None of Denbighshire's 20 mph roads proposed for reverting to 30, says story

None of Denbighshire’s “new” 20mph roads will be proposed to reverting back to a 30mph speed limit, according to a story in the Denbighshire Free Press.

* For the full story, see: No 20mph Denbighshire road will be suggested to become 30mph | Denbighshire Free Press 

* Further information on this, direct from Denbighshire County Council this afternoon, is here:

Denbighshire County Council have recently completed their review of the default 20mph speed limit in the County.

In September 2023 the Welsh Government introduced legislation which changed the default speed limit for residential roads from 30mph to 20mph.

Following the implementation the Welsh Government launched a review of the default speed limit in 2024 and concluded that the default speed limit of 20mph was appropriate in the vast majority of cases.

However, an updated guidance was provided to local councils to assess any requests for ‘exceptions’ to the default speed limit.

Exceptions are lengths of road where the speed limit would be reverted to 30 mph, but they would need to be granted on a case-by-case basis and meet a very strict set of criteria, before they could be considered for an exception from the default 20mph speed limit.

The Council received over 300 submissions for exceptions for a total of 202 roads in Denbighshire and assessed all suggested exceptions rigorously in accordance with the new Welsh Government guidelines for setting exceptions.  

After assessing all 202 roads individually against the exceptions criteria, it was decided that none of the roads met enough of the exception criteria that the Council could safely consider increasing the speed limit.

Councillor Barry Mellor, Lead member for Environment and Transport said: “Following the extensive work from our officers to assess over 300 submissions, it was decided that none of the suggested roads met the criteria set by the Welsh Government to safely increase the speed limit to 30mph. I would like to thank the officers involved with assessing the submissions we received, and I’d also like to thank the residents who took the time to get in touch with us as part of the review process”.

Dads can check out Plas Newydd for free this weekend

Denbighshire Heritage Sites, including Plas Newydd, are offering dads the chance to experience the attractions for free in celebration of Father’s Day weekend. 

This weekend, three of Denbighshire’s treasured heritage locations, Ruthin Gaol, Nantclwyd y Dre and Plas Newydd (Llangollen) are offering dads the chance to experience these unique historic attractions, for free!

With one free entry to each site - with an accompanying paying visitor - the offer presents the perfect chance for families to unlock the unique Victorian prison experience, discover more than 500 years of history under one roof, and take in the home of the Ladies of Llangollen, together.

With self-led audio tours, interactive exhibitions and family activities included in admission at all three attractions, Father’s Day weekend promises to be a fun day out for all.

Councillor Emrys Wynne, Lead Member for Welsh Language, Culture and Heritage said: “Our heritage sites offer a wonderful experience for all to enjoy and with the wide variety of activities on offer, the attractions are a perfect place for a family day out."

* Booking is not required, but members of the public who would like to arrange a visit can find more details, including opening times and admission prices online at www.denbighshire.gov.uk/heritage

For more details, please contact the Denbighshire Heritage Service team via heritage@denbighshire.gov.uk

Round-up of forthcoming events at Llangollen Museum

David Crane gives an update on forthcoming events at Llangollen Museum:

"On Wednesday 25th June, at 7:00pm, there will be an illustrated talk by Humphrey Gibson at Llangollen Museum entitled Coalmining in Denbighshire. 

"Humphrey will be looking at the history of coal mining in Denbighshire, from the early days, through the closures in the 1960s, 70s and 80s, to the heritage attractions that they form today. 

"Come and discover the history of what was once one of the key local industries in the area. Entrance will be £3 on the door, which will include refreshments.

"Leading up to the Eisteddfod, our new window display will feature photographs and artefacts related to the unique festival that takes place in Llangollen every year. 

"For Eisteddfod week, we will also be updating our display cabinet inside the museum, as well as installing a new audio point with recordings from the 1970s of some of those people involved with the Eisteddfod looking back at the history of the event."

Singer songwriter returns to Eisteddfod in completely different guise

* KT Tunstall.

When folk rock singer/songwriter, KT Tunstall steps onto the stage at Llangollen's International Eisteddfod with a full orchestra behind her it will be a far cry from her previous visit to the festival.  

For when the Brit award winner visited in the 1990s she drove down from Edinburgh in a van to sell goods from her friend's 'hippie shop' on the Eisteddfod field. 

 

On July 10 she will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of her first and multi-million selling album, Eye to the Telescope, with a 2025 tour that includes a very special, one off concert in the pavilion. 

 

The tracks including Other Side of the World and Suddenly I See  have been set to a completely new orchestral score thanks to a link up with the Eisteddfod's artistic director Dave Danford who will conduct The Absolute Orchestra. 

