Hedge laying at Cae Mawr.
Thursday 28 February 2019
Tuesday 26 February 2019
Spring
The record breaking weather we're having at the moment is, at the same time, lovely to experience and deeply worrying in its implications for the planet - but here are the first daffodils I saw this year, on Broad Street:
Monday 25 February 2019
Drinking Fountains
When the school strike for climate action happened the other week, one of the things they were talking about was having public drinking fountains instead of buying single use plastic bottles of water.
Here's a drinking fountain from 1905, on Broad Street, attached to the trough that was intended to water the animals, and erected in memory of one Mr Watkins.
Sunday 24 February 2019
Community Interest Companies
I've been thinking about CICs since setting one up was proposed at the meeting about the Library cuts, and how the purpose they've been set up for has changed over the years.
A Community Interest Company is a limited company which is set up for social enterprises that want to use their profits and assets for the public good, according to Wikipedia. CICs were first introduced in 2005, and about 10,000 of them have been set up in the first ten years of their existence.
The first CIC in Hay was the Department of Enjoyment, set up to organise Hay-on-Fire. So here was a group of people who were fund raising so that they could set off a massive amount of fireworks and have beat up old cars chasing each other round the Warren with flame throwers on the front! (It was awesome!).
The second local CIC was the Hay Community Enterprise, set up in 2008, which saved the Cheesemarket from dereliction. The upstairs is now a holiday flat, and the downstairs is available for stalls to hire for markets and community events. They've done a wonderful job on it. With the profits from renting out the flat and market space, they can also offer grants to local groups, such as Fair in the Square, Hay Does Vintage, the Eliza Trail (the children's local history trail) and research by the Hay History Group, which did a lot of work on finding out the history of the Cheesemarket itself.
One of the fund raising ideas was to have a tile picture, now displayed in the lower part of the Cheesemarket - I was one of the many local people who bought a tile for it. The book recording all the donors is on permanent display at Hay Library - or it was when the website was last updated.
What they don't mention on their website is why they were saving the Cheesemarket from dereliction.
The building was owned by Powys County Council (Hay Community Enterprise are leasing it from them).
So in three years we've already gone from setting up a CIC to set off fireworks, to the more serious aim of saving an important local historic building from dereliction.
And now in 2019, we're seriously considering setting up a CIC to save an essential local service - to keep a paid librarian in Hay Library.
I think I want to go back to 2006....
A Community Interest Company is a limited company which is set up for social enterprises that want to use their profits and assets for the public good, according to Wikipedia. CICs were first introduced in 2005, and about 10,000 of them have been set up in the first ten years of their existence.
The first CIC in Hay was the Department of Enjoyment, set up to organise Hay-on-Fire. So here was a group of people who were fund raising so that they could set off a massive amount of fireworks and have beat up old cars chasing each other round the Warren with flame throwers on the front! (It was awesome!).
The second local CIC was the Hay Community Enterprise, set up in 2008, which saved the Cheesemarket from dereliction. The upstairs is now a holiday flat, and the downstairs is available for stalls to hire for markets and community events. They've done a wonderful job on it. With the profits from renting out the flat and market space, they can also offer grants to local groups, such as Fair in the Square, Hay Does Vintage, the Eliza Trail (the children's local history trail) and research by the Hay History Group, which did a lot of work on finding out the history of the Cheesemarket itself.
One of the fund raising ideas was to have a tile picture, now displayed in the lower part of the Cheesemarket - I was one of the many local people who bought a tile for it. The book recording all the donors is on permanent display at Hay Library - or it was when the website was last updated.
What they don't mention on their website is why they were saving the Cheesemarket from dereliction.
The building was owned by Powys County Council (Hay Community Enterprise are leasing it from them).
So in three years we've already gone from setting up a CIC to set off fireworks, to the more serious aim of saving an important local historic building from dereliction.
And now in 2019, we're seriously considering setting up a CIC to save an essential local service - to keep a paid librarian in Hay Library.
I think I want to go back to 2006....
Saturday 23 February 2019
Saving the Library - Again!
On Wednesday HOWLS held a meeting in the new Library about the proposed cuts to the Library service by Powys County Council.
It was a smaller audience than the previous week's meeting about the more general cuts (petitions are still available to sign in several local shops in Hay), but that was only to be expected because this is a single issue - how to keep Hay Library open when the PCC want to cut the funding to pay a librarian. Having said that, the information about the meeting goes out to 390 people on the mailing list.
Before the meeting Anita Wright, the Chair, had contacted several local community councils, since Hay Library also serves the populations of Clifford, Clyro, Cusop and other surrounding villages, and several representatives of those community councils turned up, along with Trudy Stedman, the Mayor of Hay.
The meeting opened with a tribute to Jayne, the Librarian, who is retiring due to ill health (there's a card and collection box for a present on the librarian's desk). Stepping into her shoes, having previously assisted her, is Jane.
Anita outlined the situation so far, and what HOWLS has been doing behind the scenes, including contacting the other nine small rural libraries that are, again, under threat of closure or becoming "volunteer-led".
One absolutely essential point to make is that you cannot have a library without a librarian. Without a trained librarian, it's just a room with books in, however keen and committed the volunteers are, and it will eventually decline to the point where the County Council closes it down.
Janet Robinson, one of the library volunteers and on the committee of HOWLS, made the point that volunteers are needed, because there is too much work for the librarian to do on her own, and volunteers also enhance the library by providing activities like storytime, which is very popular, or IT training. She said that between 350 and 400 people use the library every week, so it's a popular service.
But, Hay Library needs a librarian.
Various suggestions were put forward for fund raising, including charging a subscription to use the library, but it was pointed out that borrowing books from a public library has to be free under the 1964 Act of Parliament, and charging even a minimal amount will put off people who need the service, including teenagers who are the group which at present uses the library least.
The proposal HOWLS is putting forward is to form a CIC to raise money to pay a librarian.
This effectively means that the people of Hay will be paying twice for the service which already comes out of Council Tax, but it seems like the only way to save the library in the short term.
We are fortunate to have Michael, who stood up to explain how CICs work - he was part of the group that came up with the concept, and he started the first one in Powys (only the second in Wales) for everyone who remembers the Department of Enjoyment, which was set up to organise Hay-on-Fire. There has also been another CIC in Hay, the body which was formed to renovate the Cheesemarket, which has been very successful. He pointed out that if 250 people each paid £100, we could amply fund the librarian's wages, and Tim Organ reminded people that, when Plan B was set up to stop a supermarket being built on the present school site, they managed to raise £30,000 in three weeks! So it's possible. The representative from Clyro said that it was possible for them to give a grant, but it would only be in the region of £500.
