St Collen's Church had its annual summer fayre this afternoon.
Stalls, including home-made cakes and bric-a-brac, were set up in the church while burgers and other refreshments were available in the nearby community hall.
There was also a raffle with a host of prizes.
* Ken Skates MS, left, meets Mark Drakeford on a visit to town.
Member of the Senedd Ken Skates has thanked the Welsh Government for helping get Llangollen Railway back on track.
The comments came after a recent visit to the popular tourist attraction by Deputy Minister Dawn Bowden and the news that further major funding from the Welsh Government had been confirmed.
Mr Skates, MS for Clwyd South, said: “Llangollen Railway is of huge importance locally and attracts visitors from far and wide. It has had unparalleled support from the Welsh Labour Government over the years and I’m delighted and proud that they have once again stepped in with crucial funding.
“The Trust was given a grant of £147,860 last year and I know there was a lot of clamour locally for even more funding when the railway ran into problems earlier this year.”
Mr Skates added: “Prior to the Senedd elections in May, while visiting Llangollen, First Minister Mark Drakeford said the Welsh Government would work with local people to help get the railway back up and running if re-elected, so I had every confidence that would be borne out. I would like to thank the First Minister and the Deputy Minister Dawn Bowden for delivering for Llangollen.”
Shortly after the election, Mr Skates says he made formal representations to the Welsh Government calling for more funding for Llangollen Railway.
Last month, it was announced a further £143,290 grant had been rubber-stamped to help with running services and restarting operations – taking the financial package to more than £291,000 in the last 12 months alone.
In the Deputy Minister’s response to Mr Skates, she said: “Thank you for your letter of May 24 regarding support for the Llangollen Railway. Like you, I recognise the important role of the Llangollen Railway as a key tourist attraction and as a precious piece of regional heritage. I was lucky enough to visit the railway last month when I visited north Wales.
“Last year the Llangollen Railway Trust received a grant of £147,860 from the first round of the Cultural Recovery Fund to support its operations.
"In the months following the sad announcement that the PLC arm had been placed into administration, officials in Cadw and Visit Wales have maintained contact with the Trustees, receiving updates regarding the progress of their plans to retake full control of the railway and restart operations.
“On the advice of my officials, the Trustees submitted a request to Welsh Government for support from the second round of the Cultural Recovery Fund. I am pleased to say that having received confirmation from the Trust regarding their progress towards restructuring and restarting operations, we were recently able to issue a grant offer to Llangollen Railway Trust Ltd of £143,290.
“This money will help the Trust to restart and operate trains during the summer and to help them get themselves on a sound financial footing to manage through the winter. I commend the Board of Trustees for continuing to work so hard to stabilise the organisation and wish them luck with their efforts to restart operations and secure the future of the railway.”
Neighbourhood Policing Sergeant Rich Evans says in a message put out earlier today (Friday) on the new Community Alert network: "We will continue to act robustly against people who engage in disorderly and abusive behaviour in our towns.
"Last evening a female was arrested for a Public Order offence in Llangollen for being abusive to one of our Police Community Support Officers."
North Wales Community Alert is a free messaging service for people who live, work and visit North Wales.
Registration is completely free, quick and simple.
North Wales Community Alert also gives you an opportunity to provide feedback to your local neighbourhood police team on the issues that matter most to you.
* For more information and to register for the North Wales Community Alert
Kia Sorento PHEV drive by Steve Rogers
Meet
the Kia Sorento, a big SUV with an even bigger story to tell.
It
has been around for 18 years often trying to overcome SUV badge snobbery but
version four has smashed it with more style, more quality, more engines, more
technology, more space, more everything. Oh, and more money with the entry
plug-in hybrid a salty £45, 655 while the range topper is an eye popping
£54,000 give or take a few hundred quid.
But
is it a bargain for the big bucks?
Built
on a new platform Sorento is spacious and can even rub shoulders with SUV
royalty like the Land Rover Discovery and Volvo XC90. It has seven seats, not
many of those around, and yes, it is a genuine seven seater with the third row
able to house a couple of adults.
Even
though it is four wheel drive the floor is fairly flat and not compromised by
the usual transmission hump so there is no problem fitting three chunky adults
across the middle row. Sorento is a little wider than the previous model, and
there is a smidgen more head room. With the third row folded the boot is huge,
big enough for four large suitcases, apparently, so there is obvious appeal for
big families. Drop all the seats, using levers in the side walls and two people
could sleep in it, it is that deep and wide.
And
third row passengers are well catered for with heating controls and a USB port
in each side wall. In fact there are two more cleverly built in to the backs of
the front seats and another three more up front.
