community council – County Councillor Neil Prior

Annual report for Llanrhian Community Council 2023-24

In my third year as the Chair of Llanrhian Community Council, I’m pleased to write a short report highlighting some of our activities over the past municipal year.

Town and Community Councils are set up by statute and form the most local tier of democratic representation. Run by local residents who are either elected or co-opted onto the council, and acting on behalf of its area, Community Councils are comprised of people who care about their community and want to make it a better place to live.

As well as representing the community to the local authority, Community Councils can facilitate a wide range of activities which promote the well-being of their communities. They can bring local people together to help make things happen, and they can advise, petition, influence and advocate numerous causes and cases of concern on behalf of local communities.

Llanrhian Community Council is one of the smaller councils in Pembrokeshire, but I think that once again our combined efforts mean that we have had a positive impact on the communities that we represent, which this year have included the following:

Public Toilets

Due to the severe state of public sector funding, Pembrokeshire County Council, in attempting to make savings, has looked to local communities to take on the running of public toilets across the county. The provision of public toilets is not a statutory function (i.e. there is no legal requirement for councils to provide them), but we recognise their importance to the local community. As such, Llanrhian Community Council has taken on the running of Porthgain public toilets, and now operates and manages this facility as well as the public toilet in Trefin. This also provides a level of employment for local people who are paid to manage these facilities. Abereiddi public toilet continues to be managed by Pembrokeshire County Council whilst a long-term solution is found.

Llanrhian Connected Community project.

Predominately funded by Pembrokeshire County Council’s ‘Enhancing Pembrokeshire’ grant fund, Llanrhian Community Council has also contributed financially to this project working to create a stronger and more resilient local community across the Llanrhian ward. In 2023-24 our two part-time ‘Community Link Officers’ continued the work to help support local community groups and help people feel more connected to our area. The highlights of this activity include the incredibly popular community unches, which have now been held in Mathry, St Nicholas, Porthgain and Llanrhian, the ‘Widow’s United’ group which is growing in numbers and providing real friendship and fellowship to those who attend, and our communications including the popular community magazine Llais Rhian and the monthly e-bulletin. The team have also helped set up and support the neighbouring Pencaer Connected Community project.

Ynni Bro Rhian

As a statutory organisation, the Community Council is able to help others in acting as a ‘host’ organisation. This means that we can support other community initiatives by providing a level of governance, assurance and credibility to help get ideas off the ground. In this case, working with a small group of local people, we were able to support a community renewable energy initiative which has now evolved into the formation of a Community Benefit Society named Ynni Bro Rhian. It’s early days, but this society, with the support of the Community Council, will look to progress the renewable energy ideas for our area and provide a mechanism for other initiatives that benefit our communities.

The logo designed locally for Ynni Bro Rhian, our Community Benefit Society

Communications

We are active on social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram, regularly getting good engagement and reach by sharing local stories and snippets, and we also use notice boards for those who might not be on-line and who prefer more traditional methods of keeping up to speed. The Connected Community e-bulletin is growing with nearly 200 subscribers getting a monthly direct email informing them of what’s on, as well as part funding Llais Rhian.

Finance

The Community Council is funded through a precept, which has historically been very low, and has limited our financial ability to fund local causes. This year we have raised the precept from £10,000 to £18,000 and have started a ‘reserve’ account to provide a buffer if needed. With our existing activities and ambitions, and recognition of wider challenges (such as managing the public toilets at Porthgain), we need to make sure that we have sufficient funds to spend locally. We also act as the financial guardians and administrators of the funding streams for the Llanrhian Connected Community and Ynni Bro Rhian.

The playpark in Trefin.

We initiated this project just before the first national lockdown with a community engagement day in March 2020, and in collaboration with Gwelliant Trefin Improvement (GTI) in 2021-22, we saw phase one commence which included landscaping of the old bowls section, as well as a volunteer day to garden, paint and tidy the area.

In the following year the work continued with a number of further volunteer days organised by Llanrhian Community Council; hedge and shrub planting with Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority; the venue being made available for community events; and we were successful in applying for grant funding of around £25,000 to enable the Pavilion to have essential repairs carried out, including a new roof, windows and doors. This work was scheduled to commence in October 2023 but due to various issues the work has stalled and so we are actively reviewing how we move this work forward. We expect it to be completed this year.