The idea, of course, is not just to hand over the money, having raised it, to Powys and hope for the best. HOWLS and the Library would want a legally binding agreement with the County Council to keep the Library open. The first priority is to give the Librarian security of tenure.
It was also pointed out that the position of Hay, on the border, gave us an advantage, in that we could also appeal to Herefordshire County Council, since we also serve Herefordshire villages. Also, their system of training volunteers is apparently far better than Powys.
The meeting was overshadowed by the fact that Powys County Council were meeting the following morning to vote on this coming year's budget. Several councillors, including Gareth Ratcliffe and James Gibson-Watt (who sent their apologies to the meeting, both having to be elsewhere), tried to come up with an alternative budget, but were not allowed to see some of the financial information they needed, so they weren't allowed to put their alternative budget forward.
Now, that meeting (which was webcast live) has happened, and the budget was voted down, which means there is a short period of grace where the councillors can attempt to come up with an alternative budget, which is hopefully less damaging to the small communities of Powys.
Incidentally, I have a spy in Llanidloes, one of the other towns on the list of threatened libraries. She tells me that, in 2017, the library there moved into the same building as the local museum, but with reduced space, and they were told then that the library was safe for five years. That was two years ago, and now the County Council wants to close it altogether.
It was a smaller audience than the previous week's meeting about the more general cuts (petitions are still available to sign in several local shops in Hay), but that was only to be expected because this is a single issue - how to keep Hay Library open when the PCC want to cut the funding to pay a librarian. Having said that, the information about the meeting goes out to 390 people on the mailing list.
Before the meeting Anita Wright, the Chair, had contacted several local community councils, since Hay Library also serves the populations of Clifford, Clyro, Cusop and other surrounding villages, and several representatives of those community councils turned up, along with Trudy Stedman, the Mayor of Hay.
The meeting opened with a tribute to Jayne, the Librarian, who is retiring due to ill health (there's a card and collection box for a present on the librarian's desk). Stepping into her shoes, having previously assisted her, is Jane.
Anita outlined the situation so far, and what HOWLS has been doing behind the scenes, including contacting the other nine small rural libraries that are, again, under threat of closure or becoming "volunteer-led".
One absolutely essential point to make is that you cannot have a library without a librarian. Without a trained librarian, it's just a room with books in, however keen and committed the volunteers are, and it will eventually decline to the point where the County Council closes it down.
Janet Robinson, one of the library volunteers and on the committee of HOWLS, made the point that volunteers are needed, because there is too much work for the librarian to do on her own, and volunteers also enhance the library by providing activities like storytime, which is very popular, or IT training. She said that between 350 and 400 people use the library every week, so it's a popular service.
But, Hay Library needs a librarian.
Various suggestions were put forward for fund raising, including charging a subscription to use the library, but it was pointed out that borrowing books from a public library has to be free under the 1964 Act of Parliament, and charging even a minimal amount will put off people who need the service, including teenagers who are the group which at present uses the library least.
The proposal HOWLS is putting forward is to form a CIC to raise money to pay a librarian.
This effectively means that the people of Hay will be paying twice for the service which already comes out of Council Tax, but it seems like the only way to save the library in the short term.
We are fortunate to have Michael, who stood up to explain how CICs work - he was part of the group that came up with the concept, and he started the first one in Powys (only the second in Wales) for everyone who remembers the Department of Enjoyment, which was set up to organise Hay-on-Fire. There has also been another CIC in Hay, the body which was formed to renovate the Cheesemarket, which has been very successful. He pointed out that if 250 people each paid £100, we could amply fund the librarian's wages, and Tim Organ reminded people that, when Plan B was set up to stop a supermarket being built on the present school site, they managed to raise £30,000 in three weeks! So it's possible. The representative from Clyro said that it was possible for them to give a grant, but it would only be in the region of £500.
The idea, of course, is not just to hand over the money, having raised it, to Powys and hope for the best. HOWLS and the Library would want a legally binding agreement with the County Council to keep the Library open. The first priority is to give the Librarian security of tenure.
It was also pointed out that the position of Hay, on the border, gave us an advantage, in that we could also appeal to Herefordshire County Council, since we also serve Herefordshire villages. Also, their system of training volunteers is apparently far better than Powys.
The meeting was overshadowed by the fact that Powys County Council were meeting the following morning to vote on this coming year's budget. Several councillors, including Gareth Ratcliffe and James Gibson-Watt (who sent their apologies to the meeting, both having to be elsewhere), tried to come up with an alternative budget, but were not allowed to see some of the financial information they needed, so they weren't allowed to put their alternative budget forward.
Now, that meeting (which was webcast live) has happened, and the budget was voted down, which means there is a short period of grace where the councillors can attempt to come up with an alternative budget, which is hopefully less damaging to the small communities of Powys.
Incidentally, I have a spy in Llanidloes, one of the other towns on the list of threatened libraries. She tells me that, in 2017, the library there moved into the same building as the local museum, but with reduced space, and they were told then that the library was safe for five years. That was two years ago, and now the County Council wants to close it altogether.
Thursday 21 February 2019
Tuesday 19 February 2019
Yakmobile
There's a new collaboration between the Rose and Crown and Yakmobile.
Between 5pm and 9pm from Monday to Saturday it will be possible to order takeaways from Yakmobile at the top bar in the Rose and Crown (cash only!).
Yakmobile make Nepalese and Thai dishes - and I may possibly be going over there to try them out shortly....
Between 5pm and 9pm from Monday to Saturday it will be possible to order takeaways from Yakmobile at the top bar in the Rose and Crown (cash only!).
Yakmobile make Nepalese and Thai dishes - and I may possibly be going over there to try them out shortly....
Monday 18 February 2019
PAVO
Last week, a lady was going round town distributing leaflets and putting up posters to publicise PAVO, the Powys Association of Voluntary Organisations.
This organisation has been there in the background for many years, assisting local groups to access services, giving support and information.
They can be contacted at community.connectors@pavo.org.uk
She also had a card for infoengine.wales, which offers support for voluntary and community groups across Wales.
And she was publicising the Powys Befriending Service, which supports people over 50 who are isolated to maintain their independence and improve their social networks. They're looking for Volunteer Befrienders to spend time with older people. They give full training and support, and all Volunteer Befrienders will have a DBS check.
This organisation has been there in the background for many years, assisting local groups to access services, giving support and information.
They can be contacted at community.connectors@pavo.org.uk
She also had a card for infoengine.wales, which offers support for voluntary and community groups across Wales.
