Latest news with #Pembrokeshire
Yahoo
17 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Olympian joins Co-op Special Olympics fundraising campaign
A Pembrokeshire Olympian is supporting a Co-op campaign. Bleddyn Gibbs is backing the 'Meals That Matter' campaign, which is being delivered in partnership with Coca-Cola Europacific Partners and Special Olympics Great Britain. The campaign aims to promote inclusion and raise funds for Special Olympics GB, which provides year-round sporting opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities. Running in Co-op stores across the UK from July 9 to August 5, the campaign will donate 25p from every sale of a special meal deal to support the charity. The deal includes two Co-op pizzas and a four-pack of 330ml Coca-Cola Zero Sugar or Diet Coke cans for £6. Mr Gibbs is one of five Special Olympics GB athlete ambassadors featured in the campaign. The other ambassadors are Alex Rae, Stephanie Gott, Katie Day and Lloyd Martin. Alex Rae, a double silver medallist in table tennis and a long-time Co-op colleague, said: "Being a part of the Special Olympics Grampian club is amazing, as is working for Co-op. "The support and encouragement I've had has helped me build my confidence and really believe in myself. "I'd love for more people with intellectual disabilities to have opportunities like these so they can really see what they can do." Special Olympics GB supports more than 12,600 athletes across 27 sports, with the help of nearly 6,000 volunteers who create a supportive environment for individuals to thrive through grassroots sport. The campaign features prominent in-store displays, including digital screens, shelf talkers, floor stickers and front-of-store takeovers, all featuring Special Olympics GB athletes and the campaign's inclusion message. A dedicated online hub and member communications will support wider engagement. Holly Firmin, senior community partnerships manager at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, said: "SOGB makes an enormous difference to the lives of athletes with intellectual disabilities and this campaign aims to raise awareness of that. "It's about showing what's possible when everyone is given the support they need to thrive and why inclusion in everyday life, in sport and in the workplace, really does matter." In a first for a major in-store retail campaign, 'Meals That Matter' will include Makaton symbols—part of a communication system that uses speech, signs, and symbols to support understanding and expression. Makaton can help people with communication difficulties connect with others and participate more fully in daily life. Coca-Cola has been a founding partner and global sponsor of Special Olympics since the movement began, and has supported Special Olympics GB since it launched in Great Britain in 1978. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners continues this legacy through ongoing support of Special Olympics GB, promoting inclusion through funding, volunteering and unified sports and business programmes.
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Rural county 'haemorrhaging' young people
A county's young people are "haemorrhaging away" from the area amid concerns about dwindling rural populations, a former council leader has warned. Pembrokeshire's schools have seen pupil numbers fall by more than 2,000 since 1996 and the council is planning to consult on closing two others. Councillor John Davies said the trend was "unsustainable", with schools getting emptier but doctors' surgeries getting more crowded. The Welsh government said it recognised the challenge of demographic change and was continuing to monitor trends. Island hopes the beach and home working will lure young back World fertility rates in 'unprecedented decline', UN says School with just eight pupils appeals for more Davies is part of a working group looking at the future of Pembrokeshire's schools. Council figures show the number of primary school pupils in the Preseli area had fallen by 19% between 2015 and 2024 and 6.6% in Tenby over the same period. He said: "For the first time in 30 years we're spending more on social care than we are on education. The demographics are becoming an unsustainable challenge." Davies said investment in rural areas needed to happen "sooner rather than later" and could be a "catalyst for economic renewal". "We're seeing investment in town regeneration and cities, and we've seen investment in rail infrastructure in south-east wales. "But there's never a mention of what's happening in investment terms in rural north Pembrokeshire or not even in west Wales." He warned rural areas could face decline similar to that experienced by industrial communities in south Wales in the 1980s. Pembrokeshire council is consulting on closing Ysgol Clydau in Tegryn and Manorbier VC School in Tenby. Caroline Farnden's two children are among 34 pupils at the Ysgol Clydau, and she said she lived in fear at its possible closure. "You'll lose the community feel because it's taking everything out of the community," she said. "What else are they going to do? Are they going to close the hall as well? The pub? There'll be nothing for people in the village." Fellow parent Steven Chambers said the closure would only accelerate the trend of an ageing population, discouraging younger families from moving in. Welsh government projections show the number of pupils could drop by almost 50,000 across the country by 2040. In Pembrokeshire, numbers have fallen 12% since 1996 and a further 11.7% fall in the population aged 15 and under is predicted over the next 10 to 15 years. Carmarthenshire council confirmed it