 

"He contacted me to explain the idea and I had to say yes," she said. I'm so excited." 

 

"This will be the only chance people will have to see my music set to an orchestra. The album, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, is very stripped back music with four to five musicians. To have an orchestra with me will be mind blowing. 

 

"It is also out of my comfort zone as I am a bit of a control freak over my music so I have had to to learn to let go the reins. 

 

"I have been to the Eisteddfod before.  It was 1996/7 and my friend had a hippie shop in Edinburgh. She also attended festivals and I agreed to come down to the Llangollen for her. 

 

"I drove down in a van and spent the week at the Eisteddfod selling things like candles and incense. I loved it. I didn't leave the van very often but I got to see the performers from all over the world walking around the site in their colourful costumes. 

 

"I love Wales. I used to come with my family every year to Llanfairfechan and I used to have a Welsh bassist who taught me some Welsh." 

 

KT Tunstall's big break came when she was 29 and appeared on Jools Holland. 

 

"I started in the folk music scene and Bob Dylan is my hero," she recalled. 

 

She has collaborated with other singers over the years including releasing the album Face to Face with 70’s rock star Suzi Quatro in 2023. 

 

"She is amazing. I have always been a fan and met her at an Elvis tribute show in Hyde Park. She said we should do something together but it wasn't until the beginning of the end of lockdown that we had the time. When we made the album we would sit chatting for hours on end. I love the way our voices work together the result is so much bigger than the sum of the parts." 

 

The run of concerts this year include one at London's Royal Albert Hall on KT Tunstall's 50th birthday. 

 

"I was thinking about getting a few friends round with a six pack and instead I will be celebrating with 5,000 people. 

 

"I have to pinch myself sometimes when I think it is the 20th anniversary of the album and am incredibly grateful for all that I have done. But I am also looking forward and very excited about the future." 

Llangollen businesses urged to bid for a slice of £1 million fund

* Dyserth pharmacist Ravi Kiran Palutla with Cadwyn Clwyd’s Donna Hughes at his Dyserth chemist. Picture by Rick Matthews

Businesses in Denbighshire are being urged to bid for a slice of a massive £1 million fund that’s just gone live.

It’s a second helping of the Prosperous Denbighshire Business Fund being distributed by regeneration agency Cadwyn Clwyd and follows an initial fund worth £1.3 million that benefited almost 100 companies across the county.

Now an extra £1 million is up for grabs in grants of up to £35,000 with the closing date for applications on Thursday, July 31.

Smaller grants of up to £2,000 are also available and Cadwyn Clwyd are expecting a similarly high level of interest this time round.

Funding from the first tranche of cash helped save a 150-year-old village chemist shop in Dyserth which has seen its business boom thanks to a computerised appointment booking system.

The solution pharmacist Ravi Kiran Palutla came up with for the Dyserth Pharmacy not only boosted his business but could hold the answer to the long waits people experience at Wales’s GP surgeries.

He developed an on-line appointment booking system which allows customers to book in-person consultations so Ravi can then prescribe medicines and treatments or, where appropriate, refer patients to a doctor’s surgery.

When Ravi took over the former Peter Morgan Pharmacy in Dyserth in 2023 it seemed he might face a fight to survive but two years later the computerised appointment system has driven customer numbers up by 44 per cent and seen appointments soar from 20 a month to 300.

The secret of his success, that computerised appointment booking system, was paid for by a £1,897 grant from the Prosperous Denbighshire Business Fund, administered by Cadwyn Clwyd, which has now re-opened for a second phase of spending.

Ravi added: “A grant of just £1,897 enabled me to update the website to make it more functional and install a computerised booking system and the difference it has made has been amazing.

“The population of the Dyserth area is about 2,000 and for me to have a viable business I need a patient base of 4,000 plus and the computerised system has allowed me to build that.

“Because the appointments are made online we don’t have the pressure of taking phone calls and making bookings so we have been able to develop new services.

“These range from treating migraines, chest and urinary infections, providing morning after contraceptive pills and giving Covid vaccines which have brought us patients from as far afield as Dolgellau and Criccieth.

“We are already doing virtual travel consultation securely via the internet. This reduces the need for the patient to travel twice to the pharmacy, once for consultation, second for vaccine administration. We will be developing a private phlebotomy business soon. 

 

“I know health authorities in Wales are looking at what we have done and at the possibility of rolling it out across the country and it is the Prosperous Denbighshire Fund that has made all this a reality for us.

“We will be doing it at a smaller scale in Denbighshire pharmacies first which will then give us the opportunity to learn from the implementation. The learnings will be useful for the national project yet to come in the next 18 months. 