And she was publicising the Powys Befriending Service, which supports people over 50 who are isolated to maintain their independence and improve their social networks. They're looking for Volunteer Befrienders to spend time with older people. They give full training and support, and all Volunteer Befrienders will have a DBS check.
Sunday 17 February 2019
School Strike for Climate Action
On Friday at 11am I went up to the Clock Tower where the children who were striking from school were gathering to march to demand action on climate change.
There was quite a sizable crowd there:
A lad called Sam gave a speech to explain why they were all there, and then they marched round the town, chanting and waving their placards, led by a girl with a megaphone at the front of the march. Hay is not very big, so they ended up going up and down Castle Street about 4 times! As they went, they were collecting signatures on a petition to present to the Mayor, to ask Hay Town Council to declare a Climate Emergency.
At the War Memorial, they stopped again for more speeches. These kids had obviously done their research, and put a lot of thought into the speeches they gave. I think the youngest speaker was 12, Rosa, who was also the one who started organising the march in Hay (other marches were going on at he same time across Europe, as well as a few scattered ones around the rest of the world, including one in Mali!). Trudy the Mayor also said a few words - she was delighted that the children were getting involved in such an important issue.
Then there was more marching, finishing up at the Globe.
Here Rosa stood up to answer questions from the audience, about how they had organised themselves (word of mouth spreading between siblings and schools, mostly). Mayor Trudy said a few more words as she accepted the petition ("343 signatures...344....") and she USED THE MICROPHONE!:).
She said that she would take it to the next Council meeting on the first Monday of March to be voted on. She also said that she had to admit that the Town Council were divided about 50/50 on whether the children should be in school or not, but that she had been very happy when Rosa first approached her.
The Town Council has been trying various initiatives to get young people interested in the work of the council for some time, and here was a group of enthusiastic young people asking to get involved!
I wasn't feeling very well, so I left early, but when I went, the kids were finding out which schools were represented in the room and organising so that they all kept in touch. Schools included Fairfield High School, Lady Hawkins School from Kington, Clifford Primary School, and Michaelchurch Escley Primary School.
I spoke to one mum whose older child was attending the march in Hereford, where he goes to Sixth Form College, and whose younger son was in Hay. Then there was Tiger, who is home schooled, so his mum said he represented a whole school on his own! He stepped up as they were organising a committee, to represent home educated children in the area.
The boys from Fairfield (one of whom had sprayed his hair green for the event), were well aware that the school did not support them attending - the school had sent an email to all the parents saying that any child going to the march would be marked as having an unauthorised absence. This was in contrast to Lady Hawkins School, which was supportive of pupils who wanted to attend. One parent in the room wanted to know how children in Kington could be involved in future actions, as there are two big schools there.
I don't think these kids are going to stop at one march - the Climate Action movement is organising future events, and I think they're going to be involved in local initiatives. There was a lot of positive energy in the room.
Later I went into Londis, where one of the new town councillors who had been at the march was telling the staff there all about it. She was very enthusiastic about getting the children involved in local action.
There's also been a lot of discussion about the march on the Hay Community page on Facebook, both positive and negative.
There was quite a sizable crowd there:
A lad called Sam gave a speech to explain why they were all there, and then they marched round the town, chanting and waving their placards, led by a girl with a megaphone at the front of the march. Hay is not very big, so they ended up going up and down Castle Street about 4 times! As they went, they were collecting signatures on a petition to present to the Mayor, to ask Hay Town Council to declare a Climate Emergency.
At the War Memorial, they stopped again for more speeches. These kids had obviously done their research, and put a lot of thought into the speeches they gave. I think the youngest speaker was 12, Rosa, who was also the one who started organising the march in Hay (other marches were going on at he same time across Europe, as well as a few scattered ones around the rest of the world, including one in Mali!). Trudy the Mayor also said a few words - she was delighted that the children were getting involved in such an important issue.
Then there was more marching, finishing up at the Globe.
Here Rosa stood up to answer questions from the audience, about how they had organised themselves (word of mouth spreading between siblings and schools, mostly). Mayor Trudy said a few more words as she accepted the petition ("343 signatures...344....") and she USED THE MICROPHONE!:).
She said that she would take it to the next Council meeting on the first Monday of March to be voted on. She also said that she had to admit that the Town Council were divided about 50/50 on whether the children should be in school or not, but that she had been very happy when Rosa first approached her.
The Town Council has been trying various initiatives to get young people interested in the work of the council for some time, and here was a group of enthusiastic young people asking to get involved!
I wasn't feeling very well, so I left early, but when I went, the kids were finding out which schools were represented in the room and organising so that they all kept in touch. Schools included Fairfield High School, Lady Hawkins School from Kington, Clifford Primary School, and Michaelchurch Escley Primary School.
I spoke to one mum whose older child was attending the march in Hereford, where he goes to Sixth Form College, and whose younger son was in Hay. Then there was Tiger, who is home schooled, so his mum said he represented a whole school on his own! He stepped up as they were organising a committee, to represent home educated children in the area.
The boys from Fairfield (one of whom had sprayed his hair green for the event), were well aware that the school did not support them attending - the school had sent an email to all the parents saying that any child going to the march would be marked as having an unauthorised absence. This was in contrast to Lady Hawkins School, which was supportive of pupils who wanted to attend. One parent in the room wanted to know how children in Kington could be involved in future actions, as there are two big schools there.
I don't think these kids are going to stop at one march - the Climate Action movement is organising future events, and I think they're going to be involved in local initiatives. There was a lot of positive energy in the room.
Later I went into Londis, where one of the new town councillors who had been at the march was telling the staff there all about it. She was very enthusiastic about getting the children involved in local action.
There's also been a lot of discussion about the march on the Hay Community page on Facebook, both positive and negative.
Saturday 16 February 2019
Public Meeting - This is a Rainy Day
Talk of the reserves of money led to discussion of what those reserves are for - surely the Council is saving for a rainy day?
Alistair pointed out that this is a rainy day!
However, Trudy said that half the funds in the Town Council reserves were earmarked for a project. She didn't want to say what it was for to begin with, claiming commercial sensitivity, but after a brief whispered conversation with Rob Golesworthy she said that she could say what it was for. The Town Council have been trying for some time to find suitable land to extend the Cemetery, and time is running out. There are only enough new grave plots left for a couple of years at the current rate of expansion. So the money is to buy a new plot of land.
A question from the back of the hall was - what about the living? Aren't the services for the living more important than the dead?
Trudy replied that the cemetery was a service for the living, because it is where the families of the dead go to find solace. There was applause at this.
Someone else asked if there was enough money to build a new Youth Club, which is badly needed.
There isn't enough money for that.
