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

Penny Lane and All That, by Camarthenshire (and Pembrey) author Ann Carlton, is published this week. It is a celebration of growing up in Liverpool’s Penny Lane neighbourhood during the 1940s and 1950s – the same era as the Beatles and Quarrymen. Ann Carlton grew up at Penny Lane. Her father rose from a poor background to become a senior local government officer; thus giving her unique insights into both poverty and affluence in the city at the time. After studying sociology at the London School of Economics, Ann had a career in politics and journalism. She was one of the first UK Government Special Advisers and, for a time, a Western Mail columnist. She lives with her husband, the former MP Denzil Davies, in Pembrey. From first-hand experience, she describes the Penny Lane area itself, the squalor of the city’s slums, the treatment of needy children and unmarried mothers, the glamour of civic events and the cultural diversity of the city – including the writer’s own Welsh b...

The fascinating history of Pembrey Country Park will be explored as part a special feature on this weekend’s popular BBC programme Countryfile. Presenter Matt Baker visited the park and the neighbouring Pembrey Burrows nature reserve recently, taking a look at its rich history as a World War One Royal Ordnance factory. He was joined by the park’s conservation officer Simeon Jones, and Alice Pyper of the Dyfed Archaeological Trust, who will be seen talking about the WW1 remains in the park and the regeneration of the sand dunes. “It was a pleasure to be part of the filming with the Countryfile team,” said Simeon. “Together with the Dyfed Archaeological Trust we were able to draw links between the sand dunes – how they were used as part of the Ordnance during the war, and how they’ve changed over the years. “Matt Baker was also keen to hear about our dune regeneration programme, and how we’re working with Natural Resources Wales to look after them and maintain its important biodiversit...

A 16-year-old Pembrey girl is to represent the county in a national debate at the House of Commons later this week. Gwen Griffiths, a member of Carmarthenshire Youth Council, will take part in the UK Youth Parliament debate on Friday, November 11. Gwen, who was elected by other youth councillors to represent Carmarthenshire, will join 300 Members of the UK Youth Parliament aged between 11 and 18. Speaker of The House, the Right Hon John Bercow MP will be welcoming the Youth Parliament for their annual sitting. Over the summer Carmarthenshire Youth Council (CYC) backed the UK's largest youth consultation, as the UK Youth Parliament tried to give one million young people across the UK a voice. CYC returned over 600 ballot papers for the event where they will be debating the top five issues chosen. Each debate topic will be introduced with speeches from regionally elected members, who will put forward arguments for and against the issue, before opening up to the floor. Following the...

More World War One remains have been identified at Pembrey Country Park. Volunteers, working alongside Dyfed Archaeological Trust and supported by Carmarthenshire County Council, came across structures relating to the manufacture of powerful propellant, Cordite, used in the First World War whilst carrying out research and survey work. High explosives and propellants were made at the Munitions Factory which was established by Nobels Explosives Company in 1914. Its founder Alfred Nobel established the Nobel peace prize and is still awarded today. A free leaflet highlighting the fascinating history of the country park is now available at the visitor centre, along with a series of six portable exhibition pop-ups. The council’s executive board member for leisure, Cllr Meryl Gravell said: “This is another exciting discovery in a long line of fascinating finds at the park. The tranquil site has not always been so peaceful and the new leaflets will help people explore the park for themselve...

Plans are in hand to introduce a new early years class at Pembrey Primary School. Children will be able to attend from the age of three if the proposal is approved. The current age range is four to 11, and there is Flying Start provision for children aged from two to three. However, between the ages of three and four there is no mainstream school education provision for pupils. Carmarthenshire County Council is now planning to introduce early years provision which will bridge the gap, so that children can progress from Flying Start to mainstream education. Flying Start is a Welsh Government funded programme which is available in targeted areas to provide intensive support services for young children and their families. Education executive board member Cllr Gareth Jones said one of the advantages of Flying Start being offered on the same site as the school was that it would provide seamless transition for children. “There is currently a gap in the provision of education at Pembrey bet...

Pembrey's Penybedd Level Crossing will be closed from a point 70 metres west of its junction with the A484 for a total distance of 36 metres in a westerly direction on Sunday, October 25. The closure, just off Kidwelly Flats, is necessary for Centurion Traffic Management to carry out engineering works to the level crossing from 3am to 9.30am on the Sunday morning. Work is being carried out in the early hours to minimise disruption. The alternative route for west bound traffic will be to travel in an easterly direction along the U2282 to its junction with the A484. At the junction, turn left and travel in a northerly direction along the A484 to its junction with the U2280. There, turn left and continue in a westerly direction along the U2280 to its junction with Penybedd Road. At the junction, turn left and continue in a southerly direction along Penybedd Road to its junction with the U2282. At the junction, turn left and continue in an easterly direction along the U2282 to ret...

