Last Friday, I was invited by my constituency neighbour and colleague Jack Sargeant MS to visit the Veterans & Community Hub in Connah’s Quay – a largely veteran-led non-profit organisation which supports military veterans, their families and the community in the area. Many of you will know that as part of my role as Deputy Minister for Social Partnership I am the lead minister for the Armed Forces in Wales and I’m extremely proud to represent veterans and their families – and it was great to see the hub’s Caffinaafi, a community café which promotes a real sense of acceptance and belonging, as well as support, for veterans as well as local residents.
It was good to have the chance too to chat about their plans for the future too, which includes having some outdoor events and market-type stalls when the weather gets better – the community venture actually sits on the site of the old Connah’s Quay market, which took me back to regularly going there with my nan and mum as a child! I look forward to supporting the Flintshire-based initiative and all involved in the future.
Later in the day, I was pleased to be able to facilitate a meeting between representatives from Caerwys Town Council, Flintshire County Council and North Wales Police at the Llys y Goron Community Centre in Caerwys to discuss issues around dangerous parking in the town and the ways that this could be addressed. Residents of Caerwys will be familiar with the parking problems in the town and it was good to hear about the ideas the town council has to improve the situation for residents and visitors alike.
Of course, Friday also marked St David’s Day and it was a real pleasure to attend the terrific Trelawnyd Male Voice Choir concert to celebrate on Saturday night at St Asaph Cathedral. The concert was a wonderful way to celebrate St David’s Day and it was great to see the cathedral packed out in support of the choir. The audience not only got to hear the choir perform but also the amazingly-talented Piantel and young vocal ensemble Beca, Georgia, Hanna and Branwen. The evening was topped off with everyone joining in Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau. Noson Gwych!
While at the Senedd last week, I attended an event to celebrate the conclusion of the second Welsh Youth Parliament term, with speeches from the First Minister and some of the Youth Parliament representatives as well as an exhibition which told the story of the Welsh Youth Parliament and what work they had done. Now that the term has come to an end, it was a great way to say thank you to all the outgoing Welsh Youth Parliament members – young people really are the future of Wales and it’s great to see so many get involved in politics and pushing for change. If you are, or you know, a young person who is interested in politics, wanting to make a difference and having a voice, it’s worth thinking about standing. If you want any more information about standing and our Welsh Youth Parliament, please get in touch with my office or visit www.youthparliament.senedd.wales.
Finally, I have received an update from Network Rail about the work being carried out at Flint Station to improve accessibility by installing a new footbridge and lifts – the old footbridge will be removed by a crane overnight on Saturday 9th March. Because of the equipment on site and to help keep passengers safe, Network Rail has decided to close the station car park from Wednesday 6th March until Monday 11th and the company wants to clear all cars from the car park to avoid delays to the work. Network Rail has written to local residents in the area as they are starting to work overnight in some cases and they’re keeping my office updated on any developments, which I’ll pass on.
As always, if you would like advice and/or support, please don’t hesitate to get in touch on any of the following contact details – 52 High Street, Mold, Flintshire, on 01352 753464 or by email hannah.blythyn@senedd.wales. You can also keep up to date via my Facebook page – www.facebook.com/HannahBlythynForDelyn. Constituents are, of course, welcome to contact my office to arrange an appointment to see me, you don’t need to wait until an advice surgery.