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

Latest news from the team at Brecon Jazz Club -  Things are warming up and we've got a great gig for you in May (Tues 19 May), see below. But first, a big 'thank you' for tremendous support at last month's event. We had a review, and it not only praised the artists and the club but gave recognition to our great audience too, and name-checked a few in attendance! See www.jazzman.com http://www.thejazzmann.com/reviews/review/atsuko-shimada-quintet-brecon-jazz-club-the-theatre-bar-theatr-brycheiniog-/ MAY JAZZ Tuesday 19 May, starts 8pm, tickets £7 on the door (inc. raffle) Brecon Jazz Club: Emily Saunders with Dave Cottle Trio Emily Saunders (voice) Dave Cottle (piano) Alun Vaughan (bass guitar) Paul Smith (drums) Venue: Brecon Jazz Bar, Theatr Brycheiniog, Canalside, Brecon, Powys LD3 7EW. Box 01874 611622 NB SUPPER: BIJOU CAFE, £8 per head, from 6.30pm. Please book by reply email & advise choice- thanks. People who booked places previously, well done, your

Carmarthenshire residents are being reminded that there are changes to bin collections over the May Bank Holiday. From Monday, May 4 until Friday, May 8, collections will take place one day later than usual. So for example, if your collection is due on Friday it won’t be picked up until Saturday and so on. Remember to put out either your blue or black bags depending on what colour week it is and your food bins a day later than usual. These changes also affect council trade waste customers. The recycling centres in Trostre (Llanelli), Wernddu (Ammanford), Nantycaws (Carmarthen) and Whitland are open as usual except Llangadog. Did you know that you can now sign up for text or email alerts on a range of council services including recycling at i-Local. You can also visit i-Local to find out when your bins are being collected and if it is a blue or black bag week just click on My House . Go to www.carmarthenshire.gov.uk/recycling for more information on recycling.

When the country goes to the polls for the General Election on Thursday, the results could be one of the closest in recent years and with 18 to 24 year olds making up nearly 14 per cent of the electorate the youth vote could be the deciding factor. With this in mind Carmarthenshire County Council has been out to Coleg Sir Gâr campuses around the county, from Pibwrlwyd and Jobs Well campuses in Carmarthen; Ammanford; Gelli Aur in Golden Grove and the Graig in Llanelli, engaging with young voters. Students had their photos taken with a pledge that they will be using their vote on May 7 in front of a green screen in order that they then were superimposed in front of the Houses of Parliament. When talking to students throughout the campaign it was clear that although some students were indecisive and unsure who to vote for or whose policies were relevant to them, the election was certainly a topic of conversation around the campuses. Liah Evans aged 19 from Llanelli, studying at Coleg Si

Aberystwyth University has gained the Silver Award under the Corporate Health Standard (CHS), the quality mark for workplace health promotion run by Welsh Government. The Corporate Health Standard is delivered by Public Health Wales, and organisations are assessed across four levels from bronze, silver, gold to platinum categories in relation to their practices to promote and enhance the health and well-being of their employees. Aberystwyth University was awarded the Corporate Health Standard Bronze Award only in July 2014. Deputy Director of Human Resources at Aberystwyth University, Heather Hinkin, said: “This is excellent news. To be awarded the Silver Award less than a year after being awarded Bronze, shows we are making real progress. “There is a great deal of excellent work taking place at Aberystwyth University to increase and promote health and well-being among staff and students. These include stress awareness, promoting healthy eating options in our cafes and restaurants, t

SportsAid Cymru Wales (SACW) would like to pay a special tribute to the hard-working members of its West Wales Committee – and their many supporters - who once again staged a spectacularly successful, sell-out, sports celebrity/business lunch at the Ivy Bush Royal Hotel in Carmarthen in April 2015, raising up to £5,000. Highlight of the afternoon (apart from humorous contributions from the Rev Canon Dorrien Davies and Julian Lewis-Jones, one of the stars of Stella and Invictus) was the presentation of SACW Keith Cobain Awards to promising young athletes from the region, made by Keith’s widow Barbara. Pictured top, from left, are: Awen Rosser, aged 19 (Athletics), Jac Perry, aged 17 (Gymnastics), Eleri Rowlands, aged 12 (Squash), Barbara Cobain and Gabrielle Ridge, age 17 (Canoeing). SACW Director Steve Edwards presented a SACW West Wales Committee Award to Megan Davie (right), aged 16 (Kickboxing). Surfer Bethan Lewis’s father Tim collected an award on her behalf. Since its format

