Father's Day fundraiser by Plas Madoc campaigners

A pub will play host to a Father’s Day fundraiser to help the ongoing campaign to save Plas Madoc Leisure Centre.

The music-themed afternoon organised by the Splash Community Trust will be held at The Duke of Wellington in nearby Acrefair on Sunday (June 15), when local band The New Foos will be playing from 3pm.

Trust director Greg Ogden said there will also be an array of ‘fantastic’ prizes on offer during the event, which is the latest money-spinner to be held as volunteer-run group aims to reopen the popular facility later this summer.

Greg, who lives in Trevor, said: “I’d like to thank the pub’s landlady, Shauny, who as well as hosting the event is supplying a bottle of whiskey for the raffle. There are plenty more fantastic prizes to be won, including a meal for two at The Cornmill in Llangollen.

“Our top prize is a night for two at the Wild Pheasant in Llangollen in a suite with its own hot-tub, which also includes a three-course dinner and breakfast the following morning.”

Greg added: “There will also be a bouncy castle and face-painting for the children – and the adults too – as well as a hog roast and barbecue, hot dogs and and a sweets stall. Throw in the music and there will be something for everyone.

“The weather’s looking good too, so it promises to be a great afternoon for a brilliant cause.”
The Splash Community Trust is also holding a race night at the Old Black Horse in Rhostyllen on Friday, June 27, from 8pm. To sponsor a race or buy a horse for the night, contact Jenny Miller on 07921 659099.

The Trust now has a PayPal account through which donations can be made. If you want to contribute, visit https://t.co/VlqCYUVROU or contact Jenny direct.

The group’s website, which will include a ‘donate’ button, is coming soon.

Referral to treatment figures rise in Wales

This month’s referral to treatment times have shown a large increase in the number of patients waiting over 36 weeks to start their treatment.

 

Referral to treatment time is the period of time from referral by a GP or other medical practitioner to hospital for treatment in the NHS in Wales.

 

The figures show that in April 12,795 Welsh patients had been waiting for 36 weeks, up over 2,000 on figures for March (10,586). This is an increase of over 20%.

 

Commenting Kirsty Williams, Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, said: “These figures are very worrying. The Welsh Government has a target that not a single patient should wait over 36 weeks to start their treatment, yet this huge increase shows things seem to be getting worse not better.

 

“The Welsh Labour Government should think of the patients behind these figures, many of which will be in a lot of pain and discomfort. For those people, 36 weeks must feel like a lifetime."

Campaigners' concern over rural bus services

 

* Mabon ap Gwynfor with Jane Ballinger.

 

A hospital worker says council cuts to bus services have put her job at risk.

 

Now campaigners and Plaid Cymru are calling for Wrexham Council to reinstate the bus services in rural areas.

 

Jane Ballinger, of Glyn Ceiriog, works at the orthopaedic hospital and used to catch the Number 60 bus service.

 

This was cut in April and, as she cannot drive due to being partially sighted, she faced losing her livelihood.

 

Fortunately she has been able to get a lift from friends because the reduced bus service will not get her there and back in time for work.

 

Mabon ap Gwynfor, Plaid Cymru spokesperson for Clwyd South, warned that losing the number 60 bus service could threaten the livelihoods of many people in the same situation as Jane.

 

He said: "The number 60 bus was a lifeline to Jane and others like her. For the sake of saving a few thousand pounds peoples lives are being impacted upon, with some having to consider leaving their communities in order to keep their jobs.

 

"Providing public transport that is accessible for all is a key public service which both the Government and Council should ensure is available. By cutting these service not only are they denying people their independence, but it will have a damaging impact on the local economy and will contribute to the slow death of our villages."

Jane Ballinger said:  “I have used the bus number 60 for many years now.  I currently work at the Oswestry Orthopaedic hospital and have done for over five years.  I am partially sighted so will never be able to drive.    

“I used to catch the 60 in Glyn Ceiriog at 07:50 to take me via Chirk, via Gobowen and stopping at the Orthopaedic before going on to Osewstry.  In the evenings I stay a little late in work catching the No 60 home at 17:46 at the hospital, back through Gobowen, Chirk and back to Glyn Ceiriog.

“The Number 60 was discontinued and these are the alternatives.  I currently start work at 8:20/08:25 when I arrive and usually finish at 17:00 but I stay a little later to catch the bus so work til 17:30.

"So basically, I cannot get home. Even if I left my office at 5 o'clock I couldn't get to the bus stop by two minutes passed: without cutting my hours at work I cannot use public transport and contin ue to work as I do. 