A chap from the Scouts stood up. He said there were 300 Scouts and Explorers in the Hay area, and they are looking for a base to operate from. They actually have funding for this, but need backing. He was told to talk to HADSCO about it (so some positive networking came out of the meeting).
The County Council are meeting on 21st February to discuss the new budget, before all the relevant groups can react to the proposals - but there is a bit of time after that until the full County Council considers the budget.
One lady asked if the County Council meetings were open to the public. They are, and members of the public can even ask questions at a certain point in the proceedings. Some meetings, like the Cabinet meeting where they discussed Hay, are online as a webcast.
The member of the Cabinet said that the Cabinet had been discussing other, even more extreme measures, such as scrapping the subsidy for every bus service in Powys! He also said that they can't cut the children's and adult services (the County Council has been having severe problems in this area) or education.
The last, and possibly most important question, was - What does the County Council need to hear from Hay to communicate to them what the people of Hay want? What will convince them to change their minds?
There is a serious lack of trust between Hay and the County Council at the moment.
The Cabinet member was asked about this, and he said that as far as he was concerned, his word was his bond. That may well be true, but Hay has discovered to its cost that the Cabinet as a whole is quite happy to go back on agreements.
So the meeting came to a close without anything much resolved. Really the only ideas for raising money for the town were to increase the price of the toilets, and Hay needs rather more than that.
However, there was a petition going round the hall, and a lady said she would take more sheets onto the Thursday market, setting out what the Town Council wants to put before the County Council. I don't have a copy of the wording here (I was busy trying to read it, sign it, and carry on taking notes!) but it does give the Town Council something to go to the County Council showing that a large body of the population support their proposals.
These include fighting to keep the toilets open, fighting to keep the new library open, and trying to gain possession of the old library building to use for the town, in exchange for the money that is already in the reserves.
Alistair pointed out that this is a rainy day!
However, Trudy said that half the funds in the Town Council reserves were earmarked for a project. She didn't want to say what it was for to begin with, claiming commercial sensitivity, but after a brief whispered conversation with Rob Golesworthy she said that she could say what it was for. The Town Council have been trying for some time to find suitable land to extend the Cemetery, and time is running out. There are only enough new grave plots left for a couple of years at the current rate of expansion. So the money is to buy a new plot of land.
A question from the back of the hall was - what about the living? Aren't the services for the living more important than the dead?
Trudy replied that the cemetery was a service for the living, because it is where the families of the dead go to find solace. There was applause at this.
Someone else asked if there was enough money to build a new Youth Club, which is badly needed.
There isn't enough money for that.
A chap from the Scouts stood up. He said there were 300 Scouts and Explorers in the Hay area, and they are looking for a base to operate from. They actually have funding for this, but need backing. He was told to talk to HADSCO about it (so some positive networking came out of the meeting).
The County Council are meeting on 21st February to discuss the new budget, before all the relevant groups can react to the proposals - but there is a bit of time after that until the full County Council considers the budget.
One lady asked if the County Council meetings were open to the public. They are, and members of the public can even ask questions at a certain point in the proceedings. Some meetings, like the Cabinet meeting where they discussed Hay, are online as a webcast.
The member of the Cabinet said that the Cabinet had been discussing other, even more extreme measures, such as scrapping the subsidy for every bus service in Powys! He also said that they can't cut the children's and adult services (the County Council has been having severe problems in this area) or education.
The last, and possibly most important question, was - What does the County Council need to hear from Hay to communicate to them what the people of Hay want? What will convince them to change their minds?
There is a serious lack of trust between Hay and the County Council at the moment.
The Cabinet member was asked about this, and he said that as far as he was concerned, his word was his bond. That may well be true, but Hay has discovered to its cost that the Cabinet as a whole is quite happy to go back on agreements.
So the meeting came to a close without anything much resolved. Really the only ideas for raising money for the town were to increase the price of the toilets, and Hay needs rather more than that.
However, there was a petition going round the hall, and a lady said she would take more sheets onto the Thursday market, setting out what the Town Council wants to put before the County Council. I don't have a copy of the wording here (I was busy trying to read it, sign it, and carry on taking notes!) but it does give the Town Council something to go to the County Council showing that a large body of the population support their proposals.
These include fighting to keep the toilets open, fighting to keep the new library open, and trying to gain possession of the old library building to use for the town, in exchange for the money that is already in the reserves.
Friday 15 February 2019
Public Meeting - Questions from the Floor
So now it was roving microphone time....
One person pointed out that Powys County Council were in a difficult position because their funding has been cut - leading to comments about the huge salary of the chief executive which was reported recently (set nationally) and a suggestion to save money by reducing the number of county councillors.
And while I'm thinking about this, later in the meeting it was pointed out by James Gibson-Watt that the formula for deciding how much money each county council gets is based on the population. Powys is big, and thinly populated - in fact the population is going down. There is low unemployment in Powys, but this is because we export our unemployed - young people move away so they can get jobs. In turn, this means there are fewer young families, and fewer children going to local schools - so the education funding is cut, and so on down a slow spiral to oblivion. What we need is a way of encouraging inward migration to Powys to boost our population and get more funding!
Volunteering was mentioned as a way to keep services - but why should people volunteer to run services they are already paying for out of their council tax? (Which will be going up next year).
In the case of the Library - volunteers can't run a library. They can assist, but a library needs a trained librarian, and it's the trained librarians that are going to be cut.
Several people said that Powys County Council do not have a coherent policy - they stagger from one crisis to the next. One example of this was the building of the new Museum/Library complex in Brecon, which keeps going over budget and for which there seems to be an open cheque book. This was, said the speaker, "ineptitude", and "they couldn't run a bloody bath!"
It was pointed out that Hay is important to the economy of Powys as a whole, as a tourist destination and base, and if Hay was supported the town could generate more income for the county. Hay deserves a more coherent policy from Powys - and Powys doesn't have a strategy!
The problems that we are facing now, said another speaker, are only going to recur. Can there be an agreement that Powys County Council don't renege on?
James Gibson-Watt took the microphone here, and said that the original agreement worked out between Hay Town Council and the County Council was a good one, and he doesn't understand why the County Council went back on it. It's important to stick to agreements or trust is destroyed. Smaller councils around Powys are being called on to deliver services that the County Council used to deliver, and so trust between them is essential, and needs to be restored. It is shortsighted to close down facilities now because once they're gone, they're gone for good. If we could keep going through this rough patch, retaining our facilities, we would come out of it into a much better position in the next few years.
The Town Council said that it was difficult for them, because very few members of the public turn up to council meetings, and when they did have a Meet the Councillor event only 20 people turned up even though they'd distributed over 2,000 leaflets, to every house in Hay.