A decision on ambitious plans to redevelop a large area of Burry Port has been deferred after a last-minute Welsh Government intervention. A meeting of Carmarthenshire County Council’s planning committee had been due to consider six planning applications – for up to 230 homes at the former Grillo site, for infrastructure for that site, for a 134 unit housing development alongside the former Grillo site, for construction of a 330-place Welsh Medium Primary School off Burrows Terrace, for a commercial leisure development at Burry Port Harbour East, for employment space alongside Silver Terrace. Head of planning Eifion Bowen told the meeting that he had yesterday received an e-mail from the Welsh Government referring to a letter from 2010 instructing the authority not to approve the Grillo application. This was in response to a request by a third party to call in the applications. Then, shortly before the planning committee Mr Bowen received an email from the Welsh Government directing

A man has been fined by the council for dropping litter after being reported by members of the public. He was seen pulling out of the Myrtle Hill junction and towards the Pensarn roundabout inn Carmarthen throwing fast food packaging out of the car window. The witnesses made a note of the car registration number and passed the information on to the environmental enforcement team. Enforcement officers were able to identify the offender and he has been issued with a fixed penalty notice for £75 as a result. Failure to pay could lead to prosecution in the magistrates court and a fine of up to £2,500. The council is actively encouraging residents to help catch offenders. Offences can be reported via i-Local on the council’s website, by email or by telephone. Director of Environment Christina Harrhy said: “Throwing litter from a vehicle is a criminal offence and we are urging people to report offenders so that we can take action. “It is important that residents give us as much information

Latest news from the team at Aberglasney House and Gardens in the Tywi Valley - The weather of late has been exceptionally good and as a result the Gardens at Aberglasney are looking very good indeed. Our collection of Magnolias is in flower and Bishop Rudd’s Walk is at its best. Our tulip displays are even bigger this year and the sunshine ensures that the flowers open up to create a shimmering fanfare of colour. All in all, there really couldn’t be a better time to visit Aberglasney. Head Gardener Joseph Atkin says that the next few weeks are possibly the best of the year! Meanwhile, should you need any further encouragement our 2015 events programme has begun in earnest. Kick off the bank holiday weekend by joining us for live ‘Music in the Pool Garden’ on Friday May the 1st. Relax to the sounds of Jimi Webb “Wales’ King of Swing” while enjoying your own picnic or book a table on the Tearooms’ terrace and ‘Maryellen’s’ will take care of your supper – call them now

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. www.philevans.co.uk --------------------- I’ve always had a fondness for old sayings like “Empty vessels make the most noise” and “The pen is mightier than the sword” and enjoy tinkering with them so they have a different meaning. For example... “Birds Of A Feather....should have ended after the third series.” “You can’t make an omelette...without frying some chips to go with it.” “The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence - ever since I concreted-over my front lawn.” “No man is an island. Except Marlon Brando, who in his later years was the size of Tasmania.” Some old sayings completely contradict each other, as in . . . “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” and “Out of sight, out of mind” and “He who hesitates is lost” and “Look before you leap!” And then we come to, “It is better to travel than to arrive.

