Season's greetings from llanblogger

 

Use local shops for last minute gifts, says council

In this special seasonal article, the county council reminds us of the importance of shopping locally this Christmas ...

The previous two Christmases weren’t ‘normal’ to say the least, mainly because of the Covid-19 pandemic and our attempts to keep ourselves and each other safe. 

But Christmas 2022 is being affected by other, different circumstances beyond our control.

Postal strikes are having a considerable effect on delivery times, rail strikes are affecting our ability to travel further-afield to do our Christmas shopping, and the ‘cost of living crisis’ is affecting most of us in one way or another. 

But by having to shop differently this Christmas, it also offers us some excellent opportunities as well. And if you’ve still got some last minute shopping to do, remember that there are some wonderful businesses right on our doorstep.

Denbighshire County Council’s initiative to Support Denbighshire High Streets is particularly relevant this Christmas. 

Asking people to shop and support their local businesses is nothing new. The annual #lovelivelocal campaign provides an excellent opportunity to remind us of what we have nearby. 

Rather than taking the risk of ordering online and not receiving your items in time or filling up on over-priced diesel to drive to do our shopping miles away, we can save time and money and help our local traders by shopping closer to home.  

The campaign reminds us that we have wonderful shops, cafés, and restaurants on our own local high streets, and if we support them and use them, we can ensure that they continue to be there for us in the future. And a good Christmas can mean everything to a local trader.

There is so much more to the high street experience than just shopping, especially over the Christmas period. 

There was a time when we did much more of our Christmas shopping on our local high street. It was an opportunity to meet up with friends for a chat, a cuppa, and a mince pie, and there’s nowhere like your local high street when the Christmas lights are shining, there are carol singers singing and events such as artisan markets bring new life to town.

Councillor Jason McLellan, Leader of Denbighshire County Council, and Lead Member for Economic Growth and Tackling Deprivation, said: “The #lovelivelocal campaign is to remind people of the wonderful businesses we have in Denbighshire, to shop and use local services wherever possible to keep the Denbighshire economy thriving and lower our carbon footprint.

"It’s been going really well so far this year but it's important that we continue to remind our residents that they don’t need to travel very far to shops, and they don’t need to buy online, everything they need is here, in our towns and villages – give Denbighshire businesses a go and #lovelivelocal.”

After two Christmases of being apart, the high street can be a place for us to congregate and meet up once again. And if you’ve been out and about and feel that the service you’ve received from a local business is something you’d like to share with your friends, family, or even the business itself, don’t forget to use your social media presence to let everyone know!

And a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all!

Heli-help at Castell Dinas Brân!

* The helicopter swoops in to help with the work on Castell Dinas Brân. 

Helicopter help was on hand to assist Rangers from the Clwydian Range & Dee Valley AONB undertake important works on the picturesque slopes of Castell Dinas Brân.

Earlier in the autumn - and under the expert guidance of archaeologists from Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust (CPAT) – Rangers, volunteers and contractors excavated close to 35 tonnes of material from the castle gatehouse as part of the exciting restoration works taking place at the castle.

All of the excavated material was bagged up, ready to be airlifted directly onto one of the key routes that meanders to the summit. 

This section of footpath has become heavily eroded and has widened considerably in recent years, threatening the population of nationally scarce plants such as upright chickweed and shepherd’s cress that are to be found here at Dinas Brân.

Skilled contractors will then use this material to repair damaged sections of the trail.

Rhun Jones, Senior Ranger in the Dee Valley, said “Working in partnership with Cadw and CPAT, this has been a really exciting project – and not just because we have a helicopter here to move all of the material!”

“When planning the project, we knew that in restoring the castle and clearing the gatehouse, we’d generate a lot of waste. But we saw this as an ideal opportunity to use the cleared material to improve access opportunities whilst also safeguarding the fragile grassland habitat too so that everyone can continue to enjoy Dinas Brân’s rich natural and historical heritage.”

The castle restoration work is being delivered through the Our Picturesque Landscape project, a landscape partnership scheme funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, with additional support and funding provided by Cadw.

Councillor Win Mullen James, Denbighshire Cabinet Lead Member for Local Development and Planning, said: “This is a fantastic piece of collaborative work and I look forward to seeing the end results at such a prominent Llangollen landmark. “

MP finds out more about feline welfare

* Simon Baynes MP at the Cats Protection Parliamentary Reception.

* Billy, the Baynes family rescue cat from Welshpool.

Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes MP attended a reception hosted by the UK’s largest cat charity to find out more about feline welfare issues.   

The event, held at the House of Commons, was a chance to discuss ways to improve the lives of cats and their owners, from cat microchipping to enabling more people in rented housing to own pet cats.   

