We have been notified by the North and mid Wales Trunk Road Agent of roadworks along the A5 between Halton roundabout and Gledrid roundabout – just south of the Wales/England border.
The works are to upgrade the safety barriers which should make the road safer.
They will take place between Monday 29 January and Wednesday 21 March and will see the safety barriers upgraded to bring them up to scratch with the latest standards.The works will mean the road will be narrower to allow for safe working but should not cause too much disruption to traffic. The current 40mph will apply throughout the works.
You may be affected by 3 road closures that will be needed to put the safety barriers into place:
28 January 8pm to 6am 18 February from 8pm to 6am 20 March 8pm to 6am
Any abnormal loads will be escorted through which may cause minor delays but this will only happen when the road is less busy.
For further information please contact the North and Mid Wales Trunk Road Agent (NMWTRA) on 033 123 1213 or go to their website www.traffic-wales.com or follow them on twitter @TrafficWalesN or @TraffigCymruG
More council tenants have received new kitchens and bathrooms as part of our major housing improvements work project.
The work is being carried out to ensure we achieve the Welsh Government’s Welsh Housing Quality Standard by 2020.
Ruabon is one of the latest areas where council owned homes have been modernised. This includes St Michael’s Sheltered Housing scheme, which is made up of 38 individual properties.
Unlike a nursing home, our sheltered housing schemes feature self-contained flats, bedsits or bungalows with their own kitchens and bathrooms. A Warden and a Community Alarm Centre provide 24-hour cover in the case of emergencies.
They are aimed at people of retirement age who would like to retain their independence but would benefit from someone to call in an emergency.
(From left to right) Tom & Julie Kenmuir, Sheila Jones (council tenants), Cllr Dana Davies (Local Member for Ruabon), Sheila Wildsmith (council tenant), James Jones (Contracts Manager – GM Jones), Kay James (Resident Liaison Officer – GM Jones), Craig Daniels (Site Manager – GM Jones)
“We’re very glad we said yes..”
The Kitchen and bathroom replacements At St Michael’s were carried out by our contractor, GM Jones.
Mr Tom Kenmuir and Mrs Julie Kenmuir, who live at St Michael’s, welcomed the improvement work. Mrs Kenmuir said: “It can be quite a big job having a new kitchen installed but to be fair the workers here were great. Very friendly and polite. The hardest part is while they are taking out the old kitchen, but once that’s’ done and you start seeing the new kitchen coming together things start getting much easier!
“We’re really pleased with how it looks now and very happy that we agreed to have it done. We were able to choose from a list of colours and designs to get it how we wanted and it’s very modern and good quality. This should last us for many years now!”
Mrs Julie Kenmuir in her new kitchen at St Michael’s sheltered housing scheme
Homes being made fit for the future
Kitchen and bathrooms replacements are just one part of the huge modernisation project we’re undertaking to make sure tenants homes meet the Welsh Housing Quality Standard.
We’re also carrying out other improvement work, where required, such as electrical rewires, new central heating systems, external wall insulation, reroofing work and improvements to gardens and external areas such as paths and fencing.
Local Member for Ruabon, Cllr Dana Davies, said: “I’m very pleased that the improvement work programme has now reached Ruabon and that tenants here have been able to benefit from modernisation work to their homes.
“Work on this scale can present many challenges but it is so important that homes are made fit for the future and the feedback from tenants such as those at St Michael’s has been very positive so this is very good news for social housing in Wrexham.”
Thousands of properties already improved
Leader of the Council, Cllr Mark Pritchard, said: “We’ve invested record amounts on improving homes over the last few years, including £56.4m in 2017/18 alone. This has allowed us to bring thousands of properties up to a higher standard than ever before and it’s something we should be very proud of. This work is set to continue until all our tenants are able to live in homes which are safe, modern, comfortable, and fit for the future.”
The funding for the work to achieve the Welsh Housing Quality Standard includes a £7.5m Major Repairs Allowance (MRA) grant, which is awarded to local authorities, annually, to help them carry out the necessary improvement work to meet the standard.
For more information on the work being carried out to achieve the Welsh Housing Quality Standard visit the council website.
If you think you or someone you know might benefit form living in sheltered housing take a look at our section on retirement accommodation.
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There’s going to be some maintenance going on at the bus station over the weekend which will cause you some disruption if you use the station between 6pm on Saturday and 6am Monday.
We will be putting up some netting to prevent the pigeons from causing a mess and also installing new LED lights in the near future.
All buses will run as normal and access from Lord Street to the retail arcade during opening hours will be unaffected.
If you are waiting for a bus you will have to wait outside the concourse which will be closed for the works to take place. We’re sorry if this causes inconvenience but this work has to be carried out before the end of the financial year.
Cllr David A Bithell, Lead Member for the Environment and Transport, said:
“We do have a scheduled improvement programme for the bus station that will take place over the coming months and this is the first phase which will see improved lighting and an end to the problems caused by pigeons in the roofspace.”
