9.2.14

MAKE YOUR POUND A PENARTH POUND

Every pound spent in our local shops is worth twice as much to the Penarth economy than one spent in the supermarket, writes National Assembly candidate for Cardiff South and Penarth, Dafydd Trystan Davies...


Dr Dafydd Trystan Davies
My first experience of Penarth was a rather painful one. Rather foolishly a few years ago I signed up to run the Snowdonia mountain marathon and, living across the Bay, the hills of Penarth seemed very inviting (from afar!). Many hours of slowly trudging up and down the hill from the Bay to the centre of Penarth and, once I’d got a little more adventurous, down to the Pier too, I was ready for Snowdonia! But I’d also come to appreciate the wide range of independent shops in the town centre.

More recently, my Dad moved to Penarth, so the rather breathless window shopping when out running has turned into actual shopping and quite a few coffees and cakes at Foxy’s Deli! Foxy’s is a particular treat as a group of us - weather and light permitting - go for a short bike ride on Wednesday mornings, with a coffee and cake afterwards at Foxy’s most definitely the highlight of the ride!

Power is in your pocket

Shopping locally in Penarth is a pleasure but also really important to the wider economic success of the area. Though the economy of Penarth is certainly more robust than some other towns, the more that can be done to encourage people to do more shopping locally to help maintain vibrant high streets the better.

There’s a splendid book shop, Windsor Books, with a good range of books and greetings cards in English and Welsh. Pencerdd has a great variety of musical instruments for sale, though, thankfully for the musically inclined, my violin playing days are long over! Foxy’s Deli has an enviable display of ‘goodies’ and you don’t have to cycle up the hill from the barrage to earn a coffee and cake there! These local businesses deserve our support.

I am, as you’ve probably gathered by now, a keen cyclist and chair the social enterprise, Cycle Training Wales, which offers a wide range of cycle training bike maintenance courses and bike recycling. So I am naturally pleased that Penarth has the Bike Shop selling and repairing bikes in the centre of town. If you’re after a new bike then the Bike Shop is the place to go, while Cycle Training Wales’ Cardiff Cycle Workshop at Ely Bridge offers recycled bikes in monthly sales.

There are of course many more local traders in and around Penarth and I’m pleased that they have got together to produce a loyalty card to support local, independent traders and give offers and discounts to customers. The card is an initiative of Gwyrddio Penarth Greening and, as a keen environmentalist, I think this is just the sort of scheme needed to help our town centres.

Shop in Penarth, an initiative of Gwyrddio Penarth Greening

I wonder how many Penarth residents have this card and, while it may not have been a New Year’s resolution, how about making a St David’s Day resolution to shop more locally? 

Money spent in independent shops on the high street is money that stays locally, and it has been estimated that every £1 spent locally puts twice as much money back into the local economy as £1 spent in a supermarket. Local shops employ local people, are supplied by local businesses and create more jobs with their profits kept in the local community.

Wales has a strong tradition of food producers and craft businesses, and buying locally is the perfect opportunity to support them.

Just some of the mouth-watering Welsh produce available at Foxy's (Image: Penarth View)

But there is only so much individuals can do. There is also, in my view a responsibility on public bodies to choose local suppliers wherever possible. In Plaid Cymru, for whom I have been selected to stand in the next Assembly elections, we have been campaigning for some time on public procurement.

Currently, about 50 per cent of goods and services purchased by the Welsh public sector come from Welsh-based suppliers and I’d very much like to see this increased to 75 per cent to provide even more support for local businesses and local jobs. It’s been estimated that current public sector purchases account for nearly 100,000 jobs in Wales and an increase to 75 per cent would mean more than 45,000 extra jobs.

We have the opportunity to support our local traders in Penarth, to boost the economy and to encourage our councils and public bodies to do more to source their goods locally. We all have a part to play in this and, while you may not want to join me in running up and down the hills of Penarth (why not – it’s great fun!), I hope you will join me in continuing to support our local traders.