Other activities

This year we’ve also participated in the Electoral Commission’s Boundary review, where they are looking at the appropriate number of Town and Community Councils in Pembrokeshire (there are currently 77) and we have made representation to them saying that we think our current area is appropriate. The Commission will produce draft plans later this year, with any changes coming into effect in May 2027. It’s possible that we might merge with another area but we don’t yet know the outcome of the Commission’s review.

We also review all planning applications for the area as a statutory consultee of both Pembrokeshire County Council and Pembrokeshire Coast national Park Authority; we manage the defibrillators across our area (located in Square & Compass, Trefin, Porthgain, Croesgoch and Llanrhian) and have arranged defibrillator training; we provide an opportunity for members of the public to attend and speak at our monthly meetings; we make representation to Dwr Cymru Welsh Water and are actively engaged with them trying to address sewerage issues; and we’ve made small donations to local causes including Wales Air Ambulance and Young Farmers.

For a small council I think we are active and engaged, and the voluntary contribution that our councillors make does not go unnoticed. I’d like to thank them for supporting me in my role as Chair, underpinned by the consistently excellent work of our Clerk, Vanessa Walker.

Diolch,

Cllr Neil Prior

Annual Report for Llanrhian Community Council 2022-23

In my second year as the Chair of Llanrhian Community Council, I’m pleased to produce a short report highlighting some of our activities over the past municipal year.

Town and Community Councils are set up by statute and form the most local tier of democratic representation. Run by local residents to act on behalf of its area, Community Councils are comprised of people who care about their community and want to make it a better place to live.

Despite Llanrhian Community Council being one of the smaller councils in Pembrokeshire, I think that once again our combined efforts mean that we have had a positive impact on the communities that we represent, which this year have included the following:

The playpark in Trefin. We initiated this project just before the first national lockdown with a community engagement day in March 2020, and in collaboration with Gwelliant Trefin Improvement (GTI) in 2021-22, we saw phase one commence which included landscaping of the old bowls section, as well as a volunteer day to garden, paint and tidy the area.

The work continued this year with a number of further volunteer days organised by Llanrhian Community Council; hedge and shrub planting with Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority; the venue being made available for community events; and we have recently been successful in applying for grant funding of around £25,000 to enable the Pavilion to have essential repairs carried out, including a new roof, windows and doors. This work is scheduled to commence in October 2023 and we hope will encourage further use of this community venue.

We’ve received grant funding to repair the roof, doors and windows for Trefin Pavillion

Cefn Gallod Residential Development. At the time of writing last year’s report, a legal challenge had been submitted to challenge the decision ofPembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority to approve a contentious planning application that will have a significant impact on the amenity of residents living in and near Cefn Gallod, Trefin. We were subsequently successful in getting the application back to the planning committee in July 2022, but the final decision of the committee, by one vote, was to approve the planning application. Llanrhian Community Council continues to keep a watching brief on this planning application, commenting most recently on the sustainable drainage plans that have been submitted by the developers.

We continue to review all planning applications that apply to the area as is our statutory responsibility.

Llanrhian Community Council will part fund the project for a further year, as we have just been successful in receiving around £13,000 in grant funding to continue the Connected Community project, which will also include a further two editions of Llais Rhian.

The return of Llais Rhian has been well received across our area

Representation to Dwr Cymru Welsh Water. Acting upon concerns informed by data, we have actively engaged with representatives from Dwr Cymru Welsh Water to gain a better understanding of sewage discharges at Trefin, Porthgain and St Nicholas waste water treatment works. At the time of writing, Dwr Cymru Welsh Water have positively engaged with us and have made improvements to the St Nicholas site and have added Trefin to their SOAF (Storm Overflow Assessment Framework) programme. A site visit to Porthgain is scheduled for May 2023.

Housing needs. We have engaged PLANED to help design, deliver and collate a housing needs assessment survey to be distributed across the entire Llanrhian Ward (including the communities of Mathry and Pencaer) to help identify local and specific housing needs for the future. This is a first step in creating a community led housing initiative.