This will be replaced by a new data protection law, on 25 May 2018, which will introduce new rules on how we collect and process your personal data.
Personal data is information which relates to a living person who can be identified from the information itself, or by linking it with other information. For example, it could be your name and address, a school pupil’s record or your own health information.
Processing personal data is the name given to anything that we do with your personal data that we hold. For example, entering your details into our computer systems or storing a completed form in a filing cabinet.
We have a legal requirement to comply with all elements of the Data Protection Act.
Why is the data protection law changing?
This reform to the existing Data Protection Act (1998) is being brought about by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
The GDPR is a European regulation that sets out the changes that the UK will need to implement in a new Data Protection Act.
The new data protection law being introduced on 25 May 2018 will form the basis of a new Data Protection Act.
This new Act will replace the existing Data Protection Act and it aims to give you more rights and control over how your personal data is handled by organisations, such as the council.
The new data protection law is creating one set of rules for everyone in the European Union establishing a unified approach to protecting personal data for all EU individuals.
What changes will the new data protection law introduce?
When the current Data Protection Act was introduced in 1998, the internet was very new and people didn’t understand the full implications of how it could be used – especially when collecting personal information.
As technology continues to develop, new definitions of personal data are being introduced, such as your IP computer address or your mobile phone location setting. Your IP address is a label which is used to identify one or more devices on a computer network such as the internet. It is similar to your postal address and is a series of long numbers.
For you:
The new Data Protection Act will introduce more safety measures about how your personal data is used by organisations. It will include taking into account new mobile technology which captures personal data – to help you trust how it is processed and shared.
As a council, we will:
introduce new documenting and processing procedures
strengthen our rules for deleting and removing personal data
be open with you about what we do with your data
make sure that we perform privacy assessments for certain customers
only use the minimum amount of personal data that we need to deliver a service to you
respond to personal data enquiries within the appropriate timeframe
notify you, where required, if we lose your personal data and breach the Act.
Under the new rules, as a public body we are also required to appoint a Data Protection Officer, a dedicated senior officer who will enforce how we collect and process your personal data in line with the new data protection law.
Dan Stevens who plays the Beast had to dance on stilts in the iconic ballroom scene
Belle’s blue dress was given pockets to hold her books. The costume designer purposefully designed pockets into Belle’s iconic blue dress so she could place her books in them!
Beauty and the Beast was the biggest film of 2017 as well as being the biggest musical in UK box office history
Ghost
The film out-grossed all other films released in 1990
Ghost turned Demi Moore into the highest paid actress at the time
Whoopi Goldberg won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for role in the film
Tickets sell out fast so don’t miss out on this fantastic event. Popcorn on arrival for each car!
Entry is £15 per car. Tickets are available to buy from Wrexham Tourist Information Centre (open week days between 10am and 4pm) 01978 292015
New council-owned social housing could soon be built in Wrexham for the first time in over 30 years.
Last week, the council’s executive board gave the green light to demolish the old Nant Silyn Care Home in Caia Park. Once the demolition has been completed the plan is to build 12 new council houses on the site.
The building has been closed since 2015 and has had to be boarded up and secured following reports of anti-social behaviour near the site.
New houses will help meet the need for modern housing
We are now able to purchase land for the purposes of building new social housing thanks to the Build & Buy scheme which was approved back in 2015.
The Nant Silyn land already belongs to the council so the ownership will now just need to be transferred to the council’s Housing Revenue Account (HRA) so that the new build scheme can be progressed.
Leader of the Council, Cllr Mark Pritchard said: “We have taken the first step to building the first new council houses in Wrexham for many years so this is a very encouraging sign. We will now be working with Welsh Government and a partner to build 12 new houses on this site.
“There is a demand for modern, 21st century housing in the county borough and I am very pleased that we are taking the initiative to make this happen. There will hopefully be many other schemes like this to come in the near future.”
“We’ve also been investing record amounts – £56.4m in 2017/18 alone – in modernising our existing housing stock so I think this shows that the is a bright future ahead for social housing in Wrexham.”
What happens next
The next step will be to get planning permission approved and ensure we can access Welsh Government funding programmes to support the building project.
A Housing Finance Grant is available to the Council and the indicative allocation of funding is £1.6m in 2018/19 with a further £1.1m in 2019/20. The funding is provided by the Welsh Government to support its commitment to deliver 20,000 new affordable homes within its current term of office.
A focus on housing people with additional needs
Lead Member for Health & Adult Social Care, Cllr Joan Lowe said: “The plan is to redevelop the site of the Nant Silyn care home and build brand new properties which will focus on specialist and adapted housing for people with additional needs. I’m delighted that the scheme has been given the green light to progress.”
