Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

Carmarthen v Rhyl at Richmond Park postponed because of the weather.

Carmarthenshire County Council has welcomed its first recruits as part of the Future Jobs Fund Scheme. Ten 18-24 year olds have taken up employment within the council as Community Project Workers, and will undertake a variety of projects that will directly benefit the local community. One of these will be the Pen-Y-Morfa project, which will provide a recreational area for the community of Morfa in Llanelli. The project will be undertaken in conjunction with Communities First, which is also offering six vacancies as part of the Future Jobs Fund (FJF). Justin Thomas, one of the first FJF recruits, said: “I am so pleased, after spending almost a year out of work, to be given the opportunity of full time employment, and to have a job that will also benefit the local community.” The FJF is £1billion scheme, funded by The Department of Work and Pensions. It aims to create 150,000 jobs over an 18 month period across the UK. The posts will be newly created and are primarily aimed at 18-24-ye

The Aberystwyth Christmas Food and Drink Fayre is taking place today. Some 60 seasonal food and craft producers are selling their produce at the Aberystwyth Christmas Food and Drink Fayre in Baker Street, Aberystwyth.

3,000 page visits chalked up today. That's a 1000 since November 5. Many thanks to you all for visiting. See earlier post - http://sirgarblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/2000-chalked-up.html

"There's far more snobbery and elitism in America than there is here. The land of the free? They leave us for dead. There must be 500 golf clubs over there that won't even let you down the drive if you don't fit in" - BBC golf commentator Peter Alliss.

A controversial fruit and vegetable nativity scene which depicted baby Jesus as a carrot has been given the church's blessing. Tulleys Farm, in Turners Hill, near Crawley, West Sussex, also used onions for the heads of Mary and Joseph. One visitor labelled the representation "offensive" but now the Reverend Gordon Parry, the local vicar, has given it his backing.

"The truth is that the qualities of stubbornness, resolve and sheer bloody-mindedness that are admired as leadership qualities in those with dark hair are interpreted entirely differently in us carrot-tops" - Actress Jane Asher on the "tormenting" of redheads.

A wedding ring lost in a field for 68 years is back in the hands of the owner's family after it was discovered by a metal detector. Herbert Teesdale lost the ring in 1941 when harvesting his corn fields and it remained there undiscovered until a treasure hunter unearthed it. Metal detector Kevin Woodroffe was searching the fields of the farm in Haverfordwest, south-west Wales, when he found the ring and returned it to Mr Teesdale's great-grandson, John Richards, 55, who still lives there.

When you get a chance, take a look at our Heroes Lager blog - http://heroeslager.blogspot.com

During the past year more than 300 young people in the county have achieved an Open College Network award (OCN) thanks to Carmarthenshire Council’s Youth Service. NEET young people (not in education, employment or training) have been re-engaged in education and have achieved a range of qualifications ready for the world of work. Units delivered to the young people included health and safety, basic alcohol education, motor vehicle maintenance and digital video editing; young people have also completed youth challenge initiatives. This year the Youth Service has even more units to offer. Dolan Thomas Carmarthenshire Council’s Quality and Accreditation Officer said: “OCNs help widen access to lifelong learning and develop essential skills for the young people we work with. “The amount of OCN’s obtained this year has been fantastic and I’m confident more NEET young people will take advantage of this opportunity offered by the Youth Service next year.” Councillor Gwynne Wooldridge, Executi

"They want people who are a touch Tommy Two-Ways," - Broadcaster Gyles Brandreth on David Cameron's attempts to persuade homosexuals to stand for the Conservative Party.

Worry for a "sad seagull" and an "emergency" spider in the sink were among the wackiest calls the RSPCA received this year. The top 10 funny calls, released by the RSPCA, range from cases of mistaken identity to favours members of the public needed from the charity. In one case, an inspector went to a call that a bat had been on a bedroom ceiling for a number of days - but it turned out to be a damp patch.

Motorists will again be able to cross the Cleddau Bridge free of charge on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. The tolls will close at 10 pm on Thursday 24th December and re-open at 6 am on Sunday 27th. They will also close at 10 pm on New Years' Eve and re-open at 6 am on Saturday 2nd Jan 2010.