Former Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer MP (pictured above) is to speak at a Labour Party constituency fundraiser in Llanelli. The dinner will also act as a 'Welcome Campaign Dinner' for Labour's new candidate for the Welsh Assembly elections. The constituency party is currently going through the selection process and will be announcing the new AM candidate before the Keir Starmer dinner. The night will consist of dinner followed by Keir's speech and a question & answer session. The date is Thursday 1st October at 7pm and the venue is the Ashburnham Hotel, Pembrey, SA16 0TH. Tickets - £18 per person payable at time of booking by cash or cheque £14 for students/children. Dress code - smart but not black tie Contact Suzy Curry for further details or to book 0756 1566 456 or 01554 757511 or email  suzycurry@btconnect.com If you have already booked can you please send a cheque for the correct amount made out to Llanelli Labour Party to: C/O Suzy Cur...

A new £12million Welsh medium primary school is being built to replace the current Ysgol Parc y Tywyn at Burry Port. Plans are now in hand to start work in August 2016, following the Welsh Government’s recent decision to lift stopper notices preventing development in the area. The new school is one of six elements planned, which includes housing and infrastructure at the former Grillo site; housing alongside the site; a commercial leisure development at Burry Port East; and employment space alongside Silver Terrace. The proposed date for completion of the new school, which will serve the catchment areas of Burry Port and Pembrey, will be March 2017. It will be built on the former site of Spencer Davies Engineering, adjacent to land at Burrows Terrace. Pupil numbers have increased at the school over the years, making the existing site undersized and restricted. A number of mobile classrooms have been installed to accommodate the increased numbers. The new school will provide a replace...

Cefn Sidan Beach, Pembrey, has won the coveted Blue Flag 26 times - a record for any UK beach The Pembrey beach was among 65 Welsh beaches to be named among the best in the UK and the world This year 34 beaches across Wales have been awarded the Blue Flag and 31 beaches won the Green Coast Award after being judged in the Keep Wales Tidy’s Coastal Awards. With water quality standards higher than ever, bosses say being awarded a Blue Flag is a great achievement, recognising the best beaches in Wales for their environmentally sustainable management, safety measures, cleanliness, their top notch facilities and high standard of water quality. Other beaches and attractions recommended for their water quality include Ferryside, Llanstephan and Pendine. County executive board member for regeneration and leisure Cllr Meryl Gravell said: Carmarthenshire is blessed with seemingly endless golden beaches with Cefn Sidan and Pendine and everything in between. “We are delighted to be working in p...

Children and families will be going bonkers for Ringos at Pembrey. It’s the fun new attraction at Pembrey Ski Slope , within Pembrey Country Park, that will be up and running in January. Twelve of the inflatable doughnuts have been acquired and riders aged from seven to 70 can launch themselves down the nursery slopes spinning and bumping one another to the bottom. You can be spun, linked to each other, go backwards, make trains or race your friends. Carmarthenshire County Council executive board member for leisure services, Cllr Meryl Gravell, said: “The ski slope already attracts 70 schools for ski sessions from all over Wales and parts of England for ski practice and ski instruction ahead of school snow vacations to Austria and Switzerland at this time of year. “The Cobra Toboggan ride, alongside the slope -the longest toboggan ride in Wales - is also a great hit taking more than 10,000 riders each summer. Ringos will add another attraction in the drive to attract more visitors t...

The Children’s Commissioner for Wales Keith Towler has officially opened a new youth facility at Glan-y-Mor School – the first in his seven years in the job. Mr Towler said how pleased he was to be able to open a youth centre, instead of seeing one close which has happened more and more over the past few years. He was speaking at the opening ceremony of the £1.1million youth and leisure facility at the school in Burry Port. Mr Towler said: “I spend a lot of time talking with children and young people about what is important to them, we need to hear their voices. “It is clear to me that children and young people in Carmarthenshire do have a voice and they do get that voice heard.” He praised the vision and commitment of everyone involved in the project, which was delivered through Carmarthenshire County Council’s Modernising Education Programme. Mr Towler, who is due to complete his seven years as Children’s Commissioner shortly, said he was unlikely to see another youth club opening ...