Local Member for Smithfield, Cllr Adrienne Jeorrett, said: “I’m very pleased that Smithfield will be the first area to receive the new proposed council houses and this is excellent news for the Pont Wen area. The development will now have to go through a formal project management and planning process, both of which will enable views of the local community to be taken into account as the project develops.”
The disturbing fact is that many children already eat far more than 10kg of sugar every year!
When it comes to snack time, it can be hard if your kids are pestering you or helping themselves to whatever they like from the cupboards.
But snacks can all add up – and there’s more sugar in them than you think.
Did you know?
Half the sugar kids eat and drink each year comes from snacks and sugary drinks between meals – that’s 10kg of sugar each year before they have even eaten a meal!
Too much sugar can lead to harmful fat building up inside and serious health problems, including painful tooth decay. Fruit and vegetables are always the best choice, but if you’re shopping for packaged snacks for your children, use this helpful tip: look for 100 calorie snacks, two a day max!
Plain rice cakes or crackers with lower-fat cheese
Sugar-free jelly
One crumpet
One scotch pancake
These snacks may contain 100 calories or less, but products vary so remember to always check the label. Nuts and seeds are a healthier snack, but they’re high in energy, so remember to keep an eye on the amount eaten and don’t give whole nuts to kids under 5.
How to check for 100 calories
You can buy snacks that are 100 calories and lower in sugar. Many products have traffic light labels on the front of the pack. The calories are included on the far left-hand side of these labels. Choose snacks with more greens and ambers on the label, and cut down on snacks that show any reds. Not all packaged food has traffic light labels, but you can find out what you need to know about your snacks with the free Change4Life Food Scanner app available from the App Store or Google Play.
DIY snacks
You can also save money by preparing healthy snacks yourself. Fresh, tinned or frozen fruit and vegetables are always the best choice for a snack, but you could try drop scones, homemade popcorn or small omelettes made in muffin trays.
Leave it on the shelf
The simplest trick in the book — if you don’t have sweets in the house, you can’t eat them and you’ll save money, too!
We are a nation of dog lovers and the majority of us care for our dogs very well particularly when it comes to regular exercise. Unfortunately not all dog lovers in Wrexham are keen to pick up the poo after their dog has fouled and they leave it where it is. This can be hazardous to others, particularly if stepped in, it also isn’t pleasant to see in our country parks and on the pavements.
Not picking up the poo is an offence and which could be met with a £75 fine if offenders are caught and we’re about to clampdown on offenders. Enforcement officers will be paying particular attention to dog fouling in the coming weeks and will not hesitate to hand out a fine to offenders.
Cllr David A Bithell, Lead Member Environment and Transport said, “I have received lots of complaints recently and it’s clear that people are fed up of those dog owners who refuse to pick up after their dog has fouled. I’m asking officers to pay this offence particular attention over the next few weeks and those who currently aren’t picking up should think seriously about their disregard for their environment and fellow dog owners and avoid a £75 fine. Responsible dog owners will have nothing to fear from this clampdown”
Did you know you can recycle your textiles? We’re happy to take good quality clothing including worn out ones and shoes – it helps it you tie them in pairs.
We can’t take bedding, duvets, pillows, wet or soiled items or items like carpets.
All you have to do is put it in a carrier bag – but not a bin bag – and leave it out with your usual bin and recyclables.
We also owe everyone who already recycles their waste a big thank you as news shows that we are currently number 2 in Wales for our recycling at just over 71% between April and September of last year. We’re awaiting our recycling figures for the last quarter and although green waste is always lower for this quarter we are hopeful of staying number two.
Cllr David A Bithell, Lead Member for Transport and the Environment said: “Our residents are doing really well and are enthusiastic about recycling. This was obvious recently as our wagons became full very quickly with so much recycled after Christmas. We will continue to make improvements where possible and I would encourage more residents to make use of the textile service we offer. We’ve come a long way since 2002 when less than 4% of our waste was recycled and the figures are proof of what can be achieved when everyone works together to achieve a common goal. Many thanks to everyone for helping us achieve this fantastic recycling rate.”
Have your finances taken a battering this Christmas?
If so why not find out more about dealing with your finances in a more personal way at Cambrian Credit Union (trading as Cambrian Savings and Loans) – they can help with regular savings and provide access to affordable loans.
Not only that but they’re entirely run by and for their members, meaning you get a say on matters by voting at their Annual General Meeting. Although they are similar to a bank and financially regulated by the same people as banks, their ethos is very different – they care about you and concentrate on creating real value for its members – unlike other financial organisations who concentrate on making a profit.
They don’t charge if a loan is repaid early and loan decisions are made by their staff who get to know you and take into account your own personal circumstances, instead of relying on an automated decision.
So if you’re looking to manage your finances better in 2018 why not pop into to see the staff at the Credit Union at 51 King Street, LL11 1LA or call 03332000601 or take a peek on their website www.cambriancu.com.
