Feast of top-class rugby planned for Llan

The Royal Marines Charity has announced that it will be playing two high profile games against the cream of North Wales rugby in Llangollen on Saturday August 20. 

As well as treating local fans and visitors to two top quality games of rugby and the chance to meet RFU "royalty" in Ryan Jones (MBE) and Peter Rogers, organisers are hoping to raise much-needed funds for The Royal Marines Charity, as well as making a donation to the Ifan Phillips fund. 

Organising committee member and MD of local business Linguassist Graham Paton - himself an ex Royal Marine - said: “We are extremely excited to be hosting this event and to be able to show off the delights of Llangollen to such a wide ranging audience. I am sure that the town will get behind the whole event and we look forward to welcoming everyone." 

First up on the day at Llangollen Tower Fields will be Royal Marines Veterans v North Wales Barbarians, with kick-off scheduled for 2pm. 

Following this game will be the  highly competitive Royal Marine Corps v R.G.C Senior Academy. 

Attendance is free, with the organisers selling programmes for the match, which will include a raffle ticket where the winner has a pair of tickets for any Wales Autumn International match at Cardiff later this year. 

The fun doesn’t end there, because in the evening there will be a chance to party with the players at the pavilion building and enjoy live music from local bands, a hog roast and a full bar. 

Tickets for the evening event are £10 per person and again all money raised will be going to the RMA and Ifan Phillips fund.

Former International Rugby Union Players include:

* Ryan Jones – A legend of the Welsh game, Ryan is one of a small group of Welsh players to have won three Grand Slams, in 2005 , as captain in 2008 and again in 2021. In addition to a hugely successful playing career, he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2021 Birthday Honours. 

* Peter Rogers – Peter is a former WRU who played prop. Rogers attained 18 caps for Wales and during a successful playing career, also turned out for Bridgend RFC, Maesteg RFC, London Irish, Newport RFC & Cardiff RFC.

Other attractions include:

* Weapons Display – For the first time in Llangollen, the Royal Marines will be allowing the public to get up close and personal with a range of cutting-edge weaponry.

* Party with the players – There will be hot food, live music, drinks and a family friendly atmosphere in the post-match party being held at the Pavilion building, tickets £10 per person and all ages are welcome.

Green guide looks at helping town’s environment

A new 'green guide' aims to generate ideas for improving Llangollen's environment.

The Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) has published an illustrated guide to the town's Green Infrastructure (GI) opportunities.

Following on from the AONB’s 2021 publication, ‘Landscape and Nature Recovery in a Changing Climate’, the new guide looks at opportunities for adding to the existing GI network in Llangollen to managing, mitigating, and adapting to the threats posed by climate change.

Developed in consultation with the local community and led by the AONB’s climate change lead officer, the guide identifies six well known locations in the town and how they would benefit from GI additions.

Each of the locations are linked together by a GI route which is a mainly traffic free green corridor which should encourage active travel.

The guide looks at the existing situation in the town, sets out the basic principles necessary to provide a joined-up network of green spaces which benefit the local ecosystem and recommends improvements for discussion which would realise the GI objectives.

These include ecological improvements like tree and wildflower meadow planting and improved facilities such as path and signage improvements and sustainable drainage systems.

Cllr Win-Mullen James, Lead Member for Local Development and Planning, said: “This fantastic publication marks the start of a longer-term objective of creating a more sustainable Llangollen. 

"Apart from the council, Natural Resources Wales NRW and the AONB, several local organisations and businesses have already signalled their support for the guide, including the town council and Llangollen Friends of the Earth.

“It’s also good to see Ysgol Dinas Bran pledging its full support as the involvement of the next generations is essential.

“This is a great opportunity to spark discussion and action on green infrastructure from both a community grass roots level, and strategic level and we look forward to hearing the outcomes driven by this document.”

Printed versions of the guide are available from the AONB's Llangollen office at Y Capel, Castle Street, LL20 8NU, and also the Loggerheads Country Park office.

Inspectors survey for serious tree disease in Llangollen

* A tree with Ash Dieback.

Members of the county council's tree inspection team are currently in the town surveying Ash Dieback, a disease that may kill up to 90% of the Common Ash (Fraxinus Exclesior) in Denbighshire. 

In a note to local county councillor Karen Edwards, which she has sent to llanblogger, tree inspector Tom Hiles says: "As these trees deteriorate some will present an unacceptable level of risk to life or property and will require felling.

"The survey season is from June to October, when the tree canopy is in leaf, and the inspectors are focusing on the primary highways and council property. 

"As an Ash dominated area, your ward is a priority for the survey team. Each member of the team has a DCC van with the usual logos which will probably be parked in laybys or by the road.

"All the data collected will inform an action plan, due to be published before the end of this financial year, which will outline the council’s response. 

"Ultimately, as many of the trees adjacent to the highway are in private ownership, the council will start to issue notice, under Section 154 of the Highways Act, requiring landowners to fell trees that have become unsafe."

Railway gets programme of summer events underway

Gill Britten will be running 'pop-up' heritage skills workshops at Llangollen Station every Saturday throughout the summer.

These are linked to the industrial history of the Dee Valley and activities will focus on topics such as working with wool, brass rubbing using railway signage and slate painting.

This Saturday, July 30, the workshops begin with working with wool.

The activities are free to take part in and will be located on Platform 2. 

The aim is to give people the chance to learn a bit about how local industries were revolutionised by the coming of the railways with hands-on exhibits and activities.

* On Wednesday, August 24, Peter Dickinson will give a talk called Steaming Through North Wales at Llangollen Museum, starting at 7pm.

It is described as a nostalgic trip by train from Ruabon through Llangollen and Corwen to the Cambrian Coast.

No advance booking is necessary.