Communications. We are active on social media platforms including our Facebook page and Twitter account, and this year added Instagram to our communication channels. We regularly get good engagement and reach by sharing local stories and snippets, and of course use notice boards for those who might not be on-line and who prefer more traditional methods of keeping up to speed. The Connected Community e-bulletin is growing with nearly 150 subscribers getting a monthly direct email informing them of what’s on.

Finance. The Community Council is funded through a precept, which has historically been very low, and has limited our financial ability to fund local causes. This year we have raised the precept from £6,000 to £10,000 and have started a ‘reserve’ account to provide a buffer if needed. With our existing activities and ambitions, and recognition of wider challenges (such as considering managing the public toilets at Porthgain), we need to make sure that we have sufficient funds so this was an important step to make.

In other areas, we continue to manage the public toilet in Trefin with a local resident being paid for this work, we continue to manage a number of defibrillators across the area, and also put on a defibrillator training course for local residents. We continue to operate a policy of funding local causes where appropriate. We have also had to deal with a particularly contentious local land issue, with some strong feelings being made known by local residents, and the situation eventually being resolved by Pembrokeshire County Council’s Common Land Officer.

This year we welcomed Priscilla Wilde and Paul Niedzwiedzki as new Community Councillors and they have settled in well and make a valuable contribution. For a small council I think we are active and engaged, and the voluntary contribution that our councillors make does not go unnoticed.

I’d like to thank them all as I feel supported in my role as Chair, underpinned by the consistently excellent work of our Clerk, Vanessa Walker.

Diolch,

Cllr Neil Prior

Annual Report for Llanrhian Community Council

Having been a Community Councillor since 2017, I was delighted to be the Chair of Llanrhian Community Council for 2021-22. Below is my annual report.

Llanrhian Community Council Past Chair’s report – 2021-22

It has been an enjoyable year being the chair of Llanrhian Community Council and there is much to reflect on that we can be proud of during the past municipal year.

Firstly, if you’re reading this report and wonder what a Community Council is, it is set up by statute and is the most local tier of democratic representation. Run by local residents to act on behalf of its area, Community Councils are comprised of people who care about their community and want to make it a better place to live.

Despite Llanrhian Community Council being one of the smaller councils in Pembrokeshire, I think that our combined efforts mean that we have had a positive impact on the communities that we represent, which this year have included the following:

The playpark in Trefin. We initiated this project just before the first national lockdown with a community engagement day in March 2020, and have recently seen the first real steps in improving the run-down community playpark in the village of Trefin. As a full refurb and refit was beyond our financial means, not to mention the difficulty of sourcing contractors, we have recently run a successful crowd-funding campaign which raised over £1,000, and in collaboration with Gwelliant Trefin Improvement (GTI), between us we have contributed £4,000 in addition to the crowdfunded £1,000 to carry out landscaping and tidying of the area.

In addition to this, and also collaborating with Llanrhian Connected Community and GTI, we held a volunteer day in March 2022 which saw around 25 local volunteers turn up and garden, paint and tidy up the area further, which meant that a few weeks later GTI held a very successful ‘Easter Eggstravaganza’ event at the playground. This work is very much Phase 1 of improvements to the playpark, with further initiatives to come.

Defibrillator in Llanrhian. In response to a request from a local resident, we agreed to fund a new defibrillator in Llanrhian. Already managing and maintaining defibrillators in Porthgain, Croesgoch, Square & Compass and Trefin, we decided to crowd-fund to raise the necessary funds, and shortly after launching the campaign we were gifted a new defibrillator by St David’s First Responders. As we’d already raised significant funds, we were ultimately able to purchase another unit, meaning that we were able to replace the aging defibrillator in Croesgoch, and provide a new machine in Llanrhian. At the time of writing, all the permissions are in place for the install of the unit in Llanrhian and we are just waiting on the electrician to do the necessary install.

Cefn Gallod Residential Development. This is an example of where we have advocated on behalf of the local community, with a contentious planning application in Trefin that would have a significant impact on the amenity of residents living in and near Cefn Gallod. We therefore held two public meetings to hear resident’s concerns and views, and reflected these in our strong objection of the development to Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority (PCNPA). Despite a narrow majority at the PCNPA planning committee, at the time of writing a legal challenge has been submitted, so we will continue to monitor the situation.