A massive clean-up is being held at Cefn Sidan Beach in Pembrey following the New Year storms. Up to 90mph winds together with the recent high tides caused lots of debris and litter to get washed up on the Blue Flag beach. Pembrey Country Park rangers have now teamed up with Tidy Towns and Keep Wales Tidy to organise the clean-up on Thursday, March 20 and are appealing for volunteers to come along and help. It is being held between 10am and 12noon, but volunteers are being urged to meet in car park 2 at 9.30am. Tools and equipment will be made available; volunteers should wear appropriate clothing and footwear and if possible bring gloves. Executive Board Member for Regeneration and Leisure Councillor Meryl Gravell said: “The recent storms have caused a lot of rubbish to wash up on the beach, from larger items such as fishing nets, plastic drums, tree branches and parts of old boats as well as general litter. “We are very grateful to Keep Wales Tidy and Tidy Towns for organising the ...

An estimated record breaking 3,000 people turned out for Cefn Sidan beach’s 27th annual Walrus Dip - with more than 700 of them dashing into the freezing frothy sea. The oldest dipper was 83-year-old Robert Edwards dressed as Santa and the youngest was Sadie Matthews, aged five, carried by her mum Hannah into the waves, both dressed as Santa’s elves. They were joined by a colourful posse of festive revellers dressed in various guises ranging from Jack Sparrow to the Happy Feet penguins all the way from Merthyr Tydfil. There were a number of brave bikini clad women and several even more daring mankini clad males. The Chairman of Carmarthenshire County Council Cllr Terry Davies counted down the charge to the sea and joined in the fun and frolics raising more than £2,000 for his nominated charities, the Teenage Cancer Trust and the British Heart Foundation as a thank you his successful triple heart by-pass operation six years ago. Hundreds crashed into the waves to claim their “I D...

Marble-sized globules of a fatty white substance have been found on Cefn Sidan beach, Pembrey. Carmarthenshire County Council rangers filled half a bucket full of the substance, thought to be rotted vegetable oil, which had washed up over more than a mile of the beach. The substance is now being examined. It is thought that whilst it poses no danger to humans, dogs could be attracted to lick the fat which has a sweet paraffin smell, which may make them sick. The fats are thought to have come from ships that have cleaned out their tanks in the Atlantic, with the recent storms driving it ashore. It has also been spotted on the coasts of Southampton,Cornwall, Weston Super Mare and Pembroke since early October. Council rangers make daily checks Cefn Sidan, which has been dubbed the Dustbin of the Atlantic because of the range of Jetsom and Flotsam left stranded there between low and high tides. The spectacular array of beach finds from around the world range from coconuts to messages in b...

Latest results from The Ashburnham Championship Links Golf Club – David Sinclair Cup - 1, Philip Watson, 83 - 09 = 74 (& Lowest Gross Score); 2, Alan Margery, 89 - 14 = 75; 3, Michael Rees, 91 - 16 = 75. Brian Rolfe Cup – 1, Norman Edwards, 79 - 11 = 68; 2, David Evans, 81 - 11 = 70; 3, Elliott Anderson, 72 - 02 = 70. Prince of Wales Cup 1, Jeff Kavanagh, 76 - 06 = 70; 2, Devlin Leach, 72 - 01 = 71 (Lowest Gross Score); 3, Michael Key, 79 - 08 = 71. Welsh Dragon Brooch 1, Mari Jones, 101 - 23 = 78; 2, Eleanor Roberts, 99 - 20 = 79; 3, Susan Davies, 112 - 32 = 80. Saul Cass Cup – 1, Paul Stobie, 36 pts (27); 2, Gareth Charles Pugh, 34 pts (09); 3, Andrew Wayne Joinson, 33 pts (12). Millennium Trophy - 1, Eleanor Roberts and Yvonne Williams, 43 pts (00); 2, Marie Hale and Wyn Parsons, 40 pts (00); 3, Maria Davies and Ann Francis, 37 pts (00). Evan Williams Cup and Medal 14 - 1, Sophie Anderson, 80 - 06 = 74 (& Lowest Gross Score); 2, Barbara Buckland, 101 - 27 = 74; 3, Lyne...

BBC’S latest big-budget drama has married Morocco with Pembrey’s Cefn Sidan Beach. Scenes from BBC One’s Atlantis, which premiers this week (Sat Sept 28th), were filmed at Cefn Sidan over the summer. The 13-part fantasy drama, set in a Grecian world of legendary heroes and mythical creatures, has been created on location in Morocco, Pembrey and the Urban Myth Film studios in Chepstow. Director Midge Ferguson said they were filming in Morocco since April, but when they were putting the final location scenes together in August they realised they were short of scenic shots of wide beaches and dunes and needed to replicate Morocco’s Oualidia beach. He said: “After several location sorties we discovered Pembrey - Cefn Sidan was perfect. We had to wait for a weather and tide window, but fortunately the sun, heat and tide combined to enable us to get what we needed in just two days filming.” “The shots we captured at Cefn Sidan will be edited into the beach sequence at the start of episo...

