COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
Hwb Pentredwr
Pentredwr Community Association and Gwlangollen CIC received funding from the National Lottery Community Fund to create Hwb Pentredwr as a rural skills centre.
Sheep production is central to farming in the valley therefore promoting wool and exploring the wider uses of locally produced fleece is a key element of the work Hwb Pentredwr will be doing.
The aