Denbighshire congratulates pupils on GCSE results

Denbighshire County Council is congratulating pupils receiving their GCSE results.

Cllr Huw Hilditch-Roberts, the council’s Lead Member for Education, Children's Services and Public Engagement, said: “On behalf of the council I would like to congratulate all pupils getting their GCSE results.

“This last year has presented significant challenges for learners and they have made a tremendous effort to achieve their results, they have worked very hard to get here.

“There has been some fantastic partnership working to ensure students achieved the best results and pupils have received support from their families and schools. I would like to thank all those who have supported our hard-working students this last year.

“We would like to wish all learners the very best in their next steps.”

* The Minister for Education and Welsh Language, Jeremy Miles, has congratulated learns on their GCSE achievements.Share this page via

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• There were 328,658 summer GCSE entries this year, a rise of 8.6% compared to 2020.
• 29% of entries achieved an A* or A, with 74% receiving between A*- C.
• 98% of entries resulted in a pass between grades A*-G.

This year’s assessment and qualification process has been different to previous years, as examinations for summer 2021 were cancelled in response to the pandemic. A new system was designed and delivered by schools and colleges, drawing on a range of assessment evidence to determine learners’ grades.

The Welsh Government provided an additional £9m to support schools and colleges in the delivery of this year’s assessments. £26m was provided to ensure students could complete their vocational qualifications and colleges could continue to deliver practical sessions this year. 

The Minister visited Ysgol Glan Clwyd, in Denbighshire, where he met pupils collecting their GCSE grades.

Jeremy Miles said: "Our priority this year has been to put a system in place so that learners receive grades based on evidence of their work and enables them to progress to the next stage of their education, training or work with confidence.

"My message to this year’s GCSE students is a huge ‘well done’. You’ve had everything thrown at you over the last 18 months – periods in lockdown, time away from your friends and families, and times where you’ve missed out on many of the social activities you should be enjoying. You’ve shown tremendous resilience to overcome all of these challenges.

"I also want to congratulate learners on their vocational qualification results. Skills in priority sectors are vitally important in meeting the range of needs of the Welsh economy, now more than ever, and your hard-earned qualifications will put you in good stead for the future.

"It’s also been a remarkable achievement by all the school and college staff who’ve worked so hard to enable qualifications this year. It’s been an almighty task to put measures in place so that learners could get their results, like any other year. You should be very proud of the work you have done to help our learners progress."

Order aims to ensure owners control dogs in open spaces

 

Denbighshire County Council has today launched a Public Space Protection order (PSPO) to ensure dog owners control their pets properly whilst using county public areas.

The PSPO launched following a full consultation, will allow the council to take action against owners who allow their dogs to foul in an area of public land without cleaning up after them.

The intention of introducing the revised, county wide control of dogs PSPO is to effectively deal with particular problems and nuisances that occur across the county.

This order also prohibits owners from taking their dogs onto sports pitches across Denbighshire and also letting a dog off a lead anywhere that is not allowed.

There are also restrictions on Rhyl and Prestatyn beaches between May and 30^th September please check the signs in these areas.

Cllr Mark Young, the council’s Lead Member for Planning, Public Protection and Safer Communities, said: “We know that the majority of Denbighshire dog owners are respectful of other members of the public and they do clean up after their pets. 

"Unfortunately, the council does receive a number of complaints from residents regarding anti-social behaviour from dog owners who don’t control their dogs properly in public places.

“This new PSPO will allow us to take the appropriate action against those dog owners who behave irresponsibly with their pets in public.

“I would also like to take this opportunity to remind all dog owners to ensure that they carry appropriate dog mess bags with them when they take their dogs for a walk.”

* For further information, please click these links:

https://www.denbighshire.gov.uk/en/community-and-living/community-safety-and-support/public-spaces-protection-orders.aspx

https://www.denbighshire.gov.uk/en/environmental-health/dog-issues/dog-issues.aspx

 

Famous Berwyn station building gets a £5k facelift

* Above and below: the work on Berwyn station building in progress.