To which the reply was - they've got a room full of people now.
Trudy said that, when dealing with the County Council, they felt like ten people in a room - and they needed the evidence that the people of Hay were supporting them, which would give them more power in negotiations.
The Town Council is also restricted by legislation in the way it chooses to spend its money. They can't just give a grant to the Library to keep it going. Again, the total amount they are allowed to give in grants is based on the electoral roll of Hay.
One of the ideas the Town Council do have involves the pot of money which has been sitting quietly in reserve for many years, and which is supposed to be used for a community initiative (this is from the days of the old District Councils, I think). The Town Council basically want to do a swap. The County Council gets that money - about £200,000 - and the Town Council gets the old Library building. The Town Council could then use the building for meetings and a variety of groups, and it would save Powys County Council money in the long term. The Town Council are meeting on Friday (today!) to discuss this.
So I'll end this post on that thought, and wrap up the report tomorrow.
One person pointed out that Powys County Council were in a difficult position because their funding has been cut - leading to comments about the huge salary of the chief executive which was reported recently (set nationally) and a suggestion to save money by reducing the number of county councillors.
And while I'm thinking about this, later in the meeting it was pointed out by James Gibson-Watt that the formula for deciding how much money each county council gets is based on the population. Powys is big, and thinly populated - in fact the population is going down. There is low unemployment in Powys, but this is because we export our unemployed - young people move away so they can get jobs. In turn, this means there are fewer young families, and fewer children going to local schools - so the education funding is cut, and so on down a slow spiral to oblivion. What we need is a way of encouraging inward migration to Powys to boost our population and get more funding!
Volunteering was mentioned as a way to keep services - but why should people volunteer to run services they are already paying for out of their council tax? (Which will be going up next year).
In the case of the Library - volunteers can't run a library. They can assist, but a library needs a trained librarian, and it's the trained librarians that are going to be cut.
Several people said that Powys County Council do not have a coherent policy - they stagger from one crisis to the next. One example of this was the building of the new Museum/Library complex in Brecon, which keeps going over budget and for which there seems to be an open cheque book. This was, said the speaker, "ineptitude", and "they couldn't run a bloody bath!"
It was pointed out that Hay is important to the economy of Powys as a whole, as a tourist destination and base, and if Hay was supported the town could generate more income for the county. Hay deserves a more coherent policy from Powys - and Powys doesn't have a strategy!
The problems that we are facing now, said another speaker, are only going to recur. Can there be an agreement that Powys County Council don't renege on?
James Gibson-Watt took the microphone here, and said that the original agreement worked out between Hay Town Council and the County Council was a good one, and he doesn't understand why the County Council went back on it. It's important to stick to agreements or trust is destroyed. Smaller councils around Powys are being called on to deliver services that the County Council used to deliver, and so trust between them is essential, and needs to be restored. It is shortsighted to close down facilities now because once they're gone, they're gone for good. If we could keep going through this rough patch, retaining our facilities, we would come out of it into a much better position in the next few years.
The Town Council said that it was difficult for them, because very few members of the public turn up to council meetings, and when they did have a Meet the Councillor event only 20 people turned up even though they'd distributed over 2,000 leaflets, to every house in Hay.
To which the reply was - they've got a room full of people now.
Trudy said that, when dealing with the County Council, they felt like ten people in a room - and they needed the evidence that the people of Hay were supporting them, which would give them more power in negotiations.
The Town Council is also restricted by legislation in the way it chooses to spend its money. They can't just give a grant to the Library to keep it going. Again, the total amount they are allowed to give in grants is based on the electoral roll of Hay.
One of the ideas the Town Council do have involves the pot of money which has been sitting quietly in reserve for many years, and which is supposed to be used for a community initiative (this is from the days of the old District Councils, I think). The Town Council basically want to do a swap. The County Council gets that money - about £200,000 - and the Town Council gets the old Library building. The Town Council could then use the building for meetings and a variety of groups, and it would save Powys County Council money in the long term. The Town Council are meeting on Friday (today!) to discuss this.
So I'll end this post on that thought, and wrap up the report tomorrow.
Thursday 14 February 2019
Public Meeting about County Council Cuts - Here We Go Again!
The school hall was full when I got there - several of us latecomers ended up on a low bench by the wall. Most of the Town Council were there, along with Gareth Ratcliffe, James Gibson-Watt, and another local County Councillor who is also on the Cabinet - he's the one who was recently involved in a bit of controversy because he was in New Zealand, but he's back now.
There was a bit of faffing around to start with, because the tech didn't work, so they couldn't show the presentation they'd put together. Instead it was Mayor Trudy Stedman with a sheaf of notes and a microphone in her hand.
And here's a plea from someone who has been in many public meetings - if there is a microphone, USE THE MICROPHONE! And don't just hold it, bring it up to your mouth, and speak loudly as well, so that those of us at the back or with less than perfect hearing can follow what's being said!
So, Trudy introduced the County and Town councillors, and gave a brief run down of the story so far.
Starting around 2015, the Town Council spent two years negotiating with the County Council to save the public toilets and other public assets for the town. This involved the County Council giving the Town 20% of the car park takings, on the strength of which the Town Council took out a £70,000 loan to improve the toilets, which they took over the running of.
Then there was an election in May 2017, and the new Cabinet refused to honour that agreement.
In the September, Hay Town Council had a meeting with the new Cabinet which was described as "acrimonious". They could not come to a new agreement.
In December 2018 the Cabinet finally got round to discussing the matter at County Hall. The Town councillors watched the live webcast of the meeting, which is the only way they found out what decisions the Cabinet had made - there has still not been an official letter telling them the outcome.
The Cabinet decided that Hay would have no car park income.
The County Council would write off the £70,000 loan, which the Town Council were supposed to be paying back at £10,000 a year (no money has yet changed hands).
This looked at first sight to be a good deal, until the Town Council worked out that, under the original agreement, they should have had £95,000, and repaid £45,000 by now, so the Town Council would lose out. They have taken legal advice and been told that they have a strong case against the County Council, as the original agreement has been operational, so the County Council should give Hay the money they originally agreed. However, the cost of mounting a legal action against the County Council has to be considered.
The County Council has given Hay two options about the toilets (at the Clock Tower and Craft Centre). The first is that the Town Council continues to run them, and the second is to give them back to the County Council, but with no guarantee that the County Council would keep them open. Currently the County Council only directly run two sets of toilets - the ones in Brecon and the ones at Ystradgynlais bus station. All the other toilets in the county have been hived off to be run by smaller councils and groups of volunteers.