Entry
level 2 does not get on board navigation but you can use an app from an Android
Auto or Apple Carplay mobile to get directions on to the car's touchscreen. The
only drawback, and it's a silly one, is that the phone, and therefore
navigation directions, cannot be paired on the move. I know we are hell bent on
safety but why is it necessary to stop a passenger performing the operation.
Apart
from navigation and keyless entry the PHEV entry Sorento has just about
everything you need and a bit more which is good for those stretching to the
top of the budget.
Quality
has been improved with upgraded finishes while the only areas still covered in hard
plastic are the boot walls although it is easier to clean so maybe it is not
such a bad idea.
Dashboard
layout is a conventional affair with a clear digital driver's display and an eight
inch touchscreen for audio, phone and driver aids, but good old fashioned
switches for the heating controls. I am an old fella so this is my kind of
dashboard although Sorento does not have the wow factor of the futuristic
Peugeot 5008, but I did like the rotary gear selector.
The sharpness of the reversing camera tells
you the graphics could be better and probably are another grade up where the
screen is 10.25 inches.
Performance
from the turbo charged 1.6 petrol is strong and gets a hefty boost in horse
power and torque from the electric motor. A 50-70mph dash takes 5.7 seconds
which is impressive for such a big car.
Electric
range is 35 miles, I managed a 26 mile cross country round trip and still had
electric miles left so not that far off the mark. A full charge from my
Podpoint wallbox took three and a half hours.
Anyone
wanting to haul a caravan or horsebox is going to be disappointed with the
PHEVs paltry 1500kg towing limit but unlike some key rivals Sorento still has a
diesel which can pull up to 2500kg. It is also £4k cheaper than the plug-in.
Which
car do you choose? Space is the key and how much you need for your family. Both
the Skoda Kodiaq and Peugeot 5008 are much cheaper, offer seven seats and are better
to drive along twisting roads but neither can match the Sorento's living room
space or offer a plug-in hybrid.
Toyota
Rav4 and Honda CR-V plug-ins are similarly priced but also fall short of the
Kia's space package.
Kia
has put down a marker with Sorento which punches above its weight and is even a
plausible alternative to more expensive big guns like Discovery or Volvo XC 90.
It doesn't have the ultimate quality and finish of the premium SUVs but is not
that far away any more.
Fast
facts
Sorento
2 PHEV AWD
£46,655
1.6
litre 6sp auto; 261bhp
0-60mph
8.4secs; 119mph
176mpg
electric combined
41mpg
petrol only
Electric
range 35 miles
38g/km.
VED zero
Boot
809 litres
Insurance
group 33
Llangollen Railway has made a last minute cancellation of its steam train services for this weekend.
In an announcement last night operations manager Paul Reynolds said: "The loco will not be running over the weekend as its documentation is incomplete and therefore it cannot run."
The railway has explained that scheduled steam services will be taken over by diesel multiple units.
Steam was due to start running again from today (Friday) until Sunday.
* Paul Edwards and Simon Baynes MP.
Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes met with Paul Edwards at the Cross Foxes in Penycae as he celebrated the completion of his sponsored walk from John O’Groats to Land’s End in aid of Hope House Hospice.
During the course of his walk, Mr Edwards completed on average 25 miles a day dressed as the Marvel character Deadpool in honour of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney's takeover of Wrexham AFC.
He had prepared for the solo and unsupported 971-mile hike with a gruelling 24-week training schedule.
And his last epic trek in 2019 from Scotland to Wales, took him to the three peaks of Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowden, before arriving home in Penycae.
Mr Edwards, who has been fundraising for various different charities for over 20 years, set a target of raising £10,000 from his walk for Hope House, but he has spectacularly exceeded this figure, raising an amazing £14,000 so far.
Donations can still be made to Paul’s Just Giving page on: www.justgiving/fundraising/paul-edwards1000mileshike.
Paul Edwards said: “I have had some incredible experiences on this challenge, but throughout the journey, the one thing that will forever stay in my memory is the kindness, generosity and support of the British people.
"From the Northernmost tip of the country to the southernmost, I had such a fantastic response from people I met.
"Whether it was to ask me into their homes for a cup of coffee, stopping their cars to offer me a bottle of water and something to eat, stopping to chat about what I was doing or just beeping the horns and waving as they drove by, the people of Britain are amazing and this is reflected in the wonderful amount of money raised so far.”
Simon Baynes MP said: “Having completed many events and challenges for various charities in the past, this was the biggest by far for Paul, who pushed himself to the limit to achieve a fantastic result for Hope House Hospice.
"I would like to join everyone else who has praised Paul for his selfless charity work – which he also self-funds so that every penny raised goes to the hospice. He is a local hero in Penycae and I know that his family, friends and neighbours will all be tremendously proud of what he has achieved. Many congratulations, Paul!”
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.
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."