Campaigners welcome improved safety measures at Ruabon roundabout

Local campaigners have welcomed a promise to improve safety at a roundabout used by many Llangollen people which was the scene of a recent accident. 

Member of the Senedd Ken Skates (pictured) and Ruabon councillor Dana Davies both wrote to the council to call for action at the Aldi roundabout linking Ruabon, Acrefair and Rhosymedre to the A483 dual carriageway, which residents had branded dangerous. 

The Labour pair wanted new, improved road marking and signage to avoid the ‘confusion’ causing regular near misses – and Wrexham Council has now agreed. 

In an email, received by Mr Skates on Wednesday (July 27), the council said: “Following a recent site meeting with the Local Member it has been agreed that arrows which were on the road surface on the approach to the roundabout on the A539 travelling towards Llangollen would be replaced along with an advance road sign at the start of the short distance of dual carriageway.  

“This will mean that vehicles approaching the roundabout heading for Llangollen on the A539 will be in lane two along with right turning traffic going into the village of Ruabon on the B5605. This should then reduce any conflict with vehicles in lane one which is taking place at the moment. 

“I will also be looking at speeds of vehicles arriving at the roundabout especially from Ty-y-Fron area of the A539 where there is an allegation of vehicular speed.” 

Mr Skates previously said a number of his constituents had contacted him on the issue saying measures are needed to make it clear to drivers which lane they should be in. 

Mr Skates, MS for Clwyd South, said: “I’m pleased the council has responded so positively to the request Dana and I made, and I hope this will help clear up any confusion for drivers and make the area safer. This is something I’ve been contacted about regularly. 

“I’m also very pleased that the council has agreed to look again at the issue of speeding on the approach to the roundabout from the A483, which is another issue Dana and I have raised previously on behalf of residents.” 

Cllr Davies first raised the issue with Wrexham Council earlier this year – months before the recent crash reported by local media. 

She said: “I’m pleased the council is now taking action to make the area safer. The roundabout has become a nightmare and I hope this will remove any confusion for drivers around what lane they should be in. 

“I also hope the promise to look at the speeding issue results in something permanent being done on that front, as it would go a long way to reducing noise pollution for nearby residents as well as further improving road safety.” 

With the support of local residents, Mr Skates and Cllr Davies were previously successful in helping to stop ‘boy racers’ congregating on the Aldi car park late at night after the company agreed to install a security barrier restricting out of hours access.

 

Llangollen Twenty Club returns to Dibley for its next show

Llangollen Twenty Club has announce its November 2022 production of Vicar of Dibley Christmas Special.

The show will be performed in Llangollen Town Hall from Wednesday-Saturday, November 16-19, including a matinee on the Saturday. 

The society is holding open auditions in the RAFA Club, Llangollen next Tuesday, August 9 and audition material, including characterisations, general information and the all important audition pieces are available, either online via the email address: contact@twentyclub.co.uk, or by contacting Sian Glynne Jones at Courtyard Books, or Chrissie Ashworth on 07970 449843.

A Twenty Club spokesperson said: "This very funny, beautifully written play brings out the best of the eccentric, frankly dysfunctional folk who live in the rural fictional setting of Dibley, led by the fun loving, curvaceous, bubbly vicar, Geraldine Granger.  

"Nothing ever quite goes to plan however hard she tries, hampered by the wacky villagers!

"Do come along to audition, if you are interested in learning more. The last time the club staged a Vicar of Dibley play was way back in 2017 when we played to full houses.

"Covid has delayed this production and the society welcomes a return to putting on two plays per year."

Latest Citizens Advice column

Here is the latest column from Denbighshire Citizens Advice:

Q: I’m due to fly to Spain during the school summer holidays. After hearing about all the problems at airports, I’m really worried. My family have been looking forward to this and it’s cost us a lot of money. What do we do if our flight is cancelled or delayed? 

A: A lot of people will be worried after seeing the recent news about flights. If you face issues, the Citizens Advice website has lots of information about what to do when your flight is delayed or cancelled. 

If you’re already at the airport when they announce the delay, the airline should give you food and drink, access to phone calls and emails. You should also get accommodation if you’re delayed overnight (including journeys to and from the airport). 

Your airline might offer you vouchers to pay for these or advise you to keep receipts to claim back expenses later. They will only refund ‘reasonable’ expenses, not expensive meals or luxury hotels. 

What counts as a long enough delay to get this help depends on how long your flight is. A short flight only needs to be delayed two hours, whereas a flight of more than 3,500km needs to be more than four hours. Full details are on the Citizens Advice website. 

It’s worth knowing that if your flight is delayed for more than five hours, you don’t have to take it. The airline legally has to give you a full refund for that flight (and any onward flights and return flights if you’re part-way through a connecting journey). Talk to someone from the airline as soon as you decide you don’t want to fly. 

If your flight is cancelled altogether, you’ve a legal right to either a full refund or a replacement flight to get you to your destination. The refund includes any onward flights and money for a return flight if you’re part-way through a connecting journey. Ask about this at the airport if you can. 

Don’t just rebook another flight yourself - check with the airline first because it’s their responsibility to sort out your replacement. If you do have to rebook it yourself, keep any receipts and evidence of why the airline couldn’t do this for you, for example screenshots of live chats. If the cancellation ends up delaying you getting to your holiday by two or more hours, you’re entitled to help with costs. 

Check if you’re entitled to compensation for a delayed or cancelled flight. Again, this will depend on how long the delay was, the distance, and whether it’s the airline’s fault.

The Citizens Advice website has details on claiming compensation for delays or cancellations from the airline. You might also be able to claim from your travel insurance – check if your policy covers this. 

If you have a problem with an airline and you’re not sure what to do, call the Citizens Advice consumer helpline 0808 223 1133 or talk to an adviser online through the Citizens Advice website.