The toilets cost £30,000 a year to run, and bring in an income of £18,000. This is 90,000 people paying 20p a time (slightly more people than that used the toilets last year, but that's how many paid for it).
This was the first appeal to the public - should the Town Council fight to keep the toilets open?
Alistair Shaw (who didn't need a microphone!) said that a town with no public toilets was crazy - Hay would lose all the tourists who come here.
Trudy also said that the Town Council had considered raising the precept to cover the cost (this is the amount of money Hay Town Council gets to run the town, presently £42,000 a year), but they thought this would be unfair, as it is visitors who use the toilets, not locals.
Sean O'Donaghue asked if there was a Disability Rights issue here? There is legislation to say that a town needs to have a toilet for the disabled, with level access for wheelchairs.
The Deputy Chair of the Chamber of Commerce was also present, and he said that the Chamber of Commerce has no income, apart from a small amount of membership fees, and that most of the money they raise goes towards the Christmas Lights, so they can't really help.
Other areas of concern include the Sports Pavilion. Here there is qualified good news - the town has been offered a 99 year lease of the building, and the bowls club have been given permission to build the pavilion they want. However, without the income from the car park, the Town Council cannot give as much money as they would like to the running of the sports facilities, so the sports clubs have to do more fund raising.
The Council Chambers were also discussed at the Cabinet meeting in December, where it was decided that the Town Council would be given 12 months notice to leave the premises. The County Council were apparently surprised to discover that the Town Council has tenants in the building (from whom they gain income for the town), including Dial a Ride. Apparently someone at the Cabinet meeting said that "We will make sure the tenants are okay," but the Town Council has no idea what they mean by this. They also don't know when the 12 months notice starts from, because the County Council have not contacted them officially yet. Trudy was asked where the Council would meet when they lost the building, and answered: "No idea!"
The Library is also under threat - again, along with the 9 other rural libraries that were threatened last time. However, the big libraries in the county, such as Brecon and Newtown, are not being asked to find savings, even though it is the rural areas that need libraries more. Gareth has asked questions at County Hall about this.
Another loss to the town will be the Registrar of Births, Marriages and Deaths. At present they only come (and use an office in the Council Chambers) for two days a week, and this will cease. In future people will have to go to Brecon for this service. The Registrar is also being withdrawn from Builth Wells, Knighton and Llanidloes.
Tomorrow, I'll cover the questions from the floor....
There was a bit of faffing around to start with, because the tech didn't work, so they couldn't show the presentation they'd put together. Instead it was Mayor Trudy Stedman with a sheaf of notes and a microphone in her hand.
And here's a plea from someone who has been in many public meetings - if there is a microphone, USE THE MICROPHONE! And don't just hold it, bring it up to your mouth, and speak loudly as well, so that those of us at the back or with less than perfect hearing can follow what's being said!
So, Trudy introduced the County and Town councillors, and gave a brief run down of the story so far.
Starting around 2015, the Town Council spent two years negotiating with the County Council to save the public toilets and other public assets for the town. This involved the County Council giving the Town 20% of the car park takings, on the strength of which the Town Council took out a £70,000 loan to improve the toilets, which they took over the running of.
Then there was an election in May 2017, and the new Cabinet refused to honour that agreement.
In the September, Hay Town Council had a meeting with the new Cabinet which was described as "acrimonious". They could not come to a new agreement.
In December 2018 the Cabinet finally got round to discussing the matter at County Hall. The Town councillors watched the live webcast of the meeting, which is the only way they found out what decisions the Cabinet had made - there has still not been an official letter telling them the outcome.
The Cabinet decided that Hay would have no car park income.
The County Council would write off the £70,000 loan, which the Town Council were supposed to be paying back at £10,000 a year (no money has yet changed hands).
This looked at first sight to be a good deal, until the Town Council worked out that, under the original agreement, they should have had £95,000, and repaid £45,000 by now, so the Town Council would lose out. They have taken legal advice and been told that they have a strong case against the County Council, as the original agreement has been operational, so the County Council should give Hay the money they originally agreed. However, the cost of mounting a legal action against the County Council has to be considered.
The County Council has given Hay two options about the toilets (at the Clock Tower and Craft Centre). The first is that the Town Council continues to run them, and the second is to give them back to the County Council, but with no guarantee that the County Council would keep them open. Currently the County Council only directly run two sets of toilets - the ones in Brecon and the ones at Ystradgynlais bus station. All the other toilets in the county have been hived off to be run by smaller councils and groups of volunteers.
The toilets cost £30,000 a year to run, and bring in an income of £18,000. This is 90,000 people paying 20p a time (slightly more people than that used the toilets last year, but that's how many paid for it).
This was the first appeal to the public - should the Town Council fight to keep the toilets open?
Alistair Shaw (who didn't need a microphone!) said that a town with no public toilets was crazy - Hay would lose all the tourists who come here.
Trudy also said that the Town Council had considered raising the precept to cover the cost (this is the amount of money Hay Town Council gets to run the town, presently £42,000 a year), but they thought this would be unfair, as it is visitors who use the toilets, not locals.
Sean O'Donaghue asked if there was a Disability Rights issue here? There is legislation to say that a town needs to have a toilet for the disabled, with level access for wheelchairs.
The Deputy Chair of the Chamber of Commerce was also present, and he said that the Chamber of Commerce has no income, apart from a small amount of membership fees, and that most of the money they raise goes towards the Christmas Lights, so they can't really help.
Other areas of concern include the Sports Pavilion. Here there is qualified good news - the town has been offered a 99 year lease of the building, and the bowls club have been given permission to build the pavilion they want. However, without the income from the car park, the Town Council cannot give as much money as they would like to the running of the sports facilities, so the sports clubs have to do more fund raising.
The Council Chambers were also discussed at the Cabinet meeting in December, where it was decided that the Town Council would be given 12 months notice to leave the premises. The County Council were apparently surprised to discover that the Town Council has tenants in the building (from whom they gain income for the town), including Dial a Ride. Apparently someone at the Cabinet meeting said that "We will make sure the tenants are okay," but the Town Council has no idea what they mean by this. They also don't know when the 12 months notice starts from, because the County Council have not contacted them officially yet. Trudy was asked where the Council would meet when they lost the building, and answered: "No idea!"
The Library is also under threat - again, along with the 9 other rural libraries that were threatened last time. However, the big libraries in the county, such as Brecon and Newtown, are not being asked to find savings, even though it is the rural areas that need libraries more. Gareth has asked questions at County Hall about this.