Cadwyn Clwyd Business Partnership Officer Donna Hughes said: “It is remarkable the difference it has made to Ravi’s business and to access to healthcare in North Denbighshire.

“He was in the first phase of the Prosperous Denbighshire rollout which can pay up to 70 per cent of the value of a project to a maximum of £35,000 of a £50,000 scheme.

“The success of what Ravi has done just shows that this kind of funding can do wonders for a business.

“It opens up tremendous possibilities and that’s why we’re delighted to be able to offer a further £1 million in grants which also include smaller schemes of between £1,000 and £2,000.

“The first phase proved hugely popular which was shown by the number of grants we were able to make and it also shows the need and the effectiveness of this kind of support for local people to build businesses with all the benefits that has for them and the communities in which they live.”

The money comes from the Shared Prosperity Fund, administered by the UK Government, which announced in their Autumn Budget a further £900 million of funding for local investment by March 2026.

* For more information contact Donna Hughes at Cadwyn Clwyd on 01490 340500, email: donna.hughes@cadwynclwyd.co.uk or go to http://cadwynclwyd.co.uk/

5th Llangollen Round Challenge raises over £130,000

 

* On the descent from Moel Morfydd.

Organisers of the 5th Llangollen Round Challenge have thanked everyone who helped them raise more than £130,000 from the gruelling event run a couple of weeks ago.

In a statement to llanblogger they say: "Our grateful thanks go to everyone  - more than 100 of you - who volunteered help with the 5th Llangollen Round Challenge, and to all our brilliant cake-bakers as well.  

"From the comments on Facebook it seems that the event was very successful, around 700 people walked, and we can say that to date we have raised more than £130,000 with an additional £17,000 in Gift Aid for Cancer Research UK.  

"That sum will make a very real difference to the various trials that are being carried out - we know that £25,000 has gone to the Add-Aspirin Trial in London - and we thank all of you for your part in that massive donation.

"From Judy and The Team (Eddy, Marie, Trevor, Angela)."

'Exciting' plans for the future of Bryntysilio unveiled

* An impression of how a restored Bryntysilio Hall would look.

Bryntysilio Outdoor Education Centre in Llangollen has submitted a planning application aimed at ensuring its long-term future.

According to its chief executive officer Chris Eastabrook, the intention is to revitalise the site while preserving its historical significance. 

The application to Denbighshire County Council calls for the erection of a new workshop and proposed alterations and extensions to existing buildings, including the main hall, lodge building, hub building and the gate house to provide for improved facilities and increased accommodation space.

The plans also incorporate general improvements to the layout of access and drainage arrangements, along with the additional use of the centre as a wedding venue for a maximum of six weddings a year.

* The hall as it appeared in 1910. 

And Mr Eastabrook believes the most exciting aspect is the restoration of the missing 'West Wing', where Queen Victoria stayed when she visited Llangollen in 1889. 

He said: “Bryntysilio, a cherished landmark in Llangollen, has taken a critical step toward securing its future for the next 60 years with the submission of a long-awaited planning application. 

“Following extensive work that considers conservation, heritage, environmental, and practical aspects, the proposals aim to revitalise the site while preserving its historical significance. 

“The design process has been complex, allowing little room for flexibility, but every detail has been carefully assessed to ensure the best possible outcome for Bryntysilio and the wider community. 

*  Plans for Bryntysilio Lodge.

“The application has been shaped by a thorough pre-application process, and we extend our gratitude to Denbighshire County Council for their invaluable guidance throughout. 

“However, the stakes are high. Without approval, one of Llangollen’s listed buildings faces an uncertain future, potentially jeopardising local jobs and vital charitable initiatives. 

“Years of underinvestment have led to this rare, once-in-a-generation opportunity to establish a world-leading outdoor centre - one that will serve young people and adults for decades to come.” 

He added: “It has taken a lot of work to get this application submitted, and I am grateful to the design team, the county council and everyone else who has taken the time to discuss the proposals with us.  

“As a charity, we haven't been able to access any financial support until we are granted planning permission, so it's been a really challenging time finding the funds to do this application properly, however, once we achieve this milestone, a lot of doors start to open for organisations that want to support Bryntysilio, but we need local support to get there. 

“We humbly ask for the support of our community. A letter advocating for Bryntysilio’s renewal could make all the difference in securing the next chapter of its story.  Guidance on how to comment on the plans can be found on the link above.” 

* Details of the application, now publicly accessible, can be viewed at: https://developments.denbighshire.gov.uk/planning/index.html?fa=getApplication&id=125898