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

Thought you’d missed your chance to enter Next Steps 2014? Well, you’re in luck, as we’ve just extended the deadline to give you a few extra days to get your application forms in! Anyone interested in competing for a chance to win a secure two-year apprenticeship with Lloyd and Gravell Ltd or TRJ Ltd as part of this exciting annual scheme, has now got until 5pm on Friday June 20, to submit their application. Shortlisting for interviews takes place next week. “We wanted to give more people the chance to get their entries in,” said Kevin Gravell, Director of Lloyd and Gravell Ltd. “This is a great opportunity for someone, an opportunity that could literally change their lives. We’re very much looking forward to going through the applications and shortlisting for the interviews.” Owain Jones, of TRJ Ltd, said: “We are very proud to be on board with Next Steps this year, and we’re pleased to be able to extend our deadline for an extra couple of days. It’ll be too late after Friday,

Members of Blaenconin Baptist Chapel launched a major initiative which will transform community action in Llandysilio, Pembrokeshire. Over the coming months, a new Community Interest Company established by the Church will be leading the development of the chapel site (opposite the Nantyffin Motel) to provide a Centre to celebrate the life and work of the renowned bard, Waldo Williams and other poets from the locality. It will also encompass the re-configuring of the current Chapel building to enable more community activity to take place and develop its vestry for residential accommodation to help sustain the new Centres. When completed, there will be two Centres on the site: the new Canolfan Waldo and Canolfan Blaenconin. In Canolfan Blaenconin there will be multi-purpose spaces which can be used for a range of activities from book clubs to pre-school groups, from training sessions to choirs. Canolfan Waldo will welcome visitors following in the footsteps of Waldo Williams. As p

The generosity of Carmarthenshire people was praised as the Health Minister opened the new Ty Cymorth Hospice for specialist palliative care at Glangwili Hospital, Carmarthen.  The hospice is based in a building opposite the hospital’s Emergency Unit and has been completely renovated and extended by Hywel Dda University Health Board’s in-house design team thanks to £265,000 raised by the Ty Cymorth Hospice Appeal. It will provide fit-for-purpose physical, psychological, spiritual and social support; occupational therapy; and physiotherapy for people who need palliative care in Carmarthen and surrounding area. At the official opening, Professor Mark Drakeford said: “Carmarthenshire people have always been so generous and so committed to their community. This project has only been possible thanks to their generosity, the hard work of the Trustees and the fundraising committee and the partnership and support of the health board. “Three things have struck me as I have walked around t

The Friends of Carmarthenshire’s County Museum in Abergwili and the Carmarthenshire Antiquarian Society will be meeting and greeting people at the National Eisteddfod of Wales in Llanelli this year and they are inviting people who have Carmarthen’s history at heart to spare them an hour or two of help. During Eisteddfod week (August 2-9), the Museum Friends and the Antiquarians are working together to interest people in aspects of Carmarthenshire’s history. The friends will be taking the Romans in Carmarthenshire as their theme and the Antiquarians are homing in on ‘We are what we remember’ – our parents and grandparents who fought to keep the home fires burning. It would not be necessary to have an in-depth knowledge of either theme to help on the stand. The groups will welcome everyone who could encourage an interest in the stand and its exhibits. Similarly, it is not essential for volunteers to be Welsh-speaking as arrangements will be made for a Welsh speaker to be present at al

Volunteers who help patients and staff at hospitals in Ceredigion have been thanked. As part of the 30th Anniversary celebrations of National Volunteers Week, volunteers from the university health board’s Volunteering for Health project and from League of Friends attended a special event hosted by Vice-Chair Sian-Marie James. The League of Friends of Bronglais Hospital and Community and the League of Friends of Tregaron Hospital received a Chairman’s certificate of commendation for the invaluable support of their fundraising activities over a number of years which has helped to improve patient services and experiences. Cardigan Hospital and Community League of Friends will also receive the Certificate of Commendation but were unable to attend the presentation. The Chairman of Hywel Dda University Health Board, usually awards commendations to staff who work above and beyond their call of duty to help to improve services. This is the first time that anyone other than a staff memb

