Maggie

I used up all my attachment allowance, but have PDF'd the pi charts that were produced for the Big Local meeting about the findings of the questionnaire and hope to squeeze them on here. I always find this sort of diagram the best way to understand statistics.

I've posted the results of the questionaire under 'Big Local'

I've posted the results of the questionnaire above under Big Local

I have received the final report from the questionnaire that a lot of you were kind enough to complete. I have enjoyed going through it tonight and have been fascinated at how much we all have in common. We seem to really value the rural nature of our surroundings and the heritage of the villages, but are concerned at how run down and uncared for a lot of the built up areas are. We want to see more control of traffic, rubbish, dog-poo, parking etc and would like to see money spent on community facilities and activities and play areas and tidying up and improving the countryside walks and the built environment. There were an awful lot of individual comments which I am not going to post in case they are identifiable, but one nice thread running through them was about planting flowers around the villages. There were a lot of suggestions, particularly around provision of housing and road safety, which are really not the responsibility or remit of the Big Local Funding, but rather statutory obligations for other agencies. The Big Local Start Up Group (which includes me) will now inwardly digest this data, burb loudly, and then move forward using these results as a compass. Please freely comment on this on this site; we will use any of the comments for our discussions. Any of us that attended the Big Local Meeting will realise that we now need a group of people with ideas to make decisions for the project and are looking for some more volunteers; Hint Hint ;) . This money is for all of us, so please let me know if you think you could get involved or just have something to say. There was some confusion at the meeting about the boundary of the Big Local Area, which is around Weston Rhyn, St Martins and Gobowen and the bit in between, but leaves out the very rural hamlets of Bronygarth, Selattyn etc. It does not mean that someone from outside the core area cannot get involved in the decision making. The money is to be spent to improve the lot of the central area, but again, this will obviously also be for the benefit of people who live in the surrounding rural areas, so in practice will benefit us all. Again, thank you if you filled in a questionnaire, and let us know what you think.

Great Suescho, but still don't know if people from other villages can use this?

Maggie Tea White dollop of Whiskey

Good, interesting meeting for Big Local. The preliminary results from the questionnaire were very detailed, but the summaries probably what we were all expecting. I'll have a go at putting them onto this site once I have received a copy. I've also got a nice photo of our glorious community-online designer and founder talking to the meeting and will take bribes not to link that to the site! There were a lot of good ideas about how to spend our £1,000,000, and people prepared to help run the next next stage of the project, which will see the start of this money being made available to us. There is a feeling around that the process is taking a long, long time, but we all need to be sure that we spend wisely and fairly across the community, and are responding to real problems and needs, and this sort of system needs to be set up from scratch, with attention to where our needs and preferences are. The questionnaire is a very good starting point, so thanks very much to everyone who took the time to complete one and send it in. If you want to get involved in steering this project, and aren't already in our radar, please let me know via this site. The winners of the prize draw were announced at the meeting but I didn't take notes. Sorry, I did take photos however!. Will report in detail when I have that information and more to tell.

I have posted information about the consultation over the old Chirk Council Office on the calendar. Its Wed 23rd Nov afternoon and evening in Chirk Parish Hall for those who haven't time to look (and to save time if you are reading this after the event!). The Glyn Wylfa Development Trust are going after funding to open the old building as craft units, a cafe and tourism point for World Heritage Site. If they don't succeed with their business plan the building is likely to be pulled down and the site developed for housing. If successful it will be a resource for local people to market their crafts, and will generate more visits along the canal throughChirk Bank. So will affect us, and thats the reason I'm posting it on the calendar. I believe they read this site so you can post comments here about the project.

The first AGM of the Aqueducks on Nov 29th is posted on the calendar.

Read something in Advertizer tonight that the torch will come into Os along the Gobowen Rd, meaning either coming from A5 or from Gobowen?

What about having a go at clearing thecanal embankment slope on the Gledrid side of Avondale? Its a scrubby mess, and sycamores are growing up to hide the view. There is a seat there, but doubt you could see very much at present. Could this then be sowed with wildflower seeds? The brambles are choking out the rosebay willow herb which are very pretty where they flower. It would also be nice to put a planter or 2 alongside the canal in Chirk Bank.

Had an email wanting news for November's World Heritage Site e-bulletin, so can peeps let me know if they know of anything interesting within the WHS in Chirk Bank so I can relay it, we don't want it to be dominated by news from Wrexham!

No further info other than that the list states Trevor followed by Oswestry, presumably torch bearers would come through Chirk on way to Oswestry? or possibly through Weston Rhyn, and past the Hillfort?

Its going across Pontcysyllte Aqueduct too, so coming through here, what are we going to do to celebrate? How about some LJC grant money for an event of some sort?

Bad time of year for dealing with pets. Our poor dog has lived in his den under the bed for several days. Has anyone got any tips for keeping dogs (is it particularly dogs?) calm when there are wizzes and bangs going on all around?

Hey St Martins chaps and chapesses Is this also for people in the other villages?

Very interesting link on Kevins post, recommend that anyone living out in Selattyn or back of St Martins should read it (next time they can get onto internet!)

Yes and thanks Lee for this post. We took £204 in book sales and some donations on Saturday at the seminar, this post plus the listing on the calendar meant that we were a little oversubscribed on the day of the seminar with quite a rush of new bookings coming in at the last minute (we had to order more food). We packed out the hall in the Marches and it got a bit hot and sweaty. The amount we took for book sales is more than double what we took last year. This was the only place we advertised the event, and the increase in bookings at last minute coincided with it going onto this site. By the way we still have some books left, (and if need be will have to do a reprint)! Very good value (the price is only to cover cost of printing). and the latest one has a particularly bloodthirsty paper about the Battle of Chester (AD 616) and the sorts of damage done to the skeletons examined by researchers, with illustrations.

Welcome Sand and thanks for your useful comments. I'm sure we all regard this site as for anyone who is interested in our area. The lantern parade is all about celebrating the miners, and remembering the closure of the pit in Nov 1968 by using lantern parade to symbolically represent the miners lamps and their journey to work. The lanterns are made at workshops in the local school and also in St Martins Centre where this information is put across. The main aim of the event is however to have fun. Usually ex-miners attend too. This was an ex-mining area and a lot of its strength, survival of its community and political identity, and some bad things too, are because of the sort of close knit society that developed when most people worked in and depended upon the same workplace. It is not typical of Shropshire by any means and all the better for it in my opinion! It probably has a stronger similarity to villages on the Welsh side of the border.

Have you reported this to the police? I think people need to be aware that police aren't psychic and need to be told what is happening. Police need to know about things as soon as possible. here is there phone number to contact: 03003333000

Wouldn't this be a very suitable thing for LJC funding?