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

A fundraising Curry Night for the Llanelli Railway Goods Shed project raised more than £1000. The evening at the Ali Raj restaurant in Trinity Road, Llanelli, saw a fundraising auction which included artwork focussed on the Llanelli coastline and souvenirs from the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. “It was a very successful evening and the total raised hit £1074,” said Llanelli Railway Goods Shed Trust project officer Robert Lloyd. “Everyone enjoyed the occasion and our trustee the Rev Eldon Phillips dressed up as Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the occasion. “It was very appropriate to have the event at the Ali Raj, which is just the other side of the tracks to the Goods Shed site in Marsh Street.” The Goods Shed project aims to save and restore the derelict Grade II Listed railway station building (built in the Brunel style in 1875) and bring it back into life as a dynamic multi-purpose hub for the community. “The project is moving on at some pace now as we have completed a ...

The Nia Griffith MP column in this week's Llanelli Star - Real buzz about the Railway Goods Shed  Sometimes, a meeting goes well and you get a real buzz: that's how it was last Friday when representatives of local organisations came together to pool ideas on their vision of how the former Llanelli Railway Goods Shed could be transformed into a vibrant community hub, offering a whole range of activities and appealing to a wide cross section of the population. Many of you will have passed by the building in question, which is situated to the east of Llanelli railway station behind grey Network Rail railings extending along Marsh Street. It is a Grade II Listed building, but sadly, in recent years, it has fallen into disrepair. Now, however, after hard work by our Trustees and our project officer, who is funded by the Architectural Heritage Trust and Carmarthenshire County Council, we have received development grants both from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Big Lottery CAT2 ...

The team behind the ambitious Llanelli Railway Goods Shed project has embarked on a new wave of public consultation events. The programme kicked off with a meeting of community groups interested in using the building. Over coming weeks, there will be leaflet drops for residents living close to the Marsh Street Goods Shed building, community surveys, a public display in Llanelli town centre and further group meetings for interested individuals, community organisations, social enterprises and businesses.. “The dialogue with the public is being cranked up to a whole new level,” said Llanelli Railway Goods Shed Trust project officer Robert Lloyd. “We are slap bang in the middle of what we call our development phase, conducting the site surveys and other preparatory work needed before we can complete further applications for capital funding. “The key message we want to get across is that this is a project designed to breathe new life into what is an historic building. Getting the suppo...

A fundraising Curry Night for the Llanelli Railway Goods Shed Trust project raised £1400. The event was held at the Ali Raj restaurant in Trinity Road, Llanelli, and was hosted by Llanelli MP Nia Griffith, chairman of the Trust, and the Rev Eldon Phillips, one of the trustees. "The response from the public and supporters of the trust was magnificent," said Trust secretary Richard Roper. "We are very grateful to the Ali Raj restaurant and prize and raffle donors for making it such a successful night." Rev Eldon Phillips  dressed up as Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the occasion. The event was also attended by civic dignitaries, including the Mayor of Llanelli Shahana Najmi. Auction items included a stunning painting of Carningli by award-winning artist Vicki Cooke and a very unusual 'photograph through a bottle', taken by Llanelli Photographic Society member Alun Lewis. "It was a fun night," said Llanelli Railway Goods Shed Trust project ...

To members of church congregations, other faith groups and community organisations in the Llanelli area. Dear Friends, re: Refugee crisis. Many of you, will, like me, have been shocked, long before the events of this last week, at the appalling tragedy of refugees dying on the shores of Europe and very disturbed at the negative attitude of some politicians and some sectors of the press. I know that many people like you in the UK would want to offer a welcome to refugees after the unimaginable hardship they have suffered, and will already have contributed through organisations like Christian Aid and Oxfam to the work that they are doing, both in the countries neighbouring the areas of conflict, and on the shores of Southern Europe. It was encouraging that the press on Friday printed Christian Aid’s call for the UK to take more refugees. I am writing to you to ask if you would be able to join in the UK-wide campaign for churches and local organisations to show their support thi...

The first Open Day at Llanelli’s ambitious Goods Shed project was a huge success. St Barnabas Hall was full for a consultation meeting about the plans for the derelict Llanelli Railway Goods Shed building in nearby Marsh Street. And, despite the wild and windy weather, enthusiastic supporters of the project joined special guided tours of the site – the first time in years the public has been allowed access inside. “The day was a great success and you couldn’t fail to be impressed with the interest and the enthusiasm shown by the local community,” said Goods Shed project officer Robert Lloyd. “All those who took part in the tours were surprised at the scale of the project. We now aim to build on the renewed interest in the site and accelerate the plans to refurbish and develop the Goods Shed, a Grade II Listed building of great historical importance.” The Open Day was held just days after the Llanelli Railway Goods Shed Trust charity secured a licence agreement with Network Rail to ac...

LLANELLI MP Nia Griffith has appealed for the public to turn out for the consultation day being held on Saturday for the Railway Goods Shed in Marsh Street, Llanelli. The consultation day offers a rare opportunity to look around the inside of the derelict Grade II Listed building. "The project to breathe new life into the old goods shed building is one of the most exciting independent schemes for Llanelli," said Ms Griffith, who is chair of the Llanelli Railway Goods Shed Trust, the charity behind the project. "The plans to bring the building back into community use include everything from creating arts and crafts venues, offices for start-up businesses and social enterprises. The site lends itself to a whole host of uses, both indoor and outdoor and this is a project where we want all the community to get involved with their ideas." The consultation day is based around an exhibition starting at 10pm at St Barnabas Hall, just a short walk away from the go...