"I could potentially lose my job and my home because of this.  Subsidised bus services surely were for exactly this purpose so people in rural areas had as much chance as anyone else of being able to get to work to pay their taxes and contribute to the economy.    

"I am heartbroken by this news.  I am lucky to have friends who will help ferry me back and to, however, it shouldn't be like this, I should have the opportunity to get to work myself.    

"The No 60 only did these two journeys to Oswestry 6 days a week, surely stopping this can't be saving a huge amount.  I am willing to see the posts of Mayor and Mayoress cut....  they don't get me to work and I am sure this would generate a large saving for the council.

"I would be very sorry to leave the orthopaedic, I love my job and have a fantastic set of colleagues.  Similarly, I cannot just leave the job as bills, mortgage etc still have to be paid."

Lovebird takes refuge with town's taxidermist

The Leader is reporting today how a lovebird took refuge with Llangollen's taxidermist.

For the full story see: http://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/134585/lovebird-takes-refuge-in-llangollen-taxidermy-shop.aspx

Residents warned over World Cup lottery scam

Trading Standards teams across North Wales are aware that some residents have received a letter claiming they have won a large sum of money e.g. £750,000 from ‘Euro Millions FIFA World Cup Super Lottery.’

They are warning people that if they receive a letter like this, not to respond and instead to report it to Action Fraud immediately.

Kevin Jones, Wrexham's Principal Manager for Trading Standards and Chair of the North Wales Heads of Trading Standards group, said: “This type of scam isn’t new, there have been many similar examples. However, when someone receives a letter through the door which claims to be linked to the World Cup it can be very convincing.

"The letter includes many logos which attempt to give the letter some validity and asks the recipient to make contact with the Foreign Service Manager.  It is likely that people who do ring the number will be asked to provide personal and banking details.  I would advise very strongly that residents do not provide this information because of the danger of their bank accounts being emptied of cash.”

Emlyn Jones, Denbighshire’s Public Protection Manager and part of the North Wales' Heads of Public Protection Group, said: “We have a duty to protect our residents from such scams and we will take all necessary action to warn the community and liaise with various other enforcement agencies because this type of scam is often based abroad." P

People should remember these points to protect themselves against lottery fraud:

·        Never respond to any such communication.  If you haven’t entered a lottery then you can’t have won it.

·        Official lotteries in other countries operate in much the same way as the UK’s National Lotto.  No official lotteries that we know of contact people to tell them of their win.

·        We don’t know of any official lottery operators who ask for fees to collect winnings. Any request for a fee payment is a good indication that someone is trying to defraud you.

·        Never, ever disclose your bank details or pay fees in advance.

·        If the contact details include  email addresses such as @hotmail.com or @yahoo.com, or numbers beginning with 07, then be very suspicious because these are free to get hold of.

·        Genuine lotteries thrive on publicity.  If they ask you to keep your win a secret it’s likely to be a fraud.

·        Many fraudulent lotteries have bad spelling and grammar – see this as a warning that fraudsters are at work.

·        Do some research – if you have access to the internet then use search engines to check other people’s experiences.  Check with friends and family.

* Residents wanting advice and guidance on any consumer issue should contact the Citizens Advice consumer service on 08454 04 05 06 or 08454 04 05 05 for the Welsh language service (www.adviceguide.org.uk ). Potential scams should be reported to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 (www.actionfraud.police.uk)

Man airlifted to hospital after quarry fall

The BBC news website is reporting today (Wednesday) that a man was airlifted to hospital after falling in a flooded quarry near Llangollen.

A Welsh Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We received a call at 7.31pm last night, Tuesday June 10, to reports a man had fallen at the Blue Lagoon quarry, near Horseshoe Pass.

"A Community First Responder attended together with paramedics in two rapid response cars, a crew in an emergency ambulance and an RAF helicopter, and a man in his 30s was airlifted to the University Hospital of North Staffordshire in a serious condition.”

See the BBC story at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-north-east-wales-27790758

This update from the Daily Post came earlier this afternoon:

http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/mans-fight-life-after-200ft-7250154

Care home residents tune up for the Eisteddfod

 

 * Pendine Park residents will collaborate with the Halle on a musical workshop.

 

A group of talented care home residents are teaming up with a world class orchestra to perform at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod.

 

The melodious group from Pendine Park care organisation, Wrexham, will be collaborating in a musical workshop with the renowned Hallé at the festival on Tuesday, July 8.