The latest 'On Song' column (about the choral scene in and around Llanelli) from the Llanelli Star -  July promises to be a bumper month for concerts in and around Llanelli. Côr Meibion Llanelli (Llanelli Male Voice Choir) will be holding a special concert with The Three Welsh Tenors at the Selwyn Samuel Centre on Sunday, July 12. Saturday July 11 sees the visit of the prestigious Swansea Bach Choir to Llanelli Parish Church. Côr Meibion Dyffryn Tywi will be celebrating their 40th anniversary with a concert on Saturday, July 18, at the Princess Gwenllian Centre, Kidwelly (7pm). And Lleisiau Hardd choir from Llanelli will be celebrating 10 years as a choir with a concert at Ffwrnes Theatre, Llanelli, on Saturday, July 18. Four concerts spread over two weekends will create something of a festival atmosphere in and around Llanelli. Who knows? Perhaps this busy July spell may prompt local choirs and theatre groups to revive the old Gŵyl Llanelli Festival which operated in t

Worried about leaving your home empty while you go away on holiday? Help is at hand in the form of security gadgets to put off burglars. Holiday Watch is a pioneering holiday security equipment loan scheme established by Dyfed-Powys Police’s Neighbourhood Development Team with the support of the Carmarthenshire Community Safety Partnership . The scheme has been set up to combat burglaries in Carmarthenshire after being successfully piloted in Durham where it received tremendous praise from the local community as well as cutting crime and reducing the fear of crime. The scheme will be run by the Neighbourhood Development team in Llanelli who will loan boxes containing security equipment to members of the public. It is aimed at anyone who has poor security measures or people with a high level of fear of a crime happening when they are away on holiday. The person loaning the kit will attend a police station and sign the relevant documentation, they will then be given advice on where to

Unemployment continues to fall in Carmarthenshire with a recorded drop of over 26% for the past year. Latest figures reveal a fall in claimants for Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) of 26% in the Carmarthen East and Dinefwr area; of 25.9% in Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire; and 24.3% in Llanelli. The statistics issued by the Department for Work and Pensions show a steady reduction in unemployment from March 2014 to March 2015, at 26.3% down over the year. It fell by 2.2% from February to March with the biggest drop recorded in the Carmarthen East and Dinefwr area of 6.6%. There are currently 2,166 JSA claimants in the county, of these 1,389 are male and 777 female, a total of 1.9% of the population in Carmarthenshire. The highest number of people unemployed – some 955 - are in the age category 25 to 44. Menna Davies, Employer and Partnerships Manager at Jobcentre Directorate, Ammanford said: “Jobcentres have seen a steady rise in employers contacting with urgent vacancies – many fro

Five academic subjects at Aberystwyth University feature among the world’s elite according to the latest QS World University Rankings by Subject which are published today, one more than in 2014. Environmental Science is a new entry, appearing in the top 300 for the first time. Geography retains its position in the top 150 worldwide. Politics (Politics and International Studies from 2015) climbs into the top 150 for the first time. Agriculture and Forestry retains its position amongst the top 150 worldwide. English Language and Literature retains its status amongst the 300 worldwide. Now in its fourth edition, the QS World University Rankings by Subject evaluated 3,467 universities and ranked 971 institutions. Over 82 million citations attributions were analysed and the provision of 13,132 programs were verified. Four criteria were applied when compiling the listings: Academic Reputation is based on a global survey of 63,700 academics worldwide who were asked where they believe the best

Carmarthen Town AFC are appealing to all football fans and the community in the town to rally to the aid of the club in an exciting period in the team's history. The club has ambitious plans to install an all-weather 3G pitch which will be of benefit to the whole community. The plans are taking shape, but first the club plans . . .  Supporters and Community Meeting Richmond Park on MONDAY 11th May at 7pm The club continues to operate at pace with a number of ongoing initiatives gaining momentum. The principal objective is to secure a state of the art artificial pitch known as 3G for the community of Carmarthen. Some 75% of the expenditure has already been obtained leaving a shortfall of approx £120,000 and in addition to securing the additional funds work is ongoing to plan for its future use. This facility will considerably raise the profile of the whole town within West Wales. Running parallel to this is the preparation of a development plan with the concerte

Researchers at the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences at Aberystwyth University have collaborated with scientists from Dijon, France to try to solve the problem of bad tasting beer. Beer brewers face a tricky problem. The high level of activity in the yeast used to produce beer generates a lot of heat during the brewing process raising the temperature at the bottom of brewing vats. Unfortunately, yeast often suffers damage to their structure at these high temperatures, and this damage gives the beer a bad taste. Their research paper has been published in the journal Environmental Microbiology - ‘Surviving the heat: Heterogeneity of response in Saccharomyces cerevisiae provides insight into thermal damage to the membrane.’ http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1462-2920.12866/abstract . Understanding why some yeast cells survive high temperatures when others perish is key to improving processes such as brewing and with over 20 million pints of beer consume