Another loss to the town will be the Registrar of Births, Marriages and Deaths. At present they only come (and use an office in the Council Chambers) for two days a week, and this will cease. In future people will have to go to Brecon for this service. The Registrar is also being withdrawn from Builth Wells, Knighton and Llanidloes.
Tomorrow, I'll cover the questions from the floor....
Tuesday 12 February 2019
Shop furnishings
When I came home this evening, Castle Street was closed for the delivery of counters and cabinets to the new butchers' shop. A couple of big trucks were parked in the middle of the road, and Geraldine was standing on the steps up to the building society. She was watching some workmen manoeuvre a big unit through the door, with more shelving standing around the street, shrouded in plastic sheeting, waiting to be put in.
They're looking forward to opening on 6th March.
They're looking forward to opening on 6th March.
Monday 11 February 2019
Twinning Sign
I saw this sign being renovated a little while ago, but only got round to taking a photo of the new finger-signs today. The round bit at the top has always said "Brecon County" (I had to take the photo from across the road, so it got a bit of a wobble on it), but now we have the distances to our two twin towns, Le Redu in Belgium and Timbuktu.
It's at the front of the Council Chambers, with Golesworthy's in the background.
It's at the front of the Council Chambers, with Golesworthy's in the background.
Sunday 10 February 2019
Small Business Sunday
The greengrocer's shop on Castle Street will be closed until 19th February, for the birth of a new baby in the family!
Saturday 9 February 2019
From Bank to Recording Studio
A new lease of life for the old Nat West Bank building - as a recording studio for a couple who have worked with big names like Kylie Minogue! They plan to turn the bank part of the building into a reception area - there is a residential building behind the bank, where the bank offices were, and this is where they plan to put the actual recording studio.
The Brecon Beacons National Park planning department has approved the change of use, on the grounds that there are no other suitable premises available in Hay to become a recording studio. They are also satisfied that it won't be noisy, as the recording will take place in a room that has been sound proofed.
According to the article in the Brecon & Radnor Express, the building has housed a bank since 1867, when the National Provincial Bank of England purchased the building.
We were talking about this at the Stitch and Bitch group on Thursday evening, where one of the ladies said she had used the mobile bank provided by NatWest (Friday lunch times at the Cinema Bookshop in Hay). She said the steps up to the mobile bank were so steep you had to be fit to get in!
Another lady had used the mobile bank in Crickhowell. On the day she went, they had parked on a slope, so every time the staff let go of the desks they were sitting at, their office chairs rolled backwards! And they hadn't managed to find a wifi signal, so they couldn't transact any bank business anyway!
The Brecon Beacons National Park planning department has approved the change of use, on the grounds that there are no other suitable premises available in Hay to become a recording studio. They are also satisfied that it won't be noisy, as the recording will take place in a room that has been sound proofed.
According to the article in the Brecon & Radnor Express, the building has housed a bank since 1867, when the National Provincial Bank of England purchased the building.
We were talking about this at the Stitch and Bitch group on Thursday evening, where one of the ladies said she had used the mobile bank provided by NatWest (Friday lunch times at the Cinema Bookshop in Hay). She said the steps up to the mobile bank were so steep you had to be fit to get in!
Another lady had used the mobile bank in Crickhowell. On the day she went, they had parked on a slope, so every time the staff let go of the desks they were sitting at, their office chairs rolled backwards! And they hadn't managed to find a wifi signal, so they couldn't transact any bank business anyway!
Friday 8 February 2019
School Clubs and Libraries
The Brecon & Radnor Express made interesting reading this week.
On the front page was the headline "Council says it was 'never plan to axe school clubs'", in which the County Council claim that their original email to head teachers was mis-interpreted, and of course they never wanted to close the breakfast clubs in primary schools.
On page two was a big article about the consultation meeting at the Library, where the portfolio holder for libraries, Councillor Rachel Powell, got quite a rough ride from the people who turned up - Gareth Ratcliffe was there, and he said on his Facebook page that about 70 people came over the course of the morning.
One of the issues brought up at that meeting was the building of the new library and museum in Brecon, which has taken longer than expected, and is costing rather a lot of money. The Councillor said that she was not able to talk about property issues - but, that being the case, it would have been a good idea for her to have brought along someone who could talk about property issues, especially in Hay where the sale of the old library building is so contentious. I bet that similar concerns were raised in Talgarth, where the next consultation meeting was due to be held.
I also noticed that the Councillor was challenged about all the consultation meetings taking place during the daytime. If there had been an evening meeting, I would certainly have gone along to it - but at 10am on a Monday morning, I was at work. The Councillor said that she couldn't commit to evening meetings because she had a "busy portfolio" and a young family.
Nobody was suggesting that she should go to evening meetings every week - but these are special circumstances, and surely she could get someone else to look after her young family for a few evenings, because this is her job. This is her portfolio.
She also said that she was coming during the day because that reflected the usual footfall of the library as the library was normally open at that time - but the library used to be open for longer, and in the evenings, and a lot of people who work during the day would have liked to have their voices heard as well. As the lady in the audience said (as reported in the B&R) there is the wider community as well.
Last night I was at Stitch and Bitch at the Swan, and one of the ladies there had been at the Library meeting. She said there was some talk of trying to make money out of hiring the Library space out at £10 an hour - but there was some uncertainty about whether that money would go to the library service or to the school. And money raised by community groups cannot be used to pay a trained librarian, which is what is needed. Without trained and professional staff, it's just a room with books in it.
Then last night, Gareth Ratcliffe posted on his Facebook page about a press release that the County Council have issued, about how pleased they are to be doing a deal to save Welshpool Library, which cost over £100,000 to run last year, at the same time as they are trying to close the small libraries. Apparently the Library in Welshpool will be relocating to the Powysland Museum. Hay Library costs only around £15,400, and also has a generous grant from Hay Festival.
On the front page was the headline "Council says it was 'never plan to axe school clubs'", in which the County Council claim that their original email to head teachers was mis-interpreted, and of course they never wanted to close the breakfast clubs in primary schools.
On page two was a big article about the consultation meeting at the Library, where the portfolio holder for libraries, Councillor Rachel Powell, got quite a rough ride from the people who turned up - Gareth Ratcliffe was there, and he said on his Facebook page that about 70 people came over the course of the morning.
One of the issues brought up at that meeting was the building of the new library and museum in Brecon, which has taken longer than expected, and is costing rather a lot of money. The Councillor said that she was not able to talk about property issues - but, that being the case, it would have been a good idea for her to have brought along someone who could talk about property issues, especially in Hay where the sale of the old library building is so contentious. I bet that similar concerns were raised in Talgarth, where the next consultation meeting was due to be held.