Latest results from The Ashburnham Championship Links Golf Club – Gold and Silver Medal 1, Edward Davies, 71+70=141; 2, Aled Greville, 74+69=143; 3, Simon Williams, 76+69=145. Lady Captain's Day 1, Alis Davies, 46 pts (16); 2, Mari Jones, 43 pts (25); 3, Yvonne Williams, 40 pts (26). Junior Stableford Boys 1, Benjamin Sheppard, 42 pts (19); 2, Zakary Oliver Lewis, 38 pts (28); 3, Tomos Davies, 36 pts (18). Junior Stableford Boys 1, Edward Davies, 41 pts (18); 2, Osian Bowen, 40 pts (18); 3, Aled Greville, 37 pts (06). Website - http://www.ashburnhamgolfclub.co.uk/

Latest results from The Ashburnham Championship Links Golf Club – C&P County & Open Girls’ Championship Singles Stableford 1, Kasumi Tran, 47 pts (27), Visitor; 2, Carys Worby, 39 pts (26), Visitor; 3, Caitlin Freeman, 38 pts (36), Visitor. C&P Girls’ County and Open Championship singles strokeplay 1, Ffion Evans, 91 - 20 = 71, Visitor; 2, Sophie Lovatt, 82 - 11 = 71, Lowest Gross Score, Visitor; 3, Ffion Tynan, 94 - 20 = 74, Visitor. Medal 12 1, Gillian Hart, 89 - 15 = 74, Lowest Gross Score, 15.3; 2, Barbara Buckland, 105 - 27 = 78, 27.2; 3, Marie Hale, 106 - 24 = 82, 24.3. Harry Cass Cup 1, Nigel Davies and Margaret Richards, 49 pts (16); 2, Dennis Hughes and Andrea Martin, 44 pts (19); 3, Jordan William Davies and Iris Jacob, 42 pts (21). Cancer Trophy 1 Jayne Evans, 45 pts (26), 23.0; 2, Mary Mcgregor, 39 pts (26), 25.4; 3, Margaret Richards, 38 pts (25), 24.7. Huw Richards Cup 1, Lewis Rhys Morgan, 83 - 15 = 68, 13.0, 2, Ian Thomas, 76 - 07 = 69, 6.1; 3, Wyn Jenkins...

Golfers at The Ashburnham Championship Links in Pembrey, Burry Port, will be cheering on US Masters winner Adam Scott as he bids for another Major title in the British Open at Muirfield, Scotland, this weekend. Club officials have known about their links with the 33-year-old Australian for a number of years, but have kept it all very low key up to now. “We’ve known about the links with Adam Scott for some time now, but we have been a bit shy in bragging about it,” said Ashburnham Golf Club manager Huw Morgan. “The link spins back a couple of generations, but it is there. We are very proud of it – and this week Adam himself has gone on the record to talk about his links with The Ashburnham.” Scott explained: “My late grandmother Gillian Gravelle is from Burry Port and her brother Emrys was the secretary at Ashburnham Golf Club. “I still have family living down in the area and I’m sure the Ashburnham members will be rooting for me, if a Welshman doesn’t win it (the Open).” Ashb...

Latest results from the Ashburnham Championship Links Golf Club in Pembrey – Olwen Davies Trophy 1, Eleanor Roberts, 34 pts (21); 2, Sophie Anderson, 34 pts (05); 3, Anne Walker, 33 pts (17). Past Captain’s Gold Medal 1, Graham Byng, 36 pts (11); 2, Jeff Lowe, 36 pts (09); 3, Elwyn Morgan, 36 pts (23). Howard White Bogey 1, Catherine Jones, 5 up (12); 2, Fiona Halpin, 2 up (17); 3, Gillian Byng, All Sq. (28). Cavalier Cup 1, Stuart Goddard, 85 - 16 = 69; 2, Michael Key, 78 - 09 = 69; 3, Anthony Jones, 88 - 17 = 71. Broomhill Cup and Medal 1, Barbara Buckland, 107 - 27 = 80; 2, Margaret Richards, 105 - 24 = 81; 3, Marie Hale, 105 - 24 = 81. Colliver Bowl 1, Dennis Hughes, 79 - 10 = 69; 2, John Jenkins, 83 - 13 = 70; 3, Keith Charles, 87 - 16 = 71. Junior Mel Williams Trophy 1, Osian Bowen, 42 pts (21); 2, Jordan William Davies, 38 pts (07); 3, Jared Llyr Phillips, 37 pts (25).