Pictures by George Jones.

With the re-opening of Llangollen Railway, work is being carried out on what of the line's most famous landmarks.   

Scaffolding has been erected around the station house at Berwyn which dates from 1865.

A mix of volunteers and a contractor have been tackling the exterior of the mock Tudor building.

With repairs to the roof flashings, efforts are concentrated on the timberwork to prepare it for painting whilst it has been necessary to replace some of the outer layers of timber due to weather damage.

Phil Coles, deputy chair of Llangollen Railway Trust, said: "The building restoration project is costing upwards of £5,000 plus the input from volunteer labour and we hope the work will be completed by the end of August. 

"The building will then be revealed in all its black and white glory as befits Berwyn which has previously been judged as in the top ten stations in Britain for its dramatic location above the River Dee Gorge."

For the moment the station is the terminus of the interim railcar service from Llangollen and passengers arriving by train are discovering the delights of the location as viewed from the historic chain bridge and route to the Horseshoe Falls.

Glanrafon to host talk on trees this Saturday

Professor Julian Evans will be giving an illustrated presentation entitled God’s Trees on Saturday, August 14, at Glanrafon Chapel in Princess Street, Llangollen. 

Professor Evans is a forest scientist and author of God’s Trees – trees, forests and wood in the Bible. 

He is a Commissioner of the Forestry Commission (England), a past president of the Institute of Chartered Foresters and has published numerous books and scientific papers.

The illustrated talk will begin at 5:30pm and will last for approximately 45 minutes. 

A limited number of places are still available but due to ongoing Covid restrictions, it is essential to book for the event.

* Please contact coedclwyd@gmail.com for further details or to book a place. Copies of God’s Trees will be available at a 20% discount.

Funding available towards cost of installing gigabit broadband

Rural residents and businesses in Denbighshire are being remind to apply for funding towards the cost of installing gigabit broadband.

The Welsh and UK governments are working together on the Gigabit Broadband Voucher scheme which covers part of the cost of installing new gigabit-capable internet connections.

Under the partnership £7,000 is available for small-to-medium sized businesses and up to £3,000 is available for residential premises.

Gigabit-capable broadband connections offer the fastest and most reliable speeds available, and the scheme is open to rural premises with broadband speeds of less than 100Mbps.

Cllr Hugh Evans OBE, Leader of Denbighshire County Council and Lead Member for the Economy, said: “The scheme has now been relaunched by the Welsh and UK governments and we are urging Denbighshire residents in rural locations without decent broadband to check to see if they are eligible for these vouchers.

“Connecting communities is a priority for the Council under our Corporate Plan and improved internet connections ensure our communities have access to goods and services and help the county’s businesses provide services online.

“It is possible for residents or community groups to work together on applications and the Council is working to advise and assist them with their applications.”

As well as offering the Gigabit Broadband Voucher scheme, the Welsh Government funded Fibre Roll-out will see a total of 1,862 extra premises in Denbighshire enabled for Fibre To The Premises

(FTTP) connection by June 2022 and Openreach has already enabled 399 premises in the county.

If you would like to discuss the options available contact the Council’s digital officer via communitydevelopment@denbighshire.gov.uk and to check eligibility for the Gigabit Broadband Voucher visit https://gigabitvoucher.culture.gov.uk

Campaigner gives update on battle for recycling centre

* Plas Madoc household waste recycling site in Wrexham.

A local tip campaigner gives his latest update on the fight for an arrangement to provide access to Plas Madoc household recycling centre for residents of the Dee Valley.

A few months ago Phil Jones organised a 900-signature petition calling for an agreement between Denbighshire and Wrexham councils which would mean local people would no longer have to drive over to Ruthin use the to tip there. He now says: 

"We have a new chief executive at Denbighshire CC. Mr Graham Boase. 