Cats Protection’s Head of Advocacy, Campaigns and Government Relations Madison Rogers said: “We were delighted to host our reception in the House of Commons to discuss cat welfare, which is an important issue for many people across the UK. We were able to discuss a wide range of issues, from the breeding of cats to compulsory microchipping of pet cats.   

“With 11 million pet cats in the UK, cats are undoubtedly one of the UK’s most popular pets, so it is great to see so many politicians taking an interest in feline welfare.”  

Mr Baynes said: “It was a pleasure to meet Cats Protection’s team in Parliament and to hear about the vital work they are doing for the welfare of cats. I also took the opportunity to find out more about the volunteering opportunities the charity has available across the UK.   

“Cats Protection is the UK’s largest cat protection charity and helps over 150,000 cats and kittens every year and is very close to my heart as we have a much-loved family cat Billy who was a rescue cat, found on the street of Welshpool as a small kitten.” 

Eisteddfod announces new-look dance competitions

Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod has announced its new line-up of dance competitions for 2023. 

The Eisteddfod has long been celebrated for its choral competitions, which culminate in the famous Choir of the World final, and has won a reputation for stunning global participation in its traditional / folk dance categories. 

For Llangollen’s first full-length Eisteddfod since the pandemic, an extra day of competitions has been added, for the first time ever featuring ballet, contemporary, commercial and even a dance-off.

Executive Producer Camilla King said: “If you've ever wanted to combine friendly competition with a festival experience then Llangollen 2023 is for you.

"I hope that dancers of all ages will be inspired to come and join us in beautiful North Wales, to perform in the 4,000 seat Royal Pavilion arena, take part in our activities around town, and to compete for the chance to take part in either the Dance Champions Final (with a prize of £1,000), or the Stars of Tomorrow final for our junior performers.”

·    Traditional / Folk Dance: for groups of 4-25 performers, aged 16+

·    Children’s Folk Dance: for groups of 4-25 performers, aged 16 or under

·    NEW: Ballet & Contemporary Group: 4-30 dancers with categories for juniors (9-13yrs), youth (14-18yrs), senior (19 and over)

·   NEW: Commercial & Open Group: 4-30 dancers with categories for juniors (9-13yrs), youth (14-18yrs), senior (19 and over)

·    Llangollen Dance Off: groups of 4+, no age limit, any style welcome, no selection process 

Applications are now open with the full syllabus and application information available on the dedicated participant website:https://eisteddfodcompetitions.co.uk/Applications close Friday January 6 2023 at 5pm.

The Eisteddfod offices will be closed from December 23 – January 8, and it says any competition, press or ticket enquiries will be responded to from January 9 onwards. 

* Downloadable syllabus book, application forms and other competitor information available on our dedicated website: https://eisteddfodcompetitions.co.uk/

Castle Street cashpoint wins a reprieve from NatWest

llanblogger exclusive

* The NatWest ATM is staying in Castle Street. 

Clwyd South Senedd Member Ken Skates has welcomed a U-turn on plans to close a cashpoint in Llangollen. 

NatWest was due to start decommissioning its ATM on Castle Street in mid-November, with the company previously saying it had failed to come to an agreement with the landlord for a renewal of its lease. 

Mr Skates took the matter up with NatWest on behalf of residents and said he was pleased the cashpoint will now stay put. 

He said: “A number of residents in Llangollen got in touch saying they had heard the ATM would be closing. I contacted NatWest, who confirmed that was the case. 

“However, after I raised the matter with the company again they told me they were back in negotiations and were hopeful of an agreement. That was several weeks ago, and while many residents have since noticed that the cashpoint has clearly not been removed we still didn't really know what was happening.

“NatWest have today (Wednesday) confirmed to me that they have now agreed terms.” 

In an email to Mr Skates, NatWest said: “The new lease agreement has been agreed and is with the landlord for signing. This will now mean the ATM is staying in place. I know you received a lot of queries from constituents, so we’re happy for you to update them.” 

Mr Skates added: “For a town of its size, Llangollen isn’t particularly well-served by cashpoints, especially with the volume of visitors from all over the world it sees all year round. I’m pleased this has been resolved.  

“Usually when a bank announces something that’s that, so this is a welcome result.” 

Methodist Church Christmas tree festival winners announced

* Winning trees have been announced.

At the close of the Christmas Tree Festival in Llangollen Methodist Church the votes cast for visitors' favourite trees were counted. 

The winning tree in the Traditional Category was entered by the Bright Quilting Group, and in the Royal Category the Tidy Town Team was pipped to the post by a single vote by the Woolies Knit and Natter Group. 

A spokesperson for the organisers said: "Congratulations and thank you to everyone who entered a tree and created an impressive display.

"Certificates can be collected with the trees on Wednesday January 4, between 12 noon and 4pm. The display can still be viewed at the 10.30am Service on Christmas Day and at the 11am Service on Sunday January 1. All welcome."