Nominate your local pub for an award, says MP

Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes (pictured) is supporting PubAid’s campaign and encouraging local entries for its 2020 Community Pub Hero Awards.

Every year, PubAid runs a competition to find the Charity Pub of the Year, sponsored by Matthew Clark and run in conjunction with the All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group. 

This year, the country’s pubs, and people’s lives more broadly, have been disrupted by the Covid-19 outbreak and lockdown. 

Pubs closed and fundraising became near-impossible – but that didn’t stop licensees and their teams across the country from doing all they could to support their communities.

PubAid therefore decided to change the name of the competition this year to the Community Pub Hero Awards, and are looking for pubs who went the extra mile to help others during the pandemic. 

Maybe by offering vital supplies for local residents, cooking hot meals for the elderly or keeping people connected through online quizzes or chats. 

Simon Baynes said: "There are some amazing pubs in Clwyd South who have really gone the extra mile to help their communities through the pandemic. 

"I’d encourage any Clwyd South residents who know of any such pubs to send in a nomination so our local licensees and teams get the recognition they deserve.”

* To nominate a pub, please complete a nomination form before 30^th November by visiting http://www.pubaid.com/.

Judges will review entries received and publish a shortlist. All finalists will be invited, with their MP, to an online ceremony in the new year when the overall winner will be announced. 

Shape My Llangollen secures £3,500 National Lottery windfall to finish its work

* In summer 2019 SML chair and vice-chair, Phil Robinson and Issy Richards, conduct  a public consultation exercise outside the Co-op in Regent Street.

The team putting together Llangollen’s official input into the county’s new Local Development Plan (LDP) has received a £3,500 National Lottery windfall to finish the job.

Shape My Llangollen was formed by the town council in 2018 to ensure Llangollen people have their say on the new masterplan for Denbighshire’s future up until the year 2033.

A team of volunteers embarked on an exhaustive round of public consultation to sound out local opinion on a range of key issues.

They eventually received over 1,700 separate answers on a very wide range of topics such as traffic and parking, the appearance of the town centre, local services and facilities and the environment.

The mass of evidence gathered has been constantly refined and will eventually be published in SML’s final report which will be subject to scrutiny by the town council before being submitted to the county council for incorporation into the new LDP.

Shape My Llangollen was just about to host its final round of public consultation when the country went into its first Covid-19 lockdown back in March.

Despite the need to observe social distancing SML’s work has continued, with its members getting together at regular online meetings.

However, a lay-off of over seven months put the work of the team way behind schedule, especially the completion of its final report, and so to bring it back on track members recently took the decision to employ specialist consultants to put their expert finishing touches to the project.

In a bid to secure the necessary cash to cover the cost of the consultants the team recently put in a bid to the National Lottery.

And it has just been given the good news that it has been granted £3,594 by the Lottery’s Community Fund.

This will go to cover the full cost of the consultants who are based in Powys and have done similar work for major organisations across Wales.

SML chair Phil Robinson said: “We are absolutely delighted that the Lottery has agreed to grant us this money which will now allow us to finish the job we started over two years ago.

“Like many organisations our work, which we believe is vital to the future of our town, was disrupted by the pandemic.

“In our case that was just as we were reaching the final furlong of what had been quite a tough exercise.

“We believe that our consultations with the public were the most exhaustive ever undertaken in Llangollen and resulted in over 1,700 separate answers to the questions we posed on what people liked and disliked about their town and the way in which they would like to see it go forward.

“We remain extremely grateful to everyone who took part in our question-and-answer sessions and now also to the Lottery’s Community Fund by granting us this fantastic sum which will help our work to be finished and our community to thrive.”          

MP welcomes extra 95 police in north Wales since last year

Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes has welcomed the announcement that North Wales has been bolstered by an additional 95 officers since the Conservative UK Government launched its major police recruitment drive one year ago.

The addition of these new officers brings the total number of police across North Wales up to 1,602.

Since the launch of the UK Government’s recruitment campaign one year ago, a total of 5,824 extra officers have joined police forces across England and Wales.

My Baynes says these statistics confirm that the UK Government remains fully on track to meet its manifesto commitment of recruiting 20,000 extra officers by 2023, and is ahead of schedule to have the first 6,000 in place by March 2021.

The figures also show, he says, that the police workforce is now more diverse than ever before, with 10.7 per cent of new recruits identifying as Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic, and with 9,842 of all officers now being from these groups.

