closed to the public to keep people safe and protect the NHS. Changes made to the law in England, allowing people to go out for open-air recreation do not apply in Wales. In Wales, the stay-at-home rules have been relaxed to remove the once-a-day restriction on exercise. All exercise must be done locally. The Welsh Government’s Economy and North Wales Minister Ken Skates is issuing this important reminder to anyone considering travelling to Wales. He said: "Wherever we live, we are all facing the threat of coronavirus. Our message in  Wales remains very clear. Please stay at home.  “This goes against our normal welcoming nature, but for now please don’t visit.  “We want nothing more than to welcome visitors to enjoy our wonderful scenery and attractions but to protect our NHS and keep people safe as we deal with coronavirus, please stay home and stay local. “Lifting restrictions now would risk increasing spread of the virus, which could endanger more lives and cause longer term disruption and hardship for our tourist industry.  “If you travel a significant distance for leisure purposes into Wales or within Wales you risk being stopped by the police and fined under Welsh law.  Don’t put yourself and others at risk, and for now please don’t visit. “I look forward to giving you all a very different message in the near future.  I look forward to saying “croeso” – welcome – to you all, but not now – later.”

New law aims to overcome local broadband "not-spots"

People in Clwyd South will benefit from new legislation aimed at connecting businesses and homes in broadband ‘not-spot’ areas. ​
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Local politicians are encouraging their constituents in communities which struggle to get a fast, reliable internet connection to contact BT to check their eligibility for the new Universal Service Obligation for Broadband (USO). ​​
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Member of the Senedd Ken Skates said: “There are a number of areas in Clwyd South where people still struggle to get a reliable internet connection. 

"I have met with people in a number of local communities and discussed this at length. It affects their daily lives hugely. People need broadband to run businesses, do online shopping and keep in touch with family and friends, all of which are more crucial now than ever before." ​​
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Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes said: “You now have the legal right to request a decent, affordable broadband connection from BT under the new Universal Service Obligation (USO) for Broadband, which is intended to be a safety net for those who currently struggle to get online because they cannot yet access a fast connection. I would urge people in Clwyd South to check whether they are eligible for an upgrade."
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According to BT, around 91% of premises in Clwyd South can access to superfast broadband (at least 30Mbps) following a number of programmes such as the Welsh Government Superfast Cymru scheme.

BT is now working with Ofcom and the UK Government so more areas can be better connected. ​​
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Ofcom says approximately 4.8% of premises in Clwyd South cannot currently receive a fixed-line broadband connection of at least 10Mbps and could potentially benefit. ​​
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However, they may already be able to access decent broadband over an EE 4G mobile signal. 

This Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) service – called BT 4G Hub – is available across most of the constituency, with coverage expected to grow further as BT continues to invest in its 4G network. 

If you live within a 4G coverage area, you will be offered this solution if you inquire about the USO and can’t already get a sufficient broadband service. ​​
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Glyn Ceiriog councillor Trevor Bates has discussed the issue with both Mr Skates and Mr Baynes. 

He said: “BT will be writing to all those premises in Clwyd South who Ofcom’s preliminary analysis has shown may be eligible. They will be encouraged to contact BT, who will carry out some basic checks to confirm they can access a free upgraded broadband connection.​"
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If you have a broadband speed of less than 10 Mb/s download and 1 Mb/s upload you are advised to contact BT, either online by visiting www.bt.com/uso or by calling 0800783 0223.

* For further advice, you can also contact michael.dugine@wrexham.gov.uk​ (Wrexham Council) or philip.burrows@denbighshire.gov.uk​ (Denbighshire).

Skates's message to off-roaders bikers: Stay Away!

Clwyd South Senedd Member Ken Skates (pictured) has issued a clear message to off-road bikers  tempted to use North Wales as their playground - stay away.

The warning comes after police reported a number of offences over the recent bank holiday weekend which saw illegal bikers apprehended in the Glyn Ceiriog and Llanarmon DC areas.

Mr Skates said: "As I said earlier this week in a joint statement with my colleagues in North East Wales, that travelling into Wales to ​spend​ time in the countryside or at the coast is not allowed ​under Welsh law​. This includes off-road motorcyclists who are a blight on some of our communities.

"Our message to these off-roaders is stay away and stop using North Wales as your playground. This is a beautiful part of the world, and once we are through this crisis we will welcome all respectful tourists and visitors back with open arms. But if you are breaking the law, you are not welcome here - least of all during a time of crisis."

Police said a large number of offenders over the weekend were caught on CCTV, stopped within an hour of the footage being recorded and issued with fixed penalties. Most had travelled from the Merseyside area.

Mr Skates added: "I am in regular contact with North Wales Police, who are doing an incredible job, and traffic flow on all main routes ​into Wales is being regularly monitored.​ If you are caught committing this kind of office, you will be dealt with. 

"North Wales Police have made some excellent progress on this particular issue in the past couple of years and I would like to thank our local officers for their recent work in apprehending and fining these irresponsible individuals.

"The Covid-19 situation remains extremely serious. The advice in Wales has not changed and remains that you should stay at home wherever possible. 

"Please only travel when necessary and continue to follow the Welsh Government guidance.​ Measures including staying at home and social distancing are in place to continue to protect you, and our NHS, from the transmission and spread of coronavirus."