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

A woman has been fined for dumping black bags of rubbish at the recycling site in St Clears. Council environmental enforcement officers investigated after a number of black bags were found next to the recycling banks in St Clears car park. A local woman was issued with a fixed penalty notice for £75. Failure to pay could lead to court prosecution where the maximum fine is £2,500. Executive Board Member for Environmental and Public Protection Cllr Jim Jones said: “These sites are important facilities for communities for recycling. However, people are dumping all kinds of rubbish. This will not be tolerated and anyone caught will be prosecuted. “Hopefully, this latest fine will act as a warning to others.”

A St Clears man has been prosecuted for forging a Blue Badge to allow him privileges only reserved for drivers with severely restricted mobility. Cledan David, aged 54, of Salem Road, pleaded guilty to the offence, contrary to s.115(1) of the Road Traffic Regulations Act 1984, at Carmarthen Court. He was ordered to pay a fine of £500, with £54 costs and a £50 victim surcharge. It is the first time Carmarthenshire County Council has successfully prosecuted for Blue Badge fraud. Cllr Colin Evans, Executive Board Member for Transport, said: “Blue Badges are an important parking concession for disabled people that helps to improve their quality of life - any abuse of that privilege is taken very seriously. This is the first time we have prosecuted someone for forging a Blue Badge, but it sends a clear message that such fraud is not acceptable and will not be tolerated.” Under the Road Traffic Act 1988, the maximum fine for misusing a Blue Badge is £5,000 or two years imprisonment.

St Clears RFC has two new junior teams thanks to a Community Chest grant. An Under 13s and 14s have been developed with 21 new players since they were given a cash boost last year. £1350 was distributed by Carmarthenshire County Council’s sports and leisure team to help the club further develop age group rugby and invest in coaching staff and training facilities. Gwyndaf Williams said: “Thanks to the support from Carmarthenshire Council the club has improved two playing pitches and installed new training floodlights to support future development. The grant provides much needed support to develop and work within the community and local schools to enhance local sports participation.” The junior club was formed in 2007 and has 145 members. It is made up of eight teams – aged 7-14s and a 1st 15 team. In its history St Clears RFC has helped produce some sporting greats including Delme Thomas and Jonathan Davies, Mike Philips. Community Chest is funded by Sport Wales and distributed via ...

A 0-5k running class has just been launched at St Clears Leisure Centre. The women only class is a first for our centres and is aimed at beginners who are put through a 12-week programme. Week one starts with a light run, progressing through the weeks until they reach week 12 and are able to run five kilometres comfortably. This is the latest in a line of classes delivered from the centre since it benefited from a new gym in June. A junior programme providing squash, badminton, tiny tots netball, multi-skills and tennis has also been launched, as well as an adult yoga class. The council’s area manager Gary Price said: “Since the new gym opened we have seen an increase in customers coming through our doors and using our facilities. This has enabled us to us put on new classes which will benefit all our users and attract more people into the centre. The health and wellbeing of our customers and the wider community is so important to us so it’s great to be in a position to offer them a ...

PEOPLE wanting to learn Welsh or brush up on their skills can go to summer school at Cwrs y Fferi. It will be held in Canolfan Griffith Jones in St Clears from August 26-29 from 9.30am to 3.30pm. It is the last summer school of the year and an opportunity for people to revise before the regular community courses start week commencing September 22. There will six groups at different levels. Group 1 is aimed at absolute beginners who haven't been on any course previously. It is ideal for people who have no Welsh language skills to give them extra support at the beginning and provide a good basic foundation ready for the end of September. Groups 2 and 3 are for Mynediad/Entry level. Groups 4 and 5 are aimed at Sylfaen/Intermediate level. Group 6 is for learners who have succeeded in learning Welsh to GCSE level and are hoping to progress on to higher levels in the autumn. A children’s club will be provided in partnership with Menter Cwm Gwendraeth at a cost of £5 per day. Childr...

A new gym in St Clears Leisure Centre has opened. Users are enjoying working out with new high quality equipment including cardio vascular and free weights. It comes after Carmarthenshire County Council secured Section 106 money through planning conditions on a local development to fund the leisure refit. Residents have been given a tour of the facility and also had the opportunity of testing the new equipment at an open day held earlier this month. Senior sports and leisure manager, Carl Daniels said: “We’re delighted with the finished product and it was great to see so many people attend the open day. “Residents of St Clears and surrounding area have been using outdated equipment for such a long time. Not only will it benefit these existing customers but also encourage new customers to get active and use our facilities.” Treadmills, bikes, a cross trainer, rowers, a squat rack, chest press, shoulder press, leg press and a dual adjustable pulley weight stack are some of the new purc...

St Clears’ mayor Cllr Graham Edwards inaugurates the first of a series of computer sessions held at the Fox and Hounds Inn in Bancyfelin. Also standing in the picture is Clare Pilborough, who organises the sessions through KITe, a digital skills development scheme which helps older people keep in touch.