Carmarthenshire County Council has adopted a new Gambling Policy. It sets out the principles applied when the council is exercising its functions under the Gambling Act 2005. The policy must be reviewed at least every three years to ensure that it reflects feedback from the local community that the statutory objectives are being met. The new policy was adopted this month after public consultation and a review this autumn of the policy adopted in 2007. Principal licensing officer Emyr Jones said: “As part of the review we consulted a number of interested parties including licence holders, businesses, local residents and their representatives.” Licensing Authorities responsibilities under the Act include being responsible for the licensing of premises where gambling activities are to take place by issuing Premises Licences; regulating members’ clubs and miners’ welfare institutes who wish to undertake certain gaming activities via issuing Club Gaming Permits and/or Club Machine Permits;

Local builders have been learning about the heritage building trade over a cup of tea and a bacon butty. They were invited along to the newly-launched Traditional Sustainable Building Centre, at the Canolfan Tywi Centre, Llandeilo, by the Tywi Afon Yr Oesoedd project team. They were offered information on a range of heritage building skills, courses and workshops covering the likes of lime plastering, traditional carpentry and masonry techniques, over a hearty brunch. Tywi Afon Yr Oesoedd (Tywi a River Through Time) is a partnership funded heritage project, led by Carmarthenshire County Council, which will create a legacy for future generations by safeguarding the valley’s rich and unique landscape, biodiversity and history. Nell Hellier, traditional sustainable building centre officer, said: “Wales has a rich cultural heritage and its historic environment is one of its greatest assets. "There are almost 500,000 pre-1919 buildings in Wales – almost one third of the building stock.

A new project is set to benefit over 12,000 young people across Carmarthenshire county. Engage, a Convergence funded South West Wales partnership project, will work with young people facing difficulties such as underachievement and young people in college who are at risk of dropping out. Delivery of the project will begin in the New Year and will run until December 2012. In Carmarthenshire, the project (including partner match funding) is worth nearly £6m and will be delivered via a range of County Council departments, the Youth Offending Service and Coleg Sir Gâr, with the opportunity for partner organisations to tender for other parts of the project. Councillor Gwynne Wooldridge, Executive Board Member for Children and Education Services said:“Engage will provide alternative curricula and innovative training approaches to motivate and boost the confidence of students who are disaffected from school. "The delivery of the Engage Project will be tailored to the needs of each indivi

The 14-19 Carmarthenshire Network has conducted a survey to get young people’s views about 14-19 collaborative learning partnerships in Carmarthenshire. A range of questions concerned with educational opportunities for 14-19 year olds in the County generated a huge response. More than 500 young people completed the survey. An opportunity to win an ipod Nano was up for grabs and Caitlin Littlejohns, a Year 9 student from Ysgol y Strade was the winner. Paul Bowles, Carmarthenshire Council’s Quality and Personal Support Co-ordinator - 14-19 Network said:“Only by listening to young people’s views are we able to improve learning outcomes for them in the future; the results we received will prove really valuable for shaping the way learning is provided in Carmarthenshire. Thank you to all who took part.” The Carmarthenshire 14-19 Network is the partnership of secondary schools, further education colleges, training providers, Careers Wales and the voluntary sector. It is responsible for imple

"I have met Simon Cowell a couple of times. He's incredibly talented. There probably is something we can learn in politics (from him)" - Tory leader David Cameron on the X Factor supremo. Cue: Groan!

A vicar's wife who claimed to be a stripper has confessed she actually used to strip chickens for a living. Diane Stevenson, 44, said she told the story - published in the parish magazine - in an ambiguous way to point out to her husband's new congregation the dangers of judging people. Mrs Stevenson, whose husband David is the new vicar at St Mary's Church in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire, has a draft of a follow-up article in which she sets the record straight.