Make a date for the Carmarthenshire Growers Association Plant Fair to be held on Bank Holiday Monday, May 25. The Fair will be held at Danfforddgar Farm, Alltwalis Road, Pontarsais, Carmarthen, SA32 7DU. The farm is next to Gwili Pottery. The Fair will include plants, a woodland walk and pottery displays. More details will follow, but make a note in your diary! Danfforddgar Farm Peter Sharp is developing a five-acre woodland walk with specimen trees, shrubs and waterside plants.  The grounds include three acres of course fishing ponds, all in a lovely valley setting. Although the fishery is currently open Monday to Saturday when in season, the woodland walk is a work in progress. Contact: Peter Sharp on 01267 253707. About Carmarthenshire Growers Association The CGA is a group of independent nurseries and businesses, working together in Carmarthenshire, to promote Horticulture in the county known as the Garden of Wales. The membership consists of a mix of plant nurseries

Lemar Wynne Evans Côr Meibion Llanelli Male Voice Choir There's a very special 'Cariad' night of entertainment planned for Llanelli on Friday, September 4. The Selwyn Samuel Centre in Llanelli will be the venue for a night to help raise the awareness and importance of defibrillators. The concert will feature Brit and Mobo award winner Lemar. Also appearing with be top tenor Wynne Evans and Côr Meibion Llanelli Male Voice Choir. Tickets can be pre-purchased at £25.00 from Anyone Waiting, Halfway Hotel, Llanelli, 01554 773571 (card payments welcome).  All proceeds from the show go towards providing more Zoll AED Plus defibrillators and basic life support training to schools and communities across Wales. This event will be publicised across Wales so the advice is to get your tickets early. The show is being supported and sponsored by Zoll UK Medical. The concert line-up at the moment is -  Lemar. Seven top ten UK singles and sold over tw

News hot off the press from Carmarthen Town AFC about the annual football festival and fete at Richmond Park - CARMARTHEN TOWN AFC ANNUAL PRIMARY SCHOOL FOOTBALL FESTIVAL & FETE Carmarthen Town will be holding their annual primary school football festival at Richmond Park on Friday 1st May. The event is made possible by the support provided by our Community Programme sponsor EMC Services and Programme Sponsor St Catherine’s Walk. The Club are very grateful to Neil Alexander and John Nash for their continuing support. We are also very grateful to the teachers of all the schools who are giving up their time to ensure their pupils have such a memorable evening. Programme sellers will be calling door to door in the build up to the event so please support it and come along on the night. The fun starts from 4pm and refreshments and stalls will be available on the night.

Hywel Dda University Health Board and Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board are pleased to announce a permanent General Medical Services (GMS) contract has been awarded to the Amman Tawe Partnership, securing GP services for patients formerly served by the Amman Valley Medical Practice. This will mean no change for patients or the services that they access in the areas of Garnant, Gwaun Cae Gurwen, Brynamman, Cwmlynfell and Ystralyfera, as the Amman Tawe Partnership has been the temporary contract holder for this population since July 2014 and has been providing services across both Health Board areas. Patients will be able to access their services from whichever site is most convenient. The Amman Tawe partnership will, formally from Monday 1 June, be responsible for providing general medical services to approximately 12,000 people; accountable to ABMU Health Board for approximately 8,000 Neath Port Talbot residents and to Hywel Dda UHB for approximately 4,000 Carmarthenshire