As a result of a generous grant through the Carmarthenshire Landscape and Heritage Grants Scheme, the Bancyfelin Education Community Trust is able to fund the replacement of the milestone which was originally located outside Bancyfelin Primary School. Work on the project will begin during August. The original milestone, which was similar to others on the main A40 highway from Carmarthen to Hobb’s Point, was located on the school wall. Reference to the original milestone, with distances marked, can be found on older maps of the village. When the front of the school was re-modelled years ago, the original milestone was lost and never replaced. In days gone by, coaches would thunder into Bancyfelin, likely sounding their post-horns as they crossed the bridge. The coachmen would know the distances they had to travel by checking on the milestones along the road. The Carmarthenshire Landscape and Heritage Grants Scheme is part funded by Natural Resources Wales, Rural Development Plan,

The British Humanist Association (BHA) is setting up a Wales section to respond to specific Welsh Government activities and policies that do not affect the rest of the UK. Ben Morris, from Narberth, is part of the Steering Group that has been set up for the project. He said: "As part of discussions we proposed setting up local groups to cover the whole of Wales. Some groups already exist in South Wales and mid Wales. "We are holding a meeting at 2:30pm on 10th July 2014 in Narberth, Pembrokeshire. (venue - see below). The meeting may last up to two hours. "The aim is to start up a group covering Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire although we would welcome anyone from the adjacent counties if you feel it is appropriate for you. "Please let me know if you would like to attend. "When we have an indication of numbers we can organise something between a small table in the corner of the local hotel to hiring the Queens Hall (capacity 300!). "The meeting will hav

The latest Phil Evans column from the South Wales Evening Post -  Comedian Phil Evans is from Ammanford. He is known as the man who puts the ‘cwtsh’ into comedy. What’s the famous quotation? Time flies like a banana? Hang on! That can’t be correct (cue a ‘time out’ on the laptop while I consult the worldwide interweb thingy). OK, I confess ‘Time flies like a banana’ doesn’t stand up to any sort of scrutiny, but it does sound like the sort of thing everyone’s ‘Uncle Dai’ might say. The actual phrase is something along the lines of – ‘Time flies like an arrow. “Fruit flies like a banana.” The author? Well, according to some sources, the late, great Groucho Marx. But why should I be wrestling with ‘time’ this week. The answer’s simple: I’m just back from Toronto in Canada, five hours time difference from good old British Summer Time. Travelling west out over the Atlantic is never really a problem – play it sensibly (in other words, avoid overdoing the alcohol on the plane) and you are

Llandeilo-based brewer Simon Buckley (Evan-Evans Group) has written the following letter to newspapers in Wales -  Should we believe in Welsh Government?   On June 5-7, The Millennium Stadium hosted one of the most important drinks events in the Welsh drinks industry calendar. The new ‘W-Ales Beer Festival’ was a superb showcase for everything that is good and great in the Welsh brewing industry, but where were our politicians? Alun Davies has made much about driving an identity for the Welsh drinks Industry, but not one of the ministers responsible for Food or Drink came to wave the flag at this prestigious event. Kirsty Williams, William Powell and Byron Davies were all seen to support the event, but not a sign of the Plaid AMs, nor the army of Labour AMs who have brewers in their constituencies. Jeff Cuthbert, who ran the cross-party beer group came and supported the event, but he now has no say in our industry’s future. In reality, the ministers, whether it be

A new parent and toddler group is being piloted at Llanelli Library in a bid to strengthen pre-school parent-child bonds and boost long-term literacy. The weekly sessions, run by Communities First, provide a place for parents and parents to be, to meet up, as well as offering a safe and friendly environment for children to learn. The group will meet up on Mondays between 10am and 12 noon at Llanelli Library and is suitable for children aged up to three. Activities include short picture books, songs and lots of knee bounces. Play Development Officer, Tara Lewis, said:”We hope that if parents missed sessions in the past they’ll come along to future groups.” Communities First is a community focused programme that supports the Welsh Government's tackling poverty programme. The programme supports the most disadvantaged people in the most deprived areas with the aim of helping alleviate persistent poverty. Anyone interested in finding out more about the events should call 01554 78484

