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

A new school for Seaside in Llanelli is one step closer after the Welsh Government gave its approval to the Strategic Outline Case. The case was made by Carmarthenshire County Council for the development of the £12.5million superschool in Llanelli, which will replace Copperworks and Lakefield schools. A site has been identified at the former Draka factory in Copperworks Road and has been cleared ready for development. The new building will cater for 420 pupils plus a nursery with 60 places. Following the Welsh Government approval, the council can now move the project forward to the next stages and work on this will begin immediately. However, it will be some time before actual building work on the school can begin. Education executive board member Cllr Keith Davies said: “Whilst we are obviously really pleased with the Welsh Government’s approval for our Strategic Outline Case, there is still a considerable way to go yet to satisfy their processes, including the need to present for a...

Housing Minister Huw Lewis is to cut the first sod on the site of a new bungalow scheme being delivered by Carmarthenshire County Council. The council has been given the go-ahead to start the £3.6million scheme which will see 39 two-bedroom bungalows being built across three sites in Carmarthenshire. The bungalows will be the first that the council has purpose-built for older people in the county since the 1980s. As part of the first phase, eight will be built in Morfa Maen, Kidwelly, and five at Llysnewydd, Seaside, Llanelli, where Mr Lewis will cut the first sod on Thursday (October 4). A second phase will deliver more bungalows at Y Waun, in Pemberton, Llanelli, with other sites in the county also being considered. Outline planning permission is already in place, and a contractor has been appointed. Detailed plans will be submitted later this month (October), with work due to start on the first phase in February 2013. The council’s application to build the bungalows was approved by ...

Volunteers from a Llanelli-based drug and alcohol intervention service have helped clean up a local park. Chooselife Cymru, which offers advice, information and support to drug and alcohol users as well as their families, teamed up with Glanymor and Tyisha Communities First with the help of Tidy Towns and Keep Wales Tidy to carry out a litter-pick at Crown Park in Seaside. A total of 30 bags of rubbish were filled in just one afternoon. Efforts were concentrated in one corner of the park which was badly affected by litter. Alan Andrews, managing director of Chooselife, said: “All the volunteers that went felt that they wanted to help support the community in which they live and going out cleaning up areas that have been neglected made them feel a bigger part of the community. “Substance misusers normally get bad press but in this instance, it shows that you cannot tarnish everyone with the same brush. We are more than willing to help out in the future in any way that we can.” Tidy Town...