St Clears Leisure Centre is to benefit from a new gym. From June users will be able to enjoy working out with top of the range facilities including new cardio vascular equipment and free weights. Work is expected to last one week and is due to start on June 6. During this period the gym will be closed. Carmarthenshire County Council secured Section 106 money through planning conditions on a local development to fund the leisure refit. New equipment will include treadmills, bikes, cross trainer, rowers, squat rack, chest press, shoulder press, leg press and a dual adjustable pulley weight stack. Dumbbells, bars and Swiss balls are also on the shopping list. The gym will also have a bright new look with decorating works and visuals displaying the new Actif branding. A new Bash Dash inflatable is also being purchased to entertain children at birthday parties held at the centre. The council’s area manager Gary Price said: “We are delighted to have secured Section 106 for the community as...

On Friday, May 23, the Taf Quality Time Club (the QT Club), which provides a lively meeting point for families coping with dementia-related illnesses, will be launching its free bus service for people who want to attend club meetings. The bus will collect people from St Clears, Bancyfelin and Whitland at first and later will be extended to include Meidrim, Llangynin and Laugharne. The service will run at convenient times and deliver (and return) carers and those for whom they care to the club in St Clears. The funds which have enabled this new service to be offered by the QT Club have come from the National Lottery Awards for All Wales and generous donations from supportive organisations and individuals. Club chairman, Reg Wyeth from St Clears, said “Having a bus service to bring people to the QT Club is a major goal that I wanted to achieve during the club’s first year and I’m immensely indebted to Awards for All Wales for making it happen. Often, when memory loss strikes, people b...

Significant support for the Taf Quality Time Club (the QT Club), which provides a lively meeting point for families coping with dementia-related illnesses, has been received from pupils at Sparkasse Guterslohe school in Germany. The cheque for £500 arrived during March to the great delight of QT Club members. Club chairman, Reg Wyeth from St Clears, said “This is a tremendous boost to what the QT Club can do for its members. Our new venture is dependent on the support we receive and it is a very big thrill to have such a generous donation from youngsters so far away. After the cheering, our members were unanimous in sending their sincere thanks to the children for their kindness.” The donation was arranged with the school by Trevor Stubbs who is based at Guterslohe in Germany and who has relatives and friends in St Clears. The funding will been used directly to support the activities organised by the QT Club. The QT Club meets on alternate Fridays at 2pm in the St Clears Boating C...

A St Clears man has been fined £200 for building a two storey garage and store without planning permission. David Bryan Howells pleaded guilty at Carmarthen Magistrates Court to an offence contrary to Section 179 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. The prosecution was brought by Carmarthenshire County Council. Kelly Byrne, prosecuting, said that in August 2012, the county council, as local planning authority, issued an Enforcement Notice relating to land at Lodge, Bancyfelin, Carmarthen. It alleged Mr Howells, who lives at Pwll Trap, St Clears, had, without planning permission, erected a two storey garage and store on his land at Lodge, Bancyfelin. The Notice required Mr Howells to reduce the height of the garage and store to the same height as he could have built without needing planning permission, that is, single storey and therefore not an excessive height. He was given three months to carry this out unless an appeal was made to the Planning Inspectorate. No valid appeal was...

Support for the Taf Quality Time Club (the QT Club), which provides a lively meeting point for families coping with dementia-related illnesses, has been coming from all points of the compass over Christmas. Donations totaling £500 have been received from Scotland, Hampshire, Oxfordshire and Dorset, adding to all the support the club has been receiving from friends and supporters in Wales. Club chairman Reg Wyeth, from St Clears, included information about the club in his Christmas message to friends across the UK without expecting such a surprising and welcome outcome. He said “The response was quite overwhelming and every Christmas card my wife, Pam and I received seemed to bring with it a generous donation. It was very touching, especially at Christmas, to receive such help and support when we needed it most”. The funding has already been used directly to support the activities organised by the QT Club. All who came along to the December Christmas party meeting were able to see at...

Welsh learners have the chance to attend one last summer school to help them get a head start on classes in the autumn. It will be held in Canolfan Griffith Jones in St Clears and will run from August 28-31 from 9.30am to 4pm on all day. It is an opportunity for people to start learning, or to revise, before the regular community education courses start week commencing September 24. There will six groups at different levels. Group one is aimed at absolute beginners who have not been on any course previously. It is ideal for anyone who needs extra support at the beginning as it will give a good basic foundation ready. Groups two and three are for Mynediad level, groups four and five Sylfaen level, and group six for people who have succeeded in learning Welsh to GCSE level and are hoping to progress on to higher levels in the autumn. A children’s club will be provided in partnership with Menter Cwm Gwendraeth. Children must be booked in advance and the cost will be £5 per day. The c...