Cilycwm Community Association has produced a bilingual book on the history of the names of farms and fields in the area providing a new and innovative history of the Upper Tywi Valley. Local volunteers researched the historical details, gathered information on local field names and meanings and researched buildings. The aim is for the book to educate and inform visitors and residents of the human story in the Cilycwm area. The book is more than 250 pages long with a superb series of photos, information on the farms in the area, glossary of terms, details from tithe maps and it supplements the two community websites, giving it an international audience. Project Manager, Dafydd Tomos, said: “This was a special opportunity to raise awareness of Blaenau Tywi's rich heritage.” Cilycwm Community Association received funding of £13,105.00 from RDP Sir Gâr’s Landscape and Heritage Grant for the project. The Landscape and Heritage grant, delivered by Carmarthenshire County Council’s Tyw

More than 350 people from across Carmarthenshire have come together in a Community Day as part of celebrations being held in the run-up to the National Eisteddfod. The sun shone down on the fun-filled event, held at the National Botanic Garden of Wales, Llanarthne. Community groups, families and members of the Eisteddfod fundraising committees around Carmarthenshire were invited to visit the Gardens for free as a thank you for their hard work in already surpassing the total needed to be raised by the County ahead of hosting the National Eisteddfod in August. Visitors to the event, which was organised by Carmarthenshire County Council, were able to get ideas on how to spruce up their communities during and in the run-up to the Eisteddfod; from bunting and gardening workshops to Welsh language taster sessions and the chance to see the Carmarthenshire National Eisteddfod Crown, Chair and the Italian Trophy. It was also an opportunity for people to buy Eisteddfod merchandise, meet some o

Jenkins Bakery shops throughout South Wales are getting into the World Cup spirit. "Our customers enjoy getting into the spirit of big events as much as we do," said Jenkins Bakery operations director Russell Jenkins. "We always like to do something special for big events such as the Olympics, the rugby and football's World Cup, so we have come up with a special range of products for the fans." Products include - 4 Pack Football Cup Cakes  Our top quality cup cake coated with fondant and decorated with a football motif and coloured sugar strands.  World Cup Biscuits Our top quality shortbread biscuit in the shape of a football shirt decorated with a yellow Brazilian top, with chocolate and sugar strands. Mallow Cones – we will dip the cones in various coloured sugar strands and decorate with a football motif. Website - http://jenkinsbakery.co.uk/

Dr John Warren, Director of Learning and Teaching at Aberystwyth University’s IBERS will do a session of James Wong in Conversation and deliver a talk at the gardening event of the year, when BBC Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time is bringing its annual Summer Garden Party to the National Botanic Garden of Wales for the first time on Sunday June 29. James Wong is the Kew-trained botanist, BBC science presenter, RHS Ambassador, and self-confessed Geek. Dr Warren is a plant ecologist with research interests in the maintenance of diversity and enhancement of conservation value. His James Wong in Conversation session will discuss growing more exotic vegetables, and in his own inimitable style, his talk is entitled ‘50 Shades of Green – the exotic sexual practices of plants’. There will also be a demonstration of IBERS PhD student Lizzy Donkin’s computer model that may help gardeners avoid pests by mixing their rows of peas and carrots and IBERS PhD student Sam Thomas will be talking abou

The chance to see a banana tree, meet a humanoid robot, get some free personal fitness training and read the news on television are just some of the attractions on offer at Aberystwyth University’s community open day, Access All Areas, which takes place on Saturday 21 June. Now in its second year, Access All Areas this year offers a varied and exciting programme of activities at six locations; Aberystwyth Arts Centre, the Department of Theatre, Film and Television Studies (Parry-Williams building), the University’s Sport Centre and the Botany Gardens on the Penglais campus, and the Old College and the Bandstand in town. And for those who wish to visit exhibits on the Penglais campus and in town, there will be free travel on the 03 bus service that runs at regular intervals between the University, the National Library and the town. At Aberystwyth Arts Centre, visitors will be able to discuss the psychology behind illusions, meet a medieval merchant and a Victorian scientist, de-ciph

Latest special offers from the Jenkins Bakery - WEEK COMMENCING 16/06/14 3 MEDIUM CORNED BEEF PASTIES £1.65 2 LARGE CORNED BEEF PASTIES £1.95 SANDWICH OF THE WEEK – CHICKEN TIKKA £2.25 RUSTIC BAGUETTE OF THE WEEK – CHICKEN TIKKA WITH YOGHURT & MINT £2.40 FILLED SOFTIE ROLL OF THE WEEK – TURKEY SALAD £2.20 Website - http://jenkinsbakery.co.uk/