"Alongside the recruitment campaign, the Conservative UK Government is also boosting police pay by 2.5 per cent this year, equivalent to a constable receiving an extra £1,100, providing officers with an increase above inflation for the second year running, the largest pay rise in a decade," Mr Baynes said.

"The Government is also enshrining a new police covenant into law, which will offer enhanced support and protection for frontline officers, and is bringing forward legislation to double the maximum sentence for those convicted of assaults on frontline staff including police officers, firefighters and paramedics.

"Other steps to support our frontline officers include a £1.1 billion funding boost for police forces this year – the biggest increase in a decade, funding to provide over 8,000 more officers with Taser devices, and personalised new stop and search powers so that officers can effectively target repeat offenders."

He added: "Getting more police officers onto our streets is one of people’s top priorities, so I am delighted that in just over one year, this Conservative Government has already delivered an extra 95 officers across North Wales.

“Every one of these officers will make an enormous difference in helping to cut crime and keep people safe – and I know that many more will follow as this UK Government continues to deliver on its promise to recruit 20,000 more over the next three years.

“By backing our police with the funding, powers and resources they need, we are keeping the public and our communities safe, so that people everywhere can live their lives free from the fear of crime.”

Home Secretary Priti Patel said: “Getting more police officers on our streets is a priority for the British people – therefore a priority for me.

“Just one year since we began recruiting, I am delighted that there are nearly 6,000 of the 20,000 additional officers on our streets cutting crime and making your communities safer.

“As we’ve seen from the frontline response to coronavirus, the work of each and every police officer helps to save lives and I would like to extend my gratitude to them, and to the new recruits, for joining the police and being a part of this heroic national effort.”

Railway launches urgent appeal to save crucial Dee Bridge

* Urgent repairs are needed to Dee Bridge on the line of Llangollen Railway.

Llangollen Railway has launched an urgent appeal to raise £15,000 for repairs to a Victorian bridge vital to its running of trains.

In a post on its Facebook page, the railway's fundraiser officer Paul Bailey says: "If we are to run trains over the Dee Bridge next year we first have to renew the timbers on the bridge.

"This work, including purchasing the timbers, is costing £15,000 - monies the railway currently has not got.

"We have therefore launched an appeal to raise these monies without which we will not be able to carry out the necessary repairs to run train services in 2021.

"If anyone wishes to contribute to this appeal please contact me on 01490 450271, or email paulbaileywincham@yahoo.co.uk for payment methods."

A railway spokesperson said: "The bridge dates from 1865 when the line opened but is a remarkable survivor as the scrapman didn't demolish it in 1968 when the line was closed by Beeching.

"Without it remaining in situ the infant Llangollen Railway would never have got beyond Pentrefelin.

"The LR society, as it was, renovated it in 1984 with some grant aid as part of the extension to Berwyn.

"The need for renewal now is for the timbers which support the rails across the steel structure - a regular maintenance job. It is made more complex this time by the lack of income when no trains are running, with the appeal to members and supporters for cash to allow the expensive new timbers to be purchased ahead of replacement work in 2021."

Welsh Government unveils two new schemes for people told to self-isolate

People told to self-isolate for up to 14 days will be eligible for financial support from the Welsh Government as two new schemes are unveiled today ([Friday).

People on low incomes can apply to receive a £500 payment if they have tested positive for coronavirus or they are asked to self-isolate by the NHS Wales Test Trace Protect service because they have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive for coronavirus.

And a new top-up payment is being introduced for the social care workforce in Wales, to increase statutory sick pay to their normal wages if they have to take time off because they have coronavirus or are self-isolating.

Up to £32m is being made available by the Welsh Government for the two schemes to support people and remove the financial barriers faced by people needing to self-isolate.

First Minister, Mark Drakeford said: “The pandemic has had a huge impact on everyone and we have asked people to sacrifice so much this year, including during this latest firebreak. We are committed to doing everything we can to support people and protect people’s health and wellbeing.

“Asking people to self-isolate is an important way to break the transmission of the virus but for many people it can mean the loss of income.

“We all have a responsibility to protect our own health and our loved ones’ too but we know just how difficult that can be when faced with a choice between staying at home and not being able being able to feed your family or going to work.

“These new support schemes are targeted towards people on low incomes and are designed to relieve some of the financial pressures people face if they are asked to self-isolate.”

A £500 fixed payment will be available to people who are asked to self-isolate because they have tested positive for coronavirus or because they have been identified as a close contact by the NHS Wales Test Trace Protect service.

The payment is available to people on a low income who are unable to work from home and would lose income as a result of self-isolating. To be eligible, people must be self-isolating and in receipt of Universal Credit or another specified benefit. 