A new premium bottled lager is to be launched in February 2010 to help raise more than £1million a year for forces charities - and to help provide long-term care for our Nation’s Heroes. Heroes Lager is being launched by a not-for-profit company called Beer Brands, which has announced that Afghan Heroes will be one of the first charities to benefit. Beer Brands is owned by Wales’s oldest brewing family and the company will donate all profits after cost from the sales of the lager to four military charities. The other charities will be announced over the next few weeks. Simon Buckley, sixth generation of the world famous Buckley brewing family, said: “This lager is being brewed to the very highest standards and will become one of the nation’s favourites. “Our aim is to raise significant amounts of money for the charities by making this lager widely available, and to give the consumer an easy opportunity to support our Nation’s Heroes. “This new product will be available throughout the U

The annual Cyfrwng conference will be held at Trinity University College on the 6 and 7 May 2010. Cyfrwng’s aim is to give academics, students and media practitioners the opportunity to deliberate key issues relating to the media in Wales giving a platform to the fields of Film, Television, Radio, Journalism, New Media and Theatre and Performance in particular. “We are looking forward to welcoming the conference to Trinity and to invite the higher education sector and the industry to get together” said lecturer Non Vaughan Williams, who is responsible for organising the conference with her colleagues at Trinity and UW Lampeter. “We are currently inviting papers for the conference on the theme of “Voices”. The theme clearly offers a variety of interpretations, for example: new voices, the individual voice, voices of the unheard, alternative voices, technology and the voice, voice and plurality, or voices from the past. Other subject areas may also be combined with that of the study of m

Carmarthenshire County Council’s Supporting People Team has won recognition for its outstanding work in helping people to live more independent lives. The team’s work was recognised at Cymorth Cymru's Promoting Independence Awards, held at the Holland House Hotel, Cardiff. Supporting People aims to offer vulnerable people the opportunity to improve their life through greater independence by providing a range of support services. Through working partnerships with support agencies and service users, it promotes straightforward, cost-effective solutions which complement care services and support independent living. Vulnerable people helped by the programme include people with mental health problems; those with learning difficulties and physical disabilities; women fleeing domestic violence; homeless people; teenage parents; young people at risk; travellers; ex-offenders; people on drug treatment orders, and probation users. Cymorth Cymru is the representative body for providers of hou

"There is such a big deal made out of what is really just an extension of a handshake" - Actor Tom Conti on sex and the negative view of adultery.

A man who has eaten Christmas dinner every day for the past 16 years lost three stone after halving his portions during the credit crunch. Andy Park, known as Mr Christmas, has guzzled his way through nearly 118,000 sprouts and around 5,000 bottles of Moet champagne since his festive fetish began. But since January the 45-year-old divorcee, a self-employed electrician, from Melksham, Wiltshire, has slashed the size of his plate to keep his devotion to Yuletide going in the recession.

Les Miserables, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff, until January 16 The boy from Burry Port will have you in tears – that’s a guarantee. John Owen-Jones commands the stage in the 25th anniversary touring production of Les Miserables now being staged at the Wales Millennium Centre. And if you manage to get to the interval without reaching for your hanky, then be assured you will need it in the second-half. The role of Jean Valjean, aka Prisoner 24601, is tailor-made for the 38-year-old who must now be ranked as one of the finest Welsh exports to the West End. Playing at the vast Donald Gordon theatre (not an empty seat in 1,900 places) is something of a homecoming for the singer who started out with Llanelli Youth Theatre. The emotion of the homecoming is not lost on Owen-Jones and the audience as he reduces everyone to tears during Bring Him Home, the prayer for Marius (played by Gareth Gates of X factor fame). Few people have the range and depth of emotion to pull this one off. The way

A new premium bottled lager is to be launched in February 2010 to help raise more than £1million a year for forces charities - and to help provide long-term care for our Nation’s Heroes. The new lager, simply called Heroes Lager, is being launched by a not-for-profit company called Beer Brands, owned by Wales’s oldest brewing family. The company will donate all profits from the sales of the lager to four military charities. Simon Buckley, sixth generation of the brewing family, said: “This lager is being brewed under contract for us to the highest international standards and will become one of the nation’s favourites. “Our aim is to raise significant sums of money for the charities by making this lager widely available, and to give the consumer an easy opportunity to support our Nation’s Heroes. “This new product will be available throughout the UK in supermarkets, pubs and off-licences and will cost no more than other well known brands. “Heroes Lager is designed for a broad market and