News hot off the press from Carmarthen Town AFC. Celebrity dinner featuring Wales football team's Osian Roberts, comedian Harry Scott and MC Robert Lloyd - 24th ANNUAL CELEBRITY DINNER IVY BUSH HOTEL FRIDAY 8TH MAY 2015 7:00PM Osian Roberts Assistant Team Manager Wales Senior International Football Team Town will hold their Annual Celebrity Dinner at the Ivy Bush Royal Hotel On Friday 8th May 2015. After the disappointment of last year’s speakers we have this year gone for tried and tested local speakers. The principal guest will be Osian Roberts who in his role as Wales Assistant Team Manager, coaches the likes of Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey and is a very competent speaker. Our comedian will be Harry Scott, still going strong, and making his third appearance with us. The MC will be Robert Lloyd. The club continues to work at pace and 75% of the necessary funding for a state of the art artificial pitch, known as 3G, has been found. This will completely revolu

There's a new exhibition opening on Saturday at the Oriel Myrddin Gallery in Carmarthen. It features the work of Anna Barratt, David Begley, Kelly Best, Helen Booth, Julia Griffiths Jones, Robert McPartland, Annie-Mie Melis, Abigail Sidebotham and Stephanie Tuckwell. There's also an Open Sketchbook event in the studio from 11am to 4pm. You can make you own handmade sketchbook with students from Carmarthen School of Art. Admission is free.

Aberglasney Head Gardener Joseph Atkin tells the story of how a rare Orchid has flowered at the Tywi Valley gardens - Three years ago I had a call to say that Liverpool Botanic Gardens were closing some old glasshouses and rationalising their plant collections which included Orchids and Clivia. They kindly offered me the chance to take some of the plants back to Aberglasney as they were bound for homelessness and a rather gruesome end. So at 4.30am the next morning I was on my way to Liverpool in a hire van to collect/save what I could. On arrival, I found all sorts of treasures that would suit our Ninfarium and promptly filled the van to its rafters. This was followed by some really hard decisions about what I could and couldn’t take as there wasn’t enough room in the van. After much deliberation this Orchid Dendrobium speciosum made it onto the van as the last plant. This week I was overjoyed to see it bursting into full flower for the first time. This is some

Llanelli concert promoter Cerith Owens has revealed details of his 2015 Loud Applause Productions events calendar - Midsummer Music Concert St Elli Parish Church, Llanelli 11th July Swansea Bach Choir, The Singhs Guillaume Mathias Loud Applause has linked up with the historic Llanelly House to provide a pre-concert reception Tickets now on sale at Ffwrnes Theatre Box 0845 226 3510 Loud Applause Summer Soiree A black tie event with wine and canapes Stradey Castle, Llanelli 18th July Parti Llwchwr The Loud Applause Rising Stars: Vocalists: Nia Rees, Stephen Davies and Johnny Mansel Lewis Instrumentalists: Cai Charles (guitar), Rhodri Thomas (trombone), Ffion Elin Williams (Harp) Andrew Pike (accompanist) Robert Lloyd (Host) Tickets on sale at Llanelli’s Cadno Music Shop 01554 771772 Loud Applause Annual Concert – ‘Night With the Stars’ Ffwrnes Theatre, Llanelli 7th November Morriston Orpheus Choir All the Loud Applause Rising Stars. Soloists: Samuel Morris, Jordan Williams, Johnny Mansel

Aberystwyth University has been shortlisted in four categories in the Times Higher Education Leadership and Management Awards (THELMAs). Now in their seventh year, the THELMAs are open to all UK higher education institutions and celebrate the best examples of innovation, teamwork and enterprise within Universities. Aberystwyth is recognised in four categories: Knowledge Exchange/Transfer Initiative of the Year, Outstanding Estates Team, Outstanding Human Resources Team and Outstanding Library Team. Knowledge Exchange/Transfer Initiative The University’s space mission project in collaboration with Ysgol Gymraeg Aberystwyth is recognised in the Knowledge Exchange/Transfer Initiative category. Led by Dr Mark Neal, co-ordinator of the Intelligent Robotics Research Group at the University’s Institute of Mathematics, Physics and Computer Science, who is also a parent at the school; the project worked with school children at Ysgol Gymraeg Aberystwyth to launch a rocket into space on 12