The final arrangements are being made for the scheme to go live. People will be able to apply for the payments via their local authority website and they will be backdated to October 23.

The Statutory Sick Pay Enhancement scheme for social care staff working in care homes, domiciliary care and as personal assistants will start on 1 November and will run until 31 March 2021.  

The scheme will top up statutory sick pay to eligible care workers’ full pay if they need to take time off with suspected or confirmed coronavirus or if they are self-isolating because someone in their household has coronavirus or they have been told to by the NHS Wales Test Trace Protect service.

Julie James, Minister for Housing and Local Government said: “If you are told to self-isolate, working from home is not an option for everyone, making this an even more stressful period for people. Some people can feel under pressure to go to work, just to pay the bills.

“The £500 self-isolation payment and the SSP enhancement scheme will help us protect the vulnerable and give people the financial security they need to stay-at-home and break the cycle of transmission.

“There will be some people who do not meet the criteria for the £500 payment but who will suffer financial hardship as a result of being asked to self-isolate. This is why we have introduced a discretionary element to the self-isolation payment, which will be available to a wider group of people.

“Financial support is already available to people through the Emergency Assistance Payment coronavirus hardship element of the Discretionary Assistance Fund.”

Alongside the two schemes, the Welsh Government intends to strengthen coronavirus regulations by imposing a legal requirement for people to self-isolate if told to do so by NHS Wales Test Trace Protect service.

The regulations will also be strengthened to make it an offence to knowingly provide false information to the NHS Wales Test Trace Protect service.

And a duty will be introduced to ensure employers cannot prevent an employee from following NHS Wales Test Trace Protect advice to self-isolate.

These two schemes will form an important part of the national support and measures which will be introduced after the firebreak.

Town Council moves to fill vacancy left by resignation of councillor

* Former councillor George Hughes.

Llangollen's Town Clerk Gareth Thomas has given more details of the resignation from the Town Council revealed by llanblogger yesterday (Thursday).

In a press release he says: "A casual vacancy has arisen on the Town Council following the resignation of Cllr George Hughes.

"In his letter of resignation, Cllr Hughes explained that his decision had not come easily. However, he felt that he was unable to continue in the role due to a number of factors. 

"He stated that it had been a pleasure being part of the Town Council over a number of years and that he was also proud of all that the council had accomplished in the past and had no doubt that the council will continue to be successful in the future.

"Speaking on behalf of Town Council, the Town Mayor said that he was very sorry to hear that Cllr Hughes was unable to continue as a Town Councillor and regretfully accepted his  resignation and thanked George for his past service to the town.”

Mr Thomas added: "The vacancy will now be formally advertised, as from this Friday, and a by-election will be called if ten local government electors give notice, in writing, to the Returning Officer at Denbighshire County Council before 13th November2020.

"If an election is requested then current Coronavirus Regulations will delay any poll until after 1February 2021.

"If no election is called then the Town Council will be able to fill the vacancy by co-option and the Town Clerk would be happy to provide details of this process to anybody who is interested."

* The Town Clerk can be contacted by telephoning 01978 861345, or by emailing townclerk@llangollentowncouncil.gov.uk

George Hughes resigns his seat on Town Council

 

* Former town councillor George Hughes.

A former mayor has resigned his seat on Llangollen Town Council.

George Hughes says he has quit after finding himself disagreeing with the direction the council is taking.

Mr Hughes, 81, has served three terms on the council and was town mayor from 2007-2009.

Born, bred and educated in Llangollen, he worked for 25 years as a plant operator at the Monsanto chemical plant in Acrefair.

Later he spent 10 years as a retained firefighter based in the town. He retired about 20 years ago.

His first two terms on the town council came in the 1990s and his latest term began when he was elected four years ago. Prior to becoming mayor in the mid-2000s he had been deputy mayor for a year.

He was also a founder member of the Pengwern Tenants and Residents Group and also served as its vice-chair.

Mr Hughes said of his departure: “I found myself disagreeing with the direction the council was taking.

“It’s been a pleasure representing the people of Llangollen over a number of years and I’d like to thank everyone who has helped and supported me over those years.”

Mr Hughes said he will continue to be a member of Shape My Llangollen, the group of volunteers which has been tasked by the Town Council to produce Llangollen’s official input into the emerging Denbighshire Local Development Plan.    

His resignation is the third from the Town Council during 2020, with Andy Beech having left in March and former deputy mayor Issy Richards in July.