Top 10 Facts about shopping locally

6.2.14

TRIBUTES PAID TO PENARTH DIPLOMAT WHO FORGED LINKS BETWEEN WALES AND LITHUANIA

Anthony Packer (Image: Wales Online)
Tributes have been paid to a long-standing Plaid Cymru member, who was the Honorary Consul for Lithuania in Wales.

Anthony Packer, of Salisbury Avenue, Penarth, died at the age of 74 after battling prostate cancer at the Cardiff and Vale Marie Curie Hospice.

A man of many academic achievements, a loving family man and an entertaining raconteur, he had a host of friends and touched many lives. He was gregarious, happy to engage anyone in conversation and happy to argue that ‘black was blue’ - with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. One of his major achievements was to build links between Wales and Lithuania, helping to create an international identity for Wales in Europe.

He believed he could advance the cause of Wales by pursuing recognition of the nation, its language, culture and qualities and as a place in which to do business at an international level.

In particular, he sought to develop close links between Wales and the Baltic States, and he was one of the founding members of the Baltic Society in Wales in 1991.

Six weeks before Lithuania’s unilateral declaration of independence, he led a delegation to the country (repeated in 1993) to help the authorities de-Sovietise the country’s education system and other institutions.

Though the country was still under the control of Moscow, he visited the headquarters of Sajudis, the movement for an independent Lithuania, with a message of support from Plaid Cymru. It was a simple note of democratic regard and support for the movement’s objectives, and was the first such message to come from any British political party.

It was this act of disobedience that led to his initial acquaintance and subsequent friendship with Vytautas Landsbergis, the first President of an independent Lithuania.

During his time as Honorary Consul, he forged strong links between universities in Wales and Lithuania as well as organising the visit of Vytautas Landsbergis, the first post-Soviet President of independent Lithuania, to Wales.

He persuaded Landsbergis to publish his memoirs, helping to translate, edit and publish them, and was recently presented with the Order of the Diplomatic Star, the highest distinction in the Lithuanian Diplomatic Service, in recognition of his work.


Presentation of the Order of the Diplomatic Star in January (Image: Penarth Times)
Anthony Packer was born in Caerleon in 1939 and raised in Hengoed. He was educated at grammar schools in Pengam and Barry and studied at the University of Wales College, Cardiff (History), Cuddesdon College, Oxford (Theology), the London School of Economics (Social Administration) and the University of Liverpool (Psychiatric Social Work).

He began his career in London as a teacher before beginning work as a psychiatric social worker in local hospitals.

He later became the Chief Administrator for the Family Welfare Association and Chief Trainer for child counselling at the world renowned Tavistock Clinic in London.

Wanting to return to Wales with his wife, Ann, and his three children (later to become four), he took up a lectureship at Cardiff University. He initially split his time between the Department of Social Work and the Department of Education before moving on a full-time basis to the Department of Education from 1984 through to his retirement in 2001.

He taught himself Welsh and helped to advance its use in education and social work throughout Wales.

He was for four years the joint editor of the academic periodical, The Welsh Journal of Education, and for two years the chairman of the Department of Economics and Sociology of the Welsh Guild of Graduates.

Anthony served as the Treasurer of the International Round Table for the Advancement of Counselling (IAC-IRTAC) from 1983 to 1992.

He was also a trustee of the Welsh Centre for International Affairs and the Treasurer and Deputy Chairman of the United Nations Association in Wales.

He also represented the Catholic Archbishop of Cardiff on the steering committee of the UK 3 Faiths Forum.

As President of the Consular Association for Wales and its Secretary for six years, he presided over its significant expansion and the advancement of its aims towards the active promotion of business and cultural links between Wales and the countries represented by its 29 members.

Anthony Packer is survived by his wife Ann, his mother, Gleeda, children Rhiannon, David, Cerian and Tomos, daughters-in-law Frida and Sasha, sons-in-law Tony and Geraint, and grandchildren Kajsa, Oliver, Tomos, Elis, Alys, Annest, William and Steffan.