I also noticed that the Councillor was challenged about all the consultation meetings taking place during the daytime. If there had been an evening meeting, I would certainly have gone along to it - but at 10am on a Monday morning, I was at work. The Councillor said that she couldn't commit to evening meetings because she had a "busy portfolio" and a young family.
Nobody was suggesting that she should go to evening meetings every week - but these are special circumstances, and surely she could get someone else to look after her young family for a few evenings, because this is her job. This is her portfolio.
She also said that she was coming during the day because that reflected the usual footfall of the library as the library was normally open at that time - but the library used to be open for longer, and in the evenings, and a lot of people who work during the day would have liked to have their voices heard as well. As the lady in the audience said (as reported in the B&R) there is the wider community as well.
Last night I was at Stitch and Bitch at the Swan, and one of the ladies there had been at the Library meeting. She said there was some talk of trying to make money out of hiring the Library space out at £10 an hour - but there was some uncertainty about whether that money would go to the library service or to the school. And money raised by community groups cannot be used to pay a trained librarian, which is what is needed. Without trained and professional staff, it's just a room with books in it.
Then last night, Gareth Ratcliffe posted on his Facebook page about a press release that the County Council have issued, about how pleased they are to be doing a deal to save Welshpool Library, which cost over £100,000 to run last year, at the same time as they are trying to close the small libraries. Apparently the Library in Welshpool will be relocating to the Powysland Museum. Hay Library costs only around £15,400, and also has a generous grant from Hay Festival.
Monday 4 February 2019
Library Consultation
Hay Library was the first of the ten libraries under threat to have a consultation period to find out what the people using the library think. The portfolio holder, Councillor Rachel Powell, was there this morning for all of two hours, and about 70 people attended.
Notes taken at the session, and posted on Gareth Ratcliffe's Facebook page, emphasise that a trained librarian is essential for the library service to continue. There is also a Library Review questionnaire on the Powys County Council website. I filled one in as much as I could, but it was very much slanted towards finding other people to pay for the continued running of the library, and with no space for comments other than that about the service.
The other libraries under threat are Talgarth, Llanfair Caereinion, Llanfyllin, Knighton, Presteigne, Llanwrtyd Wells, Builth Wells, Llanidloes and Rhayader.
I can't help noticing that, for most of these places, it's a very long journey to find another library that's open.
Notes taken at the session, and posted on Gareth Ratcliffe's Facebook page, emphasise that a trained librarian is essential for the library service to continue. There is also a Library Review questionnaire on the Powys County Council website. I filled one in as much as I could, but it was very much slanted towards finding other people to pay for the continued running of the library, and with no space for comments other than that about the service.
The other libraries under threat are Talgarth, Llanfair Caereinion, Llanfyllin, Knighton, Presteigne, Llanwrtyd Wells, Builth Wells, Llanidloes and Rhayader.
I can't help noticing that, for most of these places, it's a very long journey to find another library that's open.
Sunday 3 February 2019
Stories from the Hopyard, and other Cusop History Society Events
There's a fascinating line-up of meetings planned for Cusop History Society this year.
The first is Stories from the Hopyard, a film that's part of the Herefordshire Life Through a Lens project. It mixes archive photos and film with oral history interviews with people from Hereford, South Wales, the Black Country, Polish migrant workers and Roma travellers. The film is an hour and a half long. That's on Friday 15th February at 7pm at Cusop Village Hall.
On Sunday 3rd March there's a visit to Redwings, the house in Cusop Dingle.
On Thursday March 7th there's a special behind the scenes visit to the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, hosted by Denise Darbyshire. I won't be able to go to this one (and places are limited, so it's wise to book early - there will be car sharing to get down there), but I went last year and it was a brilliant experience!
On Friday 12th April, at 7pm, Cusop Village Hall, the talk will be on Voices of the River Wye, an oral history project.
There's also information on the research being carried out by members of the Society on their website at cusophistory.wix.com
Meetings cost £3 to attend, free to members, including refreshments.
The first is Stories from the Hopyard, a film that's part of the Herefordshire Life Through a Lens project. It mixes archive photos and film with oral history interviews with people from Hereford, South Wales, the Black Country, Polish migrant workers and Roma travellers. The film is an hour and a half long. That's on Friday 15th February at 7pm at Cusop Village Hall.
On Sunday 3rd March there's a visit to Redwings, the house in Cusop Dingle.
On Thursday March 7th there's a special behind the scenes visit to the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, hosted by Denise Darbyshire. I won't be able to go to this one (and places are limited, so it's wise to book early - there will be car sharing to get down there), but I went last year and it was a brilliant experience!
On Friday 12th April, at 7pm, Cusop Village Hall, the talk will be on Voices of the River Wye, an oral history project.
There's also information on the research being carried out by members of the Society on their website at cusophistory.wix.com
Meetings cost £3 to attend, free to members, including refreshments.
Saturday 2 February 2019
Mending Shoes
I was passing the Red Cross shop when I saw the shoes - they put a rack outside the door, and this pair was on the top. I was thinking about getting some new black shoes anyway, and these were lace ups with a small heel, more of an ankle boot in shape - and they had that Victorianesque style that would make them perfect for wearing with Steampunk costumes.
Even better, they were in my size.
I tried them on in the shop, and was so pleased with them that I wore them to walk home, stuffing my trainers in my bag.
By the time I got home, the heels had disintegrated.
Still, no problem.
I took them up to Country Supplies. Once a week a local cobbler picks up any shoes that have been left there for him, and brings them back mended the next week. He used to do this from Brin Jenkins' shop on Castle Street until it closed, and then moved over to Country Supplies, so I'd left shoes for him before, and I knew he did a good job. He'd even mended my medieval turnshoes for me once, which impressed me!
The following week, and the heels were good as new - he'd even given the shoes a little polish!
Even better, they were in my size.
I tried them on in the shop, and was so pleased with them that I wore them to walk home, stuffing my trainers in my bag.
By the time I got home, the heels had disintegrated.
Still, no problem.
I took them up to Country Supplies. Once a week a local cobbler picks up any shoes that have been left there for him, and brings them back mended the next week. He used to do this from Brin Jenkins' shop on Castle Street until it closed, and then moved over to Country Supplies, so I'd left shoes for him before, and I knew he did a good job. He'd even mended my medieval turnshoes for me once, which impressed me!
The following week, and the heels were good as new - he'd even given the shoes a little polish!
Friday 1 February 2019
Alms Houses in the Snow
Taken this morning.
Last week I was watching a little flock of long tailed tits in the trees by the Warren and thinking of spring, and today we're back in the depths of winter.
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