Grow Llangollen's first public event a great success

* People listen to one of the presentations at the gathering.

* Local food on display at the event.

* Refreshments made with locally sourced ingredients. 

Grow Llangollen’s first public event at St Collens Community Centre recently was a great success, say organisers.  

Grow Llangollen is a community group that has been established with the aim of increasing the quantity and affordability of cultivated crops that are grown in and around Llangollen, and to increase the amount of local produce sold in the area.

The project is funded by the UK Government through the UK Community Renewal Fund.

Around 35 people visited the Growing Local Food Forum throughout the day, to listen to and question speakers from Flintshare, Mostyn Kitchen Garden and ADAS Horticulture.  

Many attendees stayed for most of the event, enjoying the array of local food that had been provided, including some delicious soup made by St Collens' Fabiano Silva from vegetables from local producers.  

The day ended with a round table discussion about what actions would be most useful, and it was decided that regular get-togethers should be held to share ideas and support each other.

Grow Llangollen's Ros Stockdale said: “It was fantastic to meet so many enthusiastic people and find out about their ideas. We hope we can support the projects that people are planning.  One thing we all decided on was that we should stay in touch and meet regularly to help each other out.”

The group's next step is to visit Mostyn Kitchen Garden with some of the ADAS team for a growing workshop tomorrow (Friday October 7).  

Ros added: "This will be a great opportunity to see how things are done in a successful commercial and community garden and to take part in some practical demonstrations. The day runs from 10.30am to 3.30pm and lunch will be provided.  Anybody wanting to go should get in contact via the Grow Llangollen Facebook page, and we’ll organise lift shares.

The other crucial part of the work is doing, she said, is the surveys.  Separate surveys have been designed for:

Farmers and Growers:https://forms.office.com/r/kKzbDnDqUL

Local Businesses:        https://forms.office.com/r/2AVuJSvAgy

Local residents:          https://forms.office.com/r/ir4B4F114h

"The links to the surveys are also on our Facebook page, and there will also be flyers and posters around town.  

"We'd be very grateful if people could take the time (5 to 10 minutes) to complete one of them.  The more people that join in, the more useful the study will be in building a better project and attracting funding to support more growing."

Masterchef star to guest at Llangollen Food Festival

* Neil Robertson, sous chef at The Wild Pheasant Hotel and Spa, perfects his culinary skills for his appearance at Llangollen Food Festival on October 15.

A young culinary wizard who reached the quarter finals of TV’s Masterchef: The Professionals will showcase his skills at this year’s Llangollen Food Festival.

Neil Robertson honed his cooking expertise in the kitchens of an impressive range of top hotels in the UK and overseas before becoming sous chef at The Wild Pheasant Hotel and Spa in Llangollen last June.

He is among an array of food and drink producers and experts from across North Wales and beyond who will be appearing at the one-day Llangollen festival on Saturday October 15 when he will present a mouth-watering one-pot dish using the best of fresh Welsh ingredients.

Neil, 23, is originally from Johannesburg in South Africa but came with his family to live in Newport, South Wales at the age of 14.

At 16 he became an apprentice chef at Cardiff’s Marriott Hotel. After completing his training there Neil decided to specialise in fine dining and his first role in that arena was at the luxurious Llangoed Hotel in Brecon where he was chef de partie.

His next professional move took him across the world to Melbourne, Australia where he built on his experience by working in the kitchen of a hotel boasting three Michelin stars.

Returning to the UK after six months Down Under he became junior sous chef at the famous Albrighton Hall Hotel and Spa in Shrewsbury and then it was on to Nottingham to take on his first leading chef position at the city’s Lace Market Hotel.

This summer he joined the busy team at The Wild Pheasant.

Back in 2019 he vividly recalls reaching the quarter finals of Masterchef: The Professionals and being tasked with making the perfect Omelette Arnold Bennett  early in the contest.

“To be honest, I hadn’t even heard of it before but I quickly found out it’s based on smoked haddock with a mornay sauce. That was quite nerve-racking but I got through to the quarter finals with a dish comprising pigeon with wild mushrooms, truffles and blackberry jus, which the judges loved.”

Neil says he is enjoying his time at The Wild Pheasant, explaining: “It’s a great place to work in a lovely location and we get such a fantastic range of customers as it’s a top-class hotel with a spa.

“Although I haven’t been to the Llangollen Food Festival before I’ve heard lots about it as it’s known across the UK as a major event in the foodie calendar.      

“North Wales has some of the best produce in the world and Llangollen has it all in terms of its location and accessibility.

“At the festival I’ll be presenting a special dish prepared in a single pan featuring lovely fresh Welsh produce including Conwy mussels, a Penderyn whisky cream sauce, smoked pancetta served with lava bread butter on crispy sourdough bread.”

This year’s Food Festival will be coming from a variety of venues in the centre of Llangollen and is open to the public from 10am-5pm.

An array of around 40 stand-holders are waiting to display their products - ranging from the best in home-grown Welsh artisan delicacies to Bolivian street food - at the Town Hall, in the main entrance to Llangollen Steam Railway and at Gales Wine Bar.