had 17 schools with fewer than 50 pupils. Laura Doel of the school leaders' union NAHT said: "When birth rates fall and families move in search of employment opportunities, this inevitably has an impact upon school rolls. "With funding allocated on a per pupil basis, this further reduces school budgets which are already under severe pressure after years of under-investment." Amanda Hill-Dixon, of the Wales Centre for Public Policy, said the age profile of rural areas was "really changing". "So what we have in rural Wales is younger people, and families and children moving out of rural Wales to cities in Wales or outside of Wales altogether," she said. "And then there's in migration of older people to Wales, and especially to rural Wales." She said there were a "range of implications" for public services, culture and language, with more spending needed on health and social care, leaving less for children's services and schools. "We can get into a doom loop where, because there's fewer services for children and families and young people, children and families don't want to stay in that area, and children and families don't want to move to that area." She said a population taskforce, like one taken up by the Scottish government in 2019, may be needed in Wales. Alongside monitoring the trends of demographic changes, the Welsh government said local authorities had to comply with the School Organisation Code when proposing "significant changes to schools", which includes a presumption against the closure of rural schools. Why are so many young people leaving rural Wales? Why are so many young people leaving this place? Wales facing unrecognisable future, warns commissioner
BBC News
a day ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Pembrokeshire 'haemorrhaging' young people amid pupil decline
A county's young people are "haemorrhaging away" from the area amid concerns about dwindling rural populations, a former council leader has warned. Pembrokeshire's schools have seen pupil numbers fall by more than 2,000 since 1996 and the council is planning to consult on closing two others. Councillor John Davies said the trend was "unsustainable", with schools getting emptier but doctors' surgeries getting more crowded. The Welsh government said it recognised the challenge of demographic change and was continuing to monitor trends. Davies is part of a working group looking at the future of Pembrokeshire's schools. Council figures show the number of primary school pupils in the Preseli area had fallen by 19% between 2015 and 2024 and 6.6% in Tenby over the same said: "For the first time in 30 years we're spending more on social care than we are on education. The demographics are becoming an unsustainable challenge."Davies said investment in rural areas needed to happen "sooner rather than later" and could be a "catalyst for economic renewal". "We're seeing investment in town regeneration and cities, and we've seen investment in rail infrastructure in south-east wales. "But there's never a mention of what's happening in investment terms in rural north Pembrokeshire or not even in west Wales."He warned rural areas could face decline similar to that experienced by industrial communities in south Wales in the 1980s. Pembrokeshire council is consulting on closing Ysgol Clydau in Tegryn and Manorbier VC School in Tenby. Caroline Farnden's two children are among 34 pupils at the Ysgol Clydau, and she said she lived in fear at its possible closure. "You'll lose the community feel because it's taking everything out of the community," she said."What else are they going to do? Are they going to close the hall as well? The pub? There'll be nothing for people in the village."Fellow parent Steven Chambers said the closure would only accelerate the trend of an ageing population, discouraging younger families from moving in. Welsh government projections show the number of pupils could drop by almost 50,000 across the country by 2040. In Pembrokeshire, numbers have fallen 12% since 1996 and a further 11.7% fall in the population aged 15 and under is predicted over the next 10 to 15 years. Carmarthenshire council confirmed it had 17 schools with fewer than 50 pupils. Laura Doel of the school leaders' union NAHT said: "When birth rates fall and families move in search of employment opportunities, this inevitably has an impact upon school rolls. "With funding allocated on a per pupil basis, this further reduces school budgets which are already under severe pressure after years of under-investment." Amanda Hill-Dixon, of the Wales Centre for Public Policy, said the age profile of rural areas was "really changing". "So what we have in rural Wales is younger people, and families and children moving out of rural Wales to cities in Wales or outside of Wales altogether," she said. "And then there's in migration of older people to Wales, and especially to rural Wales."She said there were a "range of implications" for public services, culture and language, with more spending needed on health and social care, leaving less for children's services and schools. "We can get into a doom loop where, because there's fewer services for children and families and young people, children and families don't want to stay in that area, and children and families don't want to move to that area." She said a population taskforce, like one taken up by the Scottish government in 2019, may be needed in monitoring the trends of demographic changes, the Welsh government said local authorities had to comply with the School Organisation Code when proposing "significant changes to schools", which includes a presumption against the closure of rural schools.