"I wrote to him 14 days ago to appraise him of the long outstanding issue of getting a proper recycling service for the Dee Valley. 

"I was hoping that he would see the clear disparity in the service provision we are getting in the Dee Valley compared to the north of the county and agree to do something about it. Unfortunately, we didn’t get that far.

"Mr Boase has registered my letter as an official complaint. This has the effect of ‘kicking the can down the road’ as the complaint procedure will no doubt take a few months. 

"Even assuming my complaint is upheld, the council’s response to it will be determined by the council not by the complaints procedure. 

"Of more concern is the fact that I am informed that the complaint will be dealt with by the Head of Service, Mr Tony Ward; the very person who has been obfuscating the whole process of sorting this out. I will be requesting that someone else is appointed to handle the complaint.

"Denbighshire says that the charge for a service at Plas Madoc is ‘unaffordable’, though they haven’t explained why their operating costs have been calculated to be just one seventh of those at Wrexham. 

"If we get a positive result from the complaints procedure, the best I think we can hope for is that our needs are put front and centre in the next budget round for the next financial year 2022/23.

"We want access to a modern recycling facility in the Dee Valley. It already exists and the Welsh Government and DCC are forever telling us how good they are at recycling. Why, you may wonder are they failing us so badly. 

"We live in a world where ‘spin’ counts for more the action. The saga continues. Thank-you for your continued support." 

Denbighshire congratulates pupils on A/AS Level results 2021

Denbighshire County Council is congratulating pupils receiving their A/AS Level results.

Cllr Huw Hilditch-Roberts, the Council’s Lead Member for Education, Children's Services and Public Engagement, said: “On behalf of the Council I would like to congratulate all Year 12 and 13 learners on their results in this difficult year.

“The hard work and dedication pupils have shown over the last year has been amazing to see and they have been supported in every way by our schools, their staff and parents.

“Seeing how our schools and communities have pulled together during the coronavirus pandemic has been fantastic and despite disruptions pupils have continued to learn and achieve throughout.

“Reaching this stage has truly been a wonderful team effort, but the pupils themselves have really gone above and beyond.

“We would like to wish all our young people the very best for the future.”

* No results have been received from Ysgol Dinas Bran.

Headteacher Mark Hatch told llanblogger: "Unfortunately this year it has been a strange situation. We haven't had a 'results day'. Confirmation of results was sent to students via email. We aren't publishing school results this year due to the situation."

Education Minister Jeremy Miles has praised the achievements of students all over Wales as 2021 A, AS, VQ and Skills Challenge Certificates results are published.

The total number of A level entries in Wales this year was 35,867, an increase of 14.5% relative to 2020, reversing the decreasing A level entries since the summer of 2015, and resulting in an extra 4,500 A levels being awarded to Welsh learners this year. Results for Wales show that 99.1% of learners achieved A* - E grades, up from 97.6% in 2019, with an increase at A* with 21.3% of candidates achieving this grade. This year’s assessment and qualification process have been different to previous years as examinations for summer 2021 were cancelled in response to the pandemic. A new system was designed and delivered by schools and colleges and put trust in them to draw together a range of assessment evidence on which to determine a learner’s grade.  Jeremy Miles said: “I hope everyone who received their grades today feels immensely proud of their remarkable achievement. “This year has been like no other and you’ve had to make many sacrifices. You have had to deal with so much disruption to your studies over the past 18 months, but have shown tremendous resilience and determination to continue your learning. You have also played an incredibly important role in keeping your classmates, teachers and communities safe. “While your experiences and the way in which you have been assessed have been different, the value of these qualifications is not. You can can be sure that your grades reflect your hard work throughout this year, and you fully deserve the qualifications you receive. “Our school and college staff have also been tremendous, working incredibly hard and under a lot of pressure to deliver and mark learners’ assessments. “The most important thing this year is that learners are able to progress to the next stage of their education, training or their work careers.   “Best of luck to you all in whatever your future holds.”