There will also be some exciting hands-on workshops on offer, including local experts giving the kids – and adults too – the chance to test their skills at decorating cupcakes or creating a clay masterpiece on a real potter’s wheel.

Chef Neil will be masterminding the cupcake demonstration at the Town Hall and says he is looking forward to having plenty of fun with it.

Gales Wine Bar will be playing host to a mini beer festival in its garden area and throughout the day there will be dishes on show from top local chefs.

After the main daytime event, people are invited back to the Town Hall from 6pm to challenge their senses with a special one-off tasting event from the experts of Wales’ own Penderyn Whisky for which there will be a charge of £15 a head.     

During the day there will be a selection of live outdoor entertainment in Llangollen’s centrepiece Centenary Square, including selections from Corwen ladies’ choir and local bands. 

* For more details about Llangollen Food Festival, check out:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/llangollenfoodfest

Instagram: @LlangollenFoodFestival

Bowel cancer screening age lowered to 55 in Wales

Bowel cancer screening will be made available to more people in Wales as home testing is expanded to include 55-57 year olds. 

The expansion will mean 172,000 more people in Wales will start to receive easy to use kits that test for the early stages of bowel cancer. The move is part of a phased approach to lowering the screening age to 50 by October 2024. 

People aged 55, 56 and 57 will start to be invited for screening from tomorrow, October 5 and will receive their home testing kits in the post. The programme will be rolled out to the newly eligible age group gradually over the next 12 months. 

Part of a £16 million investment package by the Welsh Government, the funding has supported the introduction the new, easier to use, FIT (Faecal Immunochemical Test) at home testing kit. The new home testing kits have helped improve screening uptake to 65% and have improved sensitivity to better detect those at risk of bowel cancer. 

More than 2,500 people were diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2019. Screening plays an important role in detecting cancer earlier and helps to improve cancer outcomes in Wales. 

The lowering of the screening age is based on the recommendation by the UK National Screening Committee. 

Minister for Health and Social Services, Eluned Morgan said: “It is great to see the next phase of our plan to widen access to bowel cancer screening come into effect. 

“We have previously introduced the more user-friendly test and started inviting those aged 58-59. This next phase of the programme widens access to those aged 55-57. 

“This move will help us to identity more bowel cancer cases early and support improvement in survival rates."

MS calls for review of 'failing and dysfunctional' health board

Bold intervention is required to rescue a "failing and dysfunctional" Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board which is losing public confidence, according to Senedd Member Mabon ap Gwynfor.

The member for Dwyfor Meirionnyd, who fought for the retention of Llangollen's Cottage Hospital a decade ago, says in an article in the Cambrian News that bold steps should be taken as a matter of urgency to safeguard the future of stability of health services in north Wales and is calling on First Minister Mark Drakeford to carry out a review.

* For the full article, see: https://www.facebook.com/100058081990475/posts/pfbid0vFbSiJaJj5PSNr4M1agLCDQKfxF3mwZGgfHsvoUvwr6Z8gVEDAp1ogjDPX13PBgpl/

Nothing much not to like on new Honda CR-V

Honda CR-V drive by Steve Rogers

In the words of the great Bob Dylan The times they are a-changin' and so it is for the Honda CR-V, the founding father of the sports utility.

Back in 1995 it was it was a new breed of car, it looked like an off-roader but drove like an oversized family hatchback. It opened the floodgates and became a must-have for car companies. Even Rolls-Royce and Bentley have joined the clan.

People grew to love CR-V because it was so roomy, carrying a family of five and all their holiday paraphernalia, and there was the same love affair with caravanners who liked the ease at which the diesel engine towed.

Back to the here and now and the 5th generation model is all about energy efficiency and doing its bit to make the air we breathe cleaner. So no more diesel engines, just a cleaner petrol hybrid, and you can forget about towing because the 750kg limit is little more than a titchy trailer.

If this is painting a bleak picture it is not meant to; the Honda has not lost any of its other attributes and is still a popular big family car.

CR-V is offered only as a self-charging hybrid, which is surprising given Honda’s experience in this area, so emissions are not as low and economy not as good as a plug in hybrid. You will only get around a mile of driving on electric power and that will be at low speeds.

Driven with a sensible foot on the fast pedal the batteries are quickly recharged and the process can be speeded up using the steering wheel paddles for brake regeneration.

Performance is on the good side of average but you will get irritated by the drone from the CVT gearbox when accelerating. This is the norm for this type of transmission because the automatic box is a law unto itself sometimes hanging on to a gear for what seems like an eternity. It is not a deal breaker and the 2-litre engine is responsive and smooth.

Economy is rather good, expect to average around 43mpg, and on a 240-mile round trip I just nudged 50mpg although I was driving solo with nothing in the boot.

It is ditto on handling - the good side of average. CR-V is tuned for comfort which, let’s be honest, is what the majority of owners want. This model is a little stiffer than what has gone before so not too much body roll given its SUV status. If you crave something sporty try a Mazda CX-5.

Space is the trump card here, whether it is rear legroom, headroom, or boot space which is cavernous with a low loading height, table top flat with the back seats down and a wide aperture with the tailgate open. Pretty much a masterpiece of SUV design.

