August Update

August Update: A Busy Month of Family, Community, and Council Work

August has been a busy month, mostly due to having two energetic young boys at home for the summer holidays. After a lovely family holiday in Scotland, which is such a stunning place, we've been fortunate to have some nice weather back home too. In my non-councillor role, I work term time, which has allowed me to spend a lot of quality time with my family, and I’ve really enjoyed being able to do that this summer.

With August being a recess month for the council, there have been no committee meetings, but there has been plenty going on locally. My youngest son and I had a fantastic time at the Rhosesmor Treasure Hunt in glorious sunshine. A big thank you to the organising team for putting together such a great event!

Simon and I also held our first drop-in session recently. We were half-expecting to spend the two hours chatting to each other, but we were pleasantly surprised to find a queue at the door when Simon and Debbie arrived to open up. We listened to residents’ concerns and set out to find satisfactory solutions to many of their queries. It was a great reminder of the importance of these sessions, and we look forward to hosting more in the future. Our next drop-in session will be at Rhosesmor Village Hall on Saturday, 14th September, from 2:30 to 4:30 pm. We plan to rotate these sessions through the five villages in the ward to ensure everyone has a chance to attend.

Upcoming Events and Council Matters

Looking ahead, we have a walk-around scheduled with the housing officer in Pentre Halkyn on Thursday, 5th September, at 10 a.m. This will be an opportunity to address any housing concerns directly with the council.

Black Bin Collections

This has been a hot topic lately. The council’s decision to reduce black bin collections to every three weeks is aimed at improving recycling rates to meet Welsh government targets. If these targets are not met, the council could face hefty fines. I know many of you are already doing a great job with recycling, and I think we can all agree that most household waste is recyclable. From my own experience, our family of five could comfortably manage with the three-weekly black bin collections, thanks to regular recycling. Recycling collections will continue weekly, and sanitary and nappy bins will still be collected weekly if you have applied for this service. I haven’t heard much negativity about the move so far, but I would love to hear your views on this change so I can best represent you.

Speeding Issues on the Mountain

Speeding continues to be a major concern across the mountain. Simon and I have both requested speed limit changes on the mountain roads (within the cattle grids), believing that the current 60 mph limit is too fast and that 40 mph would be more appropriate. Although the council has agreed to carry out an assessment, this is a lengthy process, and we’ve yet to receive any indication of whether the changes will be implemented. Pentre Road, Brynford Cross Roads, and Rhosesmor Village Centre are known speeding hotspots. We’ve reported these areas to GoSafe, and they have attended Brynford. We hope they will also visit the other sites soon. Please feel free to submit your own requests to GoSafe online here.

Additionally, if you have dashcam or CCTV footage of speeding drivers, Operation Snap is a useful tool for reporting dangerous driving. You can find more information and submit footage here. The more reports they receive, the higher the likelihood of increased speed enforcement to make our villages safer.

There is also a further option that I would be happy to help set up and volunteer for: a Community Speed Watch Scheme. This involves a team of volunteers using handheld cameras to record data, which is then sent to North Wales Police. Educational letters are sent to offenders, and further action can be taken if necessary. This programme relies on a team of volunteers, so please let me know if you’d be interested in getting involved. You can find more information here.

Thank you for taking the time to read this update. I look forward to hearing from you about any of the topics mentioned above or any other concerns you might have. Let’s continue working together to make our community a better place for everyone.

If you have any questions or need assistance, feel free to reach out to me directly at fran.lister@flintshire.gov.uk or by phone at 07725 038040. You can also use the contact form on this website.