BBC News - Police appeal after pedal cyclist and lorry collide between Carmarthen and St Clears A cyclist has suffered serious injuries in a road crash with a lorry in Carmarthenshire. Police have appealed for witnesses to the collision on the A40 between Carmarthen and St Clears in Carmarthenshire on Wednesday. A spokesperson said the man suffered serious injuries and was airlifted to hospital.

The chair of Carmarthenshire County Council has visited a St Clears resident on her 100th birthday. Esther Anne Davies celebrated her birthday at Dol y Felin care home with members of her family. Council Chair Cllr Sian Thomas called at Dol y Felin to congratulate Mrs Davies and to present her with a bouquet of flowers. Mrs Davies is from Llanboidy and lived there until three years ago when she moved to Dol y Felin. Her late husband Jim worked servicing farm machinery and Mrs Davies worked from home as a dressmaker. She is a member of Capel Rhyd y Ceisiad. She has a son Len, two grandsons and a granddaughter and five great grandchildren. Mrs Davies said: “I am really enjoying my birthday and having my family visit to celebrate.”

Carmarthenshire County Council has congratulated a local B&B on reaching the final 25 of a national competition. Coedllys Country House B&B and Cottage in Llangynin, St. Clears, was nominated for the AA's friendliest B & B in the UK and progressed to the finals. Keith and Val Harber, of Coedllys, said: “We were delighted to get to the final 25. Sadly we did not win. A lovely lady in Yorkshire won. We tried very hard to do Carmarthenshire proud. We had a great time in London.” Executive board member for regeneration and leisure Cllr Meryl Gravell said: “I’m delighted that Coedllys has done so well in the competition and hope Keith and Val go even further next year. “Local businesses such as Coedllys have a vital role to play in bringing people into Carmarthenshire’s and strengthening the county’s economy.” Coedllys has won the Best B&B in Carmarthenshire Award 2011/12, received a Visit Wales GOLD Award putting it in the Top Three Per Cent of accommodations in Wales...

Carmarthenshire’s Walking Well  initiative has now formed three walking groups across the county. Aimed at encouraging people to get fit and stay fit by walking, the initiative has been successful in attracting 25 members in St Clears, with similar numbers expected in the more recently established groups in Llanelli and Carmarthen Town. Trained walk leader Andrew Kurzfeld, a member of the 50+ Forum Steering Group supported by Carmarthenshire County Council, said: “The benefits of walking go beyond the direct impact on health. Joining a Walking Well group is also a great way to socialise and make new friends, safe in the knowledge that all walks are led by trained Walk Leaders who have also been trained in First Aid. “Walks are tailored to suit the capabilities of the group members and new walkers and new walk leaders are always welcome.” Funding for the initial phase was provided through a Health and Wellbeing Grant and the scheme is now seeking further funds to spread Walking We...

  Businesses are invited by Dewis Menter in conjunction with CBSA's eBusiness Club to a free business networking and website event entitled: The Keys to Website Success Date: Wednesday 23rd May Time: 5:30pm Location: Llety Cynin, Llangynin Road, St Clears, Carmarthenshire SA33 4JR Buffet Reception Dewis Menter aims to encourage enterprise and business development for individuals and businesses throughout rural Carmarthenshire. CBSA is the Chamber for Business and Social Action (Wales Why you should be there: The development of a website is more than just the content. How you engage the users of your website can make a big difference in the conversion rate from visitors into customers; In his presentation Nigel T Packer, eBusiness consultant, will share insights and strategies in his development of a website that will effectively build your online business. Spaces are limited! To confirm your attendance, please email: dewismenter@carmarthenshire.gov.uk or phon...

Carmarthenshire 50+ Forum is encouraging older women to go for breast screening. More than 2,000 women are being offered a free, potentially life-saving screening test with the return of Breast Test Wales to St Clears. The NHS service has brought its mobile screening unit to the area. Sited at Pentre Road Car Park (Pay and Display), the unit will offer free, high-quality breast screening by invitation only, to women aged 50 and above who are registered with local GP surgeries until the end of June. All women aged between 50 and 70 should automatically receive a postal invitation if they are registered with the following GP surgeries: Coach & Horses Surgery, St Clears and Meddygfa Taf, Whitland. Women aged over 70 will not receive an automatic invitation, but can be screened on request by telephoning Breast Test Wales on 01792 459988 to make an appointment. Carmarthenshire 50+ development officer Kevin Pett said: “We would encourage women to accept their invitation for an appointmen...

The chairman of Carmarthenshire County Council has visited a St Clears resident on his 100th birthday. Iago Morris celebrated his birthday at Dol y Felin care home on March 2 with members of his family. Mr Morris is married with four children, 11 grandchildren and two great grandchildren. Mr Morris is pictured with, from left: his wife Margaret, daughter Enid Elliot, daughter-in-law Wendy Morris, Dol y Felin manager Linda Miles, and the Chairman of Carmarthenshire County Council Cllr Ivor Jackson.