 

The night before Pendine Park is sponsoring a special performance at the Eisteddfod pavilion of Sweeney Todd: the Demon Barber of Fleet Street starring opera superstar Bryn Terfel.

 

Bryn, who earned rave reviews when he did Sweeney Todd on Broadway with Oscar-winning actress Emma Thompson, will be sharing the Llangollen stage with top tenor Wynne Evans, the star of the Go Compare TV ads.

 

Preparations for the workshop are well underway as Pendine Park artist in residence Sarah Edwards explained: “Each of the homes will get a country as a theme, and they will then produce artwork, poetry, musical pieces, to tie that theme together.

 

“I’m really excited about the workshop at the Llangollen Eisteddfod. We can’t wait and feel privileged to be a part of such a renowned festival.

 

"The work we do with the Hallé is an integral part of our enrichment programme and also has a key role in our personal training and staff development.

 

"Unlocking the creativity within our staff can also help them do the same with our residents."

 

Marian Williams, 93, a resident at Gwern Alyn care home, said: “I’ve been getting involved and by conducting and moving my arms a lot. The musicians from the Halle are very talented. They come here often and I like that. I enjoy the conducting and getting involved with the music.”

 

Steve Pickett, Education Director of the Hallé,  said: “We’ve worked with the residents at Pendine Park for a number of years and having the opportunity to then showcase that activity to the public and to show what these people can do, not to concentrate on what they can’t do, I think is a really brilliant.

 

“The Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod is renowned worldwide and for Pendine to have its spot on that is an opportunity not to be missed so we are going to be putting as much into that as we possibly can. It’s a very exciting prospect.”

 

The three Hallé maestros working with the residents were violinist, Caroline Abbott, oboe/keyboard player Hugh McKenna, a former army man who is also an Ironman Triathlon athlete who has competed in New Zealand, and cellist, David Petri.

 

David, a regular visitor to Pendine Park, said: “Pendine Park has helped buy some instruments for the residents to use in the sessions. Music is a very powerful memory tool.

 

Someone who cannot talk can still express themselves through music, even if it is just moving their hands or fingers.

 

“This is one of the best things we do, it’s very rewarding.”

 

Sarah added: “The Hallé are amazing. They’re world class musicians and they treat our residents with dignity and respect. They’ve got such brilliant manners and we just couldn’t ask for better.

 

“It makes a huge difference to residents to be able to enjoy such fantastic music.

 

“You can see a visible difference in them. Some of them respond when they haven’t previously responded to anything because it helps evoke memories.

 

“It helps to relax them and it’s invaluable to our enrichment programme at Pendine where we would like to make a difference to people’s lives and this is a way of doing that.

 

“We’re able to see and note changes in people and you can’t quantify that really. Changes like lifts in moods, people get more responsive, they’re generally happier, they engage more, and that’s invaluable to a person’s quality of life.

 

“What we are keen to work to is provide the best quality of life for our residents, and the Hallé project exactly fits in with that ethos.”

 

The curtain raiser for this year's Eisteddfod will mark the return of opera superstar Bryn Terfel to Llangollen.

 

The acclaimed bass baritone will be playing the lead in a special English-language production of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.  The show will also star top tenor Wynne Evans, otherwise known as Gio Compario in the Go Compare TV ads.

 

This year's will also feature concerts by Dutch jazz sensation Caro Emerald and veteran British rockers Status Quo as well as a world premiere of a new work, Adiemus Colores, by top composer Karl Jenkins.

 

He will conduct his Latin American themed work with American tenor Noah Stewart, Venezuelan trumpeter Pacho Flores and Latvian accordion player Ksenija Sidorova to the accompaniment of the Llangollen International Eisteddfod Orchestra.

 

The Friday night concert, Spirit of Unity, will feature the Cape Town Opera, Africa’s premiere opera company, famed for their "vibrant vocalism and high-octane stage performances".

 

Appearing with them will be Wales’ representative in Cardiff Singer of the World, Gary Griffiths, the Wales Millennium Centre Only Kids Aloud Chorus under the baton of celebrity conductor Tim Rhys Evans and British Sinfonietta, one of the UK's leading independent professional orchestras.

 

The Choir of the World competition for the Pavarotti Trophy on the Saturday night is the blue riband event of the week-long festival which will close with a Sunday night concert by Status Quo.

 

To book tickets and for more details about the urban dance competition go to the website at www.international-eisteddfod.co.uk