The Llanelli Railway Goods Shed Trust’s first fundraising evening was a great success. More than £900 was raised on the evening - thanks to ticket sales, a raffle and an auction. The evening was hosted by Nia Griffith MP, Roger Price, Mayor of Llanelli, and the Reverend Eldon Phillips. Eldon dressed up as Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the occasion. The venue was the Ali Raj restaurant in Trinity Road, Llanelli. Plans for the regeneration of the Grade II listed goods shed building are moving ahead, with an application for funds now being considered by the Heritage Lottery Fund. Proposals for the building near Llanelli Railway Station involve establishing a multi-purpose community hub to include arts facilities, a cafe and a heritage centre. Website - http://www.llanellirailwaygoodsshedtrust.org.uk/

A real 'golden oldie' photo of  Côr  Meibion Llanelli. This is the choir before their 1990 concert at the Selwyn Samuel Centre, Llanelli. The choir is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Celebrations include a special gala dinner at the Stradey Park Hotel, Llanelli, on Saturday, October 18. The guest speaker will be Llanelli MP Nia Griffith. The choir members are busy collecting old photos and memorabilia to mark the 50th birthday. Anyone who has any old photos, souvenir programmes or other memorabilia is asked to contact choir press officer Robert Lloyd - Email: rlloydpr@btinternet.com Phone: 07777 683637

The Llanelli Railway Goods Shed Trust has appointed a project officer to help take plans for the Grade II listed building to the next stage. Robert Lloyd has been appointed to the temporary post of project officer and started working for the trust earlier this month. The project aims to redevelop the derelict goods shed and adjoining land and old offices to create a new facility which will be of great benefit to the local community. Plans for the site near Llanelli Railway Station include a community hub, arts centre, workshops, offices, café and heritage centre. Llanelli MP Nia Griffith, who chairs the trust, said: " I am absolutely delighted that Robert Lloyd has agreed to take on the job of project officer for the former goods shed. "We had a very strong field of candidates to choose from, and I have every confidence that Robert's wealth of experience and his immediate grasp of the challenges we face will be a real boost to helping us get the goods shed ...

Côr Meibion Llanelli continued their 50th anniversary celebrations with a special concert at Parliament in Westminster, London. The choristers were invited to sing before a select VIP audience by Llanelli MP Nia Griffith. The MP treated the choristers to a tour of Parliament before their concert. The event saw 17-year-old Ysgol y Strade pupil Osian Bowen make his performance debut with the choir. “It was an exceptional evening and an experience worthy of the choir’s 50th anniversary celebrations,” said choir chairman Mel Harries. “The experience of visiting Westminster and being so welcomed by a distinguished audience of peers, MPs and distinguished guests from the London Welsh Society will live long in the memory for choristers.” The choir and their distinguished musical director Eifion Thomas were officially welcomed to Parliament by Nia Griffith and Shadow Welsh Secretary Owen Smith MP. They were formally thanked for their concert by Baroness Jenny Randerson, junior ...

MP's 'complete shock' over school conditions | This is South Wales Llanelli MP Nia Griffith has joined the campaign demanding a new larger Welsh school for Burry Port, declaring it was a "complete shock" to see the conditions children were being taught in. The campaign, which has gained more than 600 supporters, is hoping to win county council backing to tackle overcrowding at Parc y Tywyn.

Llanelli bail hostel protest due at closed meeting | This is South Wales Residents living near a Llanelli bail hostel are set to stage a protest outside the town hall. A demonstration will be held by people living around the hostel in Swansea Road before a closed meeting tomorrow night attended by representatives from Stonham BASS — the company with the Government contract to run the hostel, the Wales Offender Management Service, Carmarthenshire Council, MP Nia Griffith, and selected residents. Secretary of the Queen Victoria Road Residents’ Association, Catriona Waldron, said the meeting will only be open to 12 residents.

Turnout for the general election in Carmarthenshire was higher than in previous years. In Llanelli, 37,524 people – 67.6 per cent of the 55,637 electorate – turned out to vote, up on the 2005 general election when there was a 63.9 per cent turnout. Winning candidate was Nia Griffith (Labour) with 15,916, followed by Myfanwy Davies (Plaid Cymru) on 11,215, Christopher Salmon (Welsh Conservatives) with 5,381, Myrddin Edwards (Welsh Liberal Democrats) 3,902 and Andrew Marshall (UK Independence Party) 1,047. In Carmarthen East and Dinefwr, the turnout was even higher at 72.7 per cent, with 38,095 of the 52,385 electorate turning out to vote, up on the previous general election of a 72.1 per cent turnout. The winning candidate was Jonathan Edwards (Plaid Cymru) with 13,536 votes, Christine Gwyther (Labour) with 10,065, Andrew Morgan (Welsh Conservatives) 8,506, William Powell (Welsh Liberal Democrats) 4,609 and John Atkinson (UK Independence Party) with 1,285. The count took place at the Se...