The layout up front leaves me a bit perplexed. Everything is clear, whether it be the driver’s binnacle, which has a digital speedometer and various bits of information accessed from the usual steering wheel buttons, or the central console which has clear markings. Yet it looks outdated compared to its rivals.

The touchscreen is a mere seven inches which is minute by today’s standards. It is not the easiest to fathom either, the navigation graphics look like something out out of a child’s picture book, finding the DAB radio list took a while, and I still haven’t worked out how to increase the voice volume for navigation. Level 11 was not enough but was as far as I could get.

Back to the positives and the quality of the fixtures and fittings is very good as is the spec, right across the five model range, so plenty of premium bits and bobs along with a full suite of safety technology.

There are always little niggles with the best of cars and CR-V is no exception, but there is nothing much not to like about a car that offers so much.

Fast Facts

CR-V EX e-CVT AWD

£41,155 (starts £32,815)

2-litre petrol hybrid; 280bhp

0-62mph 9.2secs; 112mph

39mpg combined

163g/km. 1st tax £585

Insurance group 24

Boot 497-1638 litres

Skates praises work of North Wales Police in Senedd

* Ken Skates MS, right, on patrol with Sgt Nathan Harvey from North Wales Police. 

Two politicians have praised police officers for their dedication to protecting the public during a Senedd discussion about anti-social behaviour. 

Ken Skates and Lesley Griffiths both placed on record their admiration and respect for frontline North Wales Police officers.

Trefnydd and North Wales Minister Ms Griffiths, deputising for Mark Drakeford during First Minister’s Questions, was asked by Welsh Labour MS Jane Bryant (Newport West) what the Welsh Government is doing to tackle anti-social behaviour. 

Crime and policing is not-devolved to Wales, and falls under the remit of the UK Government. However, the Welsh Government says it has increased the number of frontline officers it funds in the wake of huge cuts to police budgets from Westminster. 

“While policing is a reserved matter currently, we are committed to continue to doing all we can to help reduce anti-social behaviour, working closely with the Home Office, said Ms Griffiths. 

"We are currently funding 600 police and community support officers to help keep people and communities safe across Wales.”

Mr Skates, MS for Clwyd South, said: “Can I thank Jayne Bryant for raising this important issue today? Trefnydd, I was in Coedpoeth, a community that you're familiar with, very recently on patrol with the local police there. I was astonished by just how much they know about the communities that we serve and the people that live in them. 

“Would you join me in thanking all of our police forces, and in particular those community support officers that do so much to contain and limit anti-social behaviour across Wales?” 

Ms Griffiths responded: “Yes, I absolutely would join with you in commending the work that they do. They're very visible on our streets, in our villages, and obviously I know Coedpoeth very well. 

“I think the reason that we brought forward the funding for another 100 PCSOs, plugging Home Office gaps, shall we say, was in relation to making sure that that support is on our streets, making people feel safer.”

After his recent patrol with Sgt Nathan Harvey from North Wales Police’s Wrexham Rural team, Mr Skates said: “It was a really interesting morning, and it was great to get out with Nathan and get an idea of what our frontline officers are dealing with day to day in keeping the public safe.”

Drosi teams up with company to recycle bikes

* Bryson's Gerwyn Williams with Beth Ward of Drosi Bikes CIC. 

Bryson Recycling has joined forces with Drosi Bikes CIC in Llangollen to collect bicycles for reuse at their Recycling Centre in Ruthin, which they run on behalf of Denbighshire County Council.

This new initiative will help give unused bicycles a new lease of life while also promoting the environmental and wellbeing benefits of cycling. 

Drosi Bikes CIC are a local social enterprise who refurbish and sell bikes, with all profits generated being used to support their social and environmental activities. Any bikes not suitable for reuse are recycled for parts

Since May 2021, Drosi have recycled and refurbished over 165 bikes, many of which have been sold or rented out to promote cycling as a genuine alternative to driving. 

They upskill and empower under-represented groups through workshops and classes to support individuals to cycle and have also donated a number of bikes to local refugee and asylum seeker charities.

Commenting on the new scheme, Gerwyn Williams, Team Manager at Bryson Recycling, said: “At Bryson, we are always looking at ways to help make our local area greener and are keen to look at ways to reduce waste while benefitting the local community in the areas where we work. We are delighted to work with Drosi Bikes CIC and think this a great way to encourage local residents to choose to reuse their bikes."

Beth Ward, Director/Co-founder of Drosi Bikes, said: “One of our main aims at Drosi Bikes CIC is to offer accessible solutions to climate change. We are really excited to be working with Bryson Recycling, helping them to reduce waste in Denbighshire and empowering people to have a positive impact on the world. 

"We’re looking forward to seeing some of these bikes back in action! Any bikes that are donated should be in good condition with no obvious signs of rust or damage. Both adults and children’s bikes are accepted."

* If you wish to donate a bike, please take it to Ruthin Recycling Centre, Lon Parcwr Industrial Estate, Ruthin. LL15 1BB. For opening hours and further details please visit www.brysonrecycling.org.