The following Welsh trainers have horses running today - Rebecca Curtis 13:05 Plumpton Stellar Cause (USA) M D Grant 15:10 Plumpton Alderbrook Girl (IRE) M D Grant Alison Thorpe 13:05 Plumpton Diktalina J W Farrelly Tim Vaughan 15:40 Plumpton Lord Francois (FR) R Johnson

Interesting stats running in the papers today on how Britain has changed in the last 10 years. :: £194 billion - the difference in the budget, which has dropped from a £16 billion surplus in 2000 to a £178 billion deficit today. :: 2.5 million - increase in Britain's population from 58,886,000 in 2000 to 61,400,000 in 2010. :: 760,000 - the rise in unemployment from 1,701,000 in January 2000 to 2,461,000 in September 2009. :: 98,000 - increase in number of immigrants arriving in Britain each year from 479,000 in 2000 to 577,000 in 2007. :: 416 - British servicemen and women killed in Afghanistan and Iraq. :: 4,000 - fewer pubs across Britain, from 60,000 in 2000 to 56,000 in 2009, according to the British Beer and Pub Association. :: Sixfold - households with internet access soars from 10% in 1999 to 61% by 2008. :: Sixfold - Britons with mobile phones from 20% in 1998 to 78% by 2007. :: Five - the increase in months of the average age women give birth for the first time - from 29

"Desire, looking after myself. I'm enjoying my football more than ever and I think that's reflected in my play" - BBC Sports personality of the Year winner Ryan Giggs, 36, explains his success. Very deserved success, too!

Researchers have been making people listen to Nellie the Elephant in an attempt to save lives. The children's tune is often used during cardiopulmonary resuscitation training to help people deliver the recommended 100 chest compressions a minute. And the team of researchers found people who listened to the nursery song were more likely to give compressions at the right tempo than those who did not. But the study, published on the website of the British Medical Journal, also found those listening to the music were less likely to push down deep enough.

The Llanelli Reds beat Prestatyn Town 4-1 at Stebonheath this afternoon, with goals from Antonio Corbisiero, Rhys Griffiths (2, 1 pen) and Chris Venables. This win takes the Reds back to the top of the Welsh Premier League. The Reds Under-19s won 4-0 at Briton Ferry while the Under-18s lost 2-1 at Afan Lido. Meanwhile, Carmarthen Town got back to winning ways with Tim Hicks' 13th minute header the only goal of the game at Elements Cefn Druids. Manager Deryn Brace told Y Dre ar Y We, “We got there in the end. We should have made the game safe in the first half, but we’ve said that a few times this season. The good thing was that we didn’t rue the chances we missed by keeping a clean sheet. “The football and the tempo we played at first half, on a difficult pitch, was good. We really took the game away from the Druids and didn’t allow them anything at all. The only thing that was lacking was that finishing touch. “It was pleasing that we created a good number of chances but we need t

According to the News of the World, £3,000 was the going celebrity free rate for opening Llanelli's new Poundland store. The store was opened by Katherine Kelly, who plays Becky on the Street. See more on - http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/634575/Cor-thats-so-cheap-Coronation-Street-stars-open-Poundland.html

I write in response to M Edwards, of North Cornelly, who asked in last week’s Star Letters for the origin of the name Capel Als in Llanelli. There appears to be no definitive answer, but the best suggestion was made by eminent Llanelli historian John Edwards in his book ‘Llanelli: Story of a Town’ (published, incidentally, by the Llanelli Star). I quote from what is an excellent work of reference – ‘It was during the ministry of Evan Davies (his home was Gelli Farm near Llanelli) that the first Independent Chapel was established in 1780. That chapel was Capel Als. It is claimed that the name, derives from a cottage called Ty Alys which previously stood on the spot where the chapel was built. ‘Alys apparently sold water from a well which was still there until 1852 when it was filled in during the building of an extension to the chapel. The word ‘als’ in Welsh means rock cliff (compare the Gaelic, Ailsa Craig) and if one ventures to the vestry behind the chapel one is faced by a steep ro

"Being controversial means everyone agrees with everything I say 20 years after I say it" - Labour MP Paul Flynn.