We’ve actively represented resident views on planning issues such as Cefn Gallod

Llanrhian Connected Community project. Predominately funded by Pembrokeshire County Council’s ‘Enhancing Pembrokeshire’ grant fund, Llanrhian Community Council has also contributed financially to this project, working to create a stronger and more resilient local community across the Llanrhian ward. We now employ two ‘Community Link Officers’ on a part time basis, who are actively helping draw upon the collective strengths of our community, support local community groups, and help people feel more connected to their area. The project is doing this by facilitating events such as the ‘This is your community day’ and the ‘Community Climate Collaboration’ events held at Ysgol Croesgoch, and by improving communication across the area with a newly launched e-bulletin and the relaunch of Llais Rhian just around the corner. Members of the Community Council were also part of the team that received support from Wales Council for Voluntary Action and Nesta, which has helped clarify our understanding of working with communities and helped us generate new courses of action for this innovative project. The project reports to Llanrhian Community Council monthly.

4Wards Project. Llanrhian Community Council is also part of the UK Government’s Community Renewal Fund working with ‘Together for Change’ exploring what it means to live well across the St David’s Peninsula. Currently nearing the end of this project, we are aiming to secure future funding to continue to promote community resilience and help stimulate local economic regeneration.

Speeding traffic. As Chair of the Community Council, and with my County Councillor hat on, I submitted a bid to PCC’s ‘community works fund’ which has resulted in two ‘driver feedback signs’ being installed in Croesgoch and Square & Compass. The feedback from residents has been very positive and will also enable us to gather data on average speeds which in turn might help us lobby for a reduction in the speed limits in these areas.

Planning consultations. In addition to receiving all local planning applications across the area for our comment as a statutory consultee, we have also responded to planning consultations from Welsh Government, PCNPA and PCC on matters such as second homes and conservation areas, and we have developed a new confidence in being able to ‘push back’ where appropriate.

Communications. We are active on social media platforms including our Facebook page and Twitter account, where we regularly get good engagement and reach by sharing local stories and snippets, and have recently invested in replacement notice boards for those who might not be on-line and who prefer more traditional methods of keeping up to speed.

In other areas, we continue to manage the public toilet in Trefin with a local resident being paid for this work, we’ve recently overseen and paid for improvements to the bus shelter in Croesgoch, and we continue to operate a policy of funding local causes where appropriate. We’ve also been able to resolve a long-standing issue with GTI which helped fund the playpark improvements.

This year we will say goodbye to Cllrs Brigit Thurstan and Cllr Becky Annis who have stepped down having made a valuable contribution and will be missed, and I’d like to thank them for their service. We also welcomed Cllr Katy Jenkins who is already getting stuck in and is proving to be a real asset.

To conclude this report, I think we’ve represented the community effectively, and we’ve done all of this under the continued restrictions of Covid, meeting virtually for the entire year. In my opinion, all of our Community Councillors have made a positive contribution to our area, bringing diversity of thought, strong local networks, energy and enthusiasm, with a good geographical spread across the parish. I’d like to thank them all as they have made my role as Chair a lot easier, underpinned by the consistently excellent support of our Clerk, Vanessa Walker.

Diolch,

Cllr Neil Prior

Community Consultation

At Llanrhian Community Council, we’ve been thinking about what to do with the playpark and pavilion in Trefin. You might not even know it’s there, but some years ago the field was transformed into a multi-sports court, a pavilion, a playpark, a small astro-turf area and an open community space. If you know it, you’ll also know that it’s now looking very sorry for itself.

That’s why we want to get the community involved to offer some ideas for what it could be used for again, and so there’s a ‘Community Consultation’ event on Saturday March 14th from 10am to 1pm at Trefin Village Hall, where you can say your piece or just find out more. Even if you can only pop in for 10 minutes, it would be great to see people there to contribute. The event is being supported by PLANED, and whilst it’s a starting point, it’s an important starting point to see how we can take things forward.

Finally, and really importantly, this is not just for Trefin! We would love to see people coming from elsewhere in our locality, as it’s a facility that could be of great benefit to all. Please get involved!