English and Creative Writing were announced Department of the Year at the Aberystwyth University Student led Teaching Awards. Department of the Year was just one of 11 awards presented during the Awards, which are now in the fourth year. Lecturers, support staff and student representatives were honoured with accolades during the evening, which was held in Medrus. Pro-Vice Chancellor, Student Experience and International, Professor John Grattan said: “I would like to congratulate all of the winners and nominees at this year’s Student-Led Teaching Awards. At Aberystwyth we are investing significantly to further develop the learning and teaching experience, in terms of technology and resource, and in acknowledging and rewarding excellence. The enthusiasm and appreciation the students have shown for the inspirational work and dedication of colleagues right across the University is reflected in this year’s record number of nominations. It's a great pleasure to see our students voting

Latest news from Langostinos Brasserie in Llanelli -  Bank Holiday Weekend Offer OPEN ALL WEEKEND Friday 1st - Saturday 2nd - Sunday 3rd May 6.00-10.00pm "STEAK NIGHT" Free Bottle Wine every Two Diners BOOK NOW! TEL 01554 773711 Full A la Carte Menu also Available

This the latest Employment Law update from Hannah Dahill, Head of Employment Law at Red Kite solicitors -  Shared parental leave The shared parental leave (SPL) regulations means that anyone who is due to give birth or adopt from 5 April is entitled to split their “maternity leave” with their partner. Except for the immediate 2 weeks that a mother has to take off, the remaining 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of paid statutory leave can be shared between the parents. Unfortunately, the new regulations are infuriatingly complex and there are question marks of the likely take up for fathers. Click here to read more.   Dismissal for offensive, non-work-related personal tweets The Employment Appeal Tribunal has recently decided that an employment judge failed to take full account of the public nature of Twitter when finding that an employee's dismissal for posting offensive tweets was unfair. The judge did not properly consider whether the employee's alleged private use o

For a man who’s been “too busy” to spend time promoting his new book, Kevin Green can still afford to smile this week. In the space of five days, more than 1000 copies of The Rich Rules have been sold – and the book has just gone ‘live’ on Amazon. The book was launched at Wrexham’s new Carnival of Books festival – but Green has found it difficult finding the time to promote a book which majors on ‘steps to wealth and happiness’. “Just after launching the book, I was heading for the airport to board a flight to South Africa for a speaking engagement in Johannesburg,” said 51-year-old Green. “It seems to be the way of things nowadays as I am lucky to be in demand as a business and motivation public speaker at major events worldwide. “I had to fit in the book launch just after returning from a trip to New Zealand, so the last few weeks have been a whirlwind and getting time to promote the new book has been a struggle. “It’s been a bonkers couple of weeks with all the travelling and I

Carmarthenshire County Council is celebrating being shortlisted for three categories in the 2015  Construction Excellence Wales awards. Llanelli’s new Ysgol Ffwrnes, built by WRW Ltd on behalf of the council, is up for its first award since opening earlier this year. It has been shortlisted in the Sustainability Award – Our Legacy, and Project of the Year categories with the submission, written by the WRW team, highlighting its environmentally-friendly design features and modern teaching spaces. And Shane Evans, a 27-year-old property design technician, has been shortlisted for the Young Achiever award. Shane joined the authority as a building cadet in 2011 having completed a shared apprenticeship with  Carmarthenshire Construction Training Association Ltd , and has recently gained a permanent position within the Property Services design team. Shane suffers with the debilitating condition cystic fibrosis, but has battled through illness to qualify as a carpenter and quickly progres

Youngsters in Carmarthenshire will learn how to ride a bicycle in school. Some 18 schools have been selected to take part in The Early Years Cycling scheme, a first of its kind in Carmarthenshire. Funded by Sport Wales , the six-week project will see each child progress through the cycling journey by using age and ability specific equipment designed for toddlers and young children aged 2-7. The council’s sports and leisure staff will deliver training sessions to teaching staff for implementation. Each school will receive 10 balance bikes, one pedal bike, 10 helmets and child friendly road safety equipment such as stop and go signs, road cones and zebra crossing. At the end of the six weeks a celebration event is planned for parents, guardians and others to see the pupil’s progress. The council’s area sport and leisure manager, Gary Price said: “This is an exciting project for the team to be involved in. The huge response from the schools highlights the importance of this ‘skill for l