A view from Clwyd South’s Member of Parliament

Wrexham.com has invited Wrexham & Clwyd South Members of Parliament and Members of the Senedd to write a monthly article with updates on their work in their respective Parliaments and closer to home – you can find them all here.

In his monthly column for Wrexham.com, Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes writes:

As your Member of Parliament, it is always a privilege to see the work of volunteers in communities across Clwyd South.

It was a pleasure to attend the launch of the appeal by St Mary’s Church, Chirk to raise £60,000 to restore their church bells on the 16th March.

Thank you to Deryl Crocombe for inviting me and to Peter Furniss for his inspiring talk about the six bells which were cast in 1814 and last overhauled in 1912. And thank you to the vicar Rev. Matt Wilkinson who always makes us all feel so welcome at St Mary’s Church.

As a Cluster of Towers, the churches in Bangor-on-Dee, Overton-on-Dee and Chirk have recently been awarded the Association of Ringing Teachers award for Cluster of the Year.

The judges were looking for ringers who demonstrated commitment and drive to develop the next generation of ringers and leaders by supporting each other in ringing and teaching as a Cluster of Towers. Many congratulations to everyone involved!

I had a wonderful time visiting the 1st Overton Cubs on the 11th April in their Scout Hut in Overton-on-Dee.

I enjoyed telling them about my life and work as an MP and was extremely impressed by how well informed they are as I discovered in their excellent questions.

Simon Baynes MP with the 1st Overton Cubs on 11 April

I wish to thank their Cub Section Lead Volunteer Mark Sayer for inviting me and it was great to meet Erin Sayer, Lowri Hughes and David Huyton, who also help with the 27 Cubs – we owe so much to these volunteers for their care and leadership of the Cubs.

What a happy and inspiring evening it was!

It was a great pleasure to attend the High Sheriff of Clwyd Kate Hill-Trevor’s Service of Thanksgiving on the 23 March at the beautiful St Mary’s Church in Chirk.

It was a fitting way to celebrate all that the High Sheriff has accomplished over the last year in Clwyd and very generous of the Hill-Trevor family to invite us all to their stunning home, Brynkinalt, nearby for tea.

It was great to visit the Llanarmon DC Village Hall on the 12th April with Cllr Trevor Bates and Rt Hon Craig Williams MP, the Prospective Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr, to meet with Ennis Griffiths, Sandra Halls and Gill Holt and their team of volunteers.

Rt Hon Craig Williams MP, Cllr Trevor Bates, Sandra Halls, Ennis Griffiths, Simon Baynes MP and Gill Holt at Llanarmon Village Hall on Friday 12 April

They organise the weekly gathering for senior citizens every Friday where they can get together for a good chat and are served soup and a cake. Everyone is so grateful to the volunteers for their kindness and commitment to the Llanarmon community.

I am proud of the investment that the UK government has made in Clwyd South, and I was delighted that the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Felicity Buchan MP, came with Dr James Davies MP to visit the Horseshoe Falls near Llangollen on the 14th March to learn about the impact of Levelling Up funding at the site.

The Horseshoe Falls are a truly magnificent site near Llangollen. As part of the World Heritage Site, they attract many visitors each year and serves as a wonderful local landmark for residents.

I am proud of the work that is being carried out to help enhance the visitor experience as part of the £13.3 million Clwyd South Levelling Up Fund that I secured as the local MP and I look forward to seeing these works completed.

Additionally, I was pleased to highlight the recent Community Ownership Fund grant made by the UK government to the Owain Glyndŵr Hotel in Corwen of £452,700 during questions to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities in the House of Commons on the 22nd April.

The announcement is a wonderful example of the hugely beneficial impact of the UK government’s Community Ownership Fund on local communities, and will enable this much-loved hotel to play a central role in the town again and to benefit from the re-opening of Corwen Station and other projects in Corwen arising from my Clwyd South Levelling Up Fund.

Clwyd South is home to many other examples of our rich heritage such as the restored memorial to Huw Morus near Glyn Ceiriog, which I had the pleasure of visiting with the Prospective Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr, Rt Hon Craig Williams MP, along with Cllr Keith Benning and Cllr Trevor Bates on the 12th April.

Rt Hon Craig Williams MP, Cllr Trevor Bates, Sandra Halls, Ennis Griffiths, Simon Baynes MP and Gill Holt at Llanarmon Village Hall on Friday 12 April

It is wonderful to see such an important piece of Welsh history restored and preserved for future generations to enjoy.

Huw Morus (1622 – 1709), also known by his bardic name Eos Ceiriog (“the nightingale of Ceiriog”), was one the most popular and prolific poets of his time. Morus’s work bridges the gap between the strict-metre tradition of the Beirdd y Uchelwyr (the medieval “Poets of the Nobility”) and popular verse.

The restoration of the memorial would not have been possible without the kind permission and financial support of owner Martin Obbard, along with hard work and perseverance of Keith Benning, Chairman of the Ceiriog Ucha Community Council.

Following this, it was fascinating visit to the New Glyn Valley Tramway & Industrial Heritage Trust in Glyn Ceiriog on 12th April with Rt Hon Craig Williams MP and Cllr Trevor Bates.

From left to right: Ed Moore, Norman Stainthorpe, Rt Hon Craig Williams MP, Simon Baynes MP, Eunice Roberts, Keith Roberts, Linda Hughes and Judith Stainthorpe at the New Glyn Valley Tramway & Industrial Heritage Museum on Friday, 12 April.

As a proud member of the Trust, I always enjoy visiting them and seeing the progress they are making in preserving the heritage and telling the stories of the Glyn Valley Tramway and the industries it once served in the Ceiriog Valley.

As your Member of Parliament, my team and I are always here to provide advice and support – please email me at [email protected]. For updates on my work in Clwyd South and Westminster, please visit my website www.simonbaynes.co.uk.