BBC News
a day ago
- General
- BBC News
Puffin found in Herefordshire garden returned to wild
A puffin that was found 110 miles (177km) inland in a garden in Herefordshire has been returned to the Welsh seabird, named Oona by vets, was nearly half the weight she should be when she was discovered in June in Stoke Lacey near being cared for at Vets for Pets Hereford, on Wednesday she was released into the sea at Martin's Haven, Pembrokeshire, to reunite with her suspected Elliot Goodwin said he was "so proud" to see the puffin back in the wild, after she had been in such a bad way in strange circumstances so far from the coast. On the journey to Pembrokeshire she was kept in a cardboard carrier box, with an icepack wrapped in a towel to stop her getting too they stopped to check on her, "she was nice and lively," said Jodie Manser, an RSPCA wildlife officer who was involved in the puffin's be able to see Oona at the point of release was a "privilege" and it had been "a real learning experience" for everyone, said Mr was nice to see her go back out to the wild after having got so lost in the first place, he added. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
The Sun
2 days ago
- The Sun
Is this the UK's quaintest pub? Never mind Prosecco, they don't even serve lager in ‘legendary' inn untouched by time
I FOUND what seems to be the UK's quaintest old school pub almost by accident - but don't expect to be able to order any champagne. The Dyffryn Arms is certainly not the easiest pub to find, but is well worth the effort. 7 7 It's not in the middle of nowhere so much as on the far edge of nowhere, down any number of narrow winding rural lanes in farming country called the Gwaun Valley, inland from Fishguard at the west end of Pembrokeshire in Wales. Originally built as a house in 1845, it was converted into its current pub-of-sorts format sometime in the V ictorian period and has remained little changed ever since: one room for the drinkers, the others for the family that owns it. And it's been run by the same family for over a century. Our sat nav initially took us to a random spot surrounded by fields with no buildings in sight. Then, after we'd finally worked out that we were actually a mile or so from where we should be, we found ourselves driving the rest of the route at walking pace - or rather at the walking pace of the herd of dairy cows that were being led very slowly down the narrow country road ahead of us. When we finally got to the pub, it didn't look like a pub at all, an impression reinforced by the appearance of the barman. He looked at least 85-years-old and appeared to have fallen asleep in an armchair while watching daytime TV very loudly in his front room. When he finally stirred and noticed that he had customers, he directed us to the small public area of the pub while disappearing behind a hatch to serve us. There was no conventional bar as such, just that hole in the wall separating us from him. The choices were Bass ale poured from a barrel and served from a jug - or two or three room temperature other dusty bottled drinks of unpromising appearance. Never mind drinks like a glass of Prosecco, the pub didn't even have lager. The snacks also had a retro quality: I noticed a Curly Wurly that was on sale, so leave your ideas of being able to order your Kettle crisps here. And the public area was decidedly unlike a conventional modern boozer. There was no banquette seating or any other concessions to comfort, just austere straight-backed wooden chairs and benches that looked like they might have done several decades of previous service as church pews. There was minimal decoration save a few vintage pictures including one of the late queen - and the paintwork looked as though it hadn't been redecorated since she came to the throne in 1952. My wife, demonstrating an extraordinary degree of optimism, actually inquired 'what wines' they kept, as if there might be an extensive list. 7 7 The question was met with a rather blank stare, with a slight bit of side eye thrown in. She eventually asked for a cider, along with my beer - and of course had the option of only paying with cash. There were no screens (except that TV you could still hear booming from the private front room next door), no music, no phone signal and no wifi. Yet to some, having no distractions of any kind would be a welcome respite from the bustling pubs found elsewhere. And the only customers were us, being so quiet I wondered if we might be the only customers that week. This place might not be for everyone but for me it was a long cherished ambition to get here and it didn't disappoint. Because, in some beardie real ale circles, the Dyffryn is a legendary pub, a holy grail for the serious pub enthusiast or social historian. 7 CAMRA (the Campaign for Real Ale) describes its interior as 'of outstanding national historic importance' while National Geographic called the pub a 'time warp tavern'. But you will just have to remember to commit to finding it, as it isn't one you will easily wander past. The previous manager, one Bessie Davies, had operated the pub's hatch for 72 years by the time she passed away aged 93 in 2023. In tribute her family have done absolutely nothing: keeping it as Bessie kept it and her fans like it. At one point a lot of country pubs would have been like this. In Thomas Hardy's famous Victorian novel Tess of the D'Urbervilles, his village has a pub like this where overspilling punters will often end up drinking in the landlady's bedroom, perched on her bed or chest of drawers while supping ale. The Dyffryn is the closest I've ever come to seeing such a phenomenon in real modern life. I would feel guilty publicising The Dyffryn's extraordinary charm in case this were to see it overrun, but in reality most people reading this will never get there, and the few that do make the effort deserve the treat that awaits them. I just hope that when their time comes Bessie's grandchildren are as respectful of the past as to leave this winning formula alone. That's an ambition worth drinking to. There is also a small English pub that overlooks one of the UK's best secret beaches. Plus, the best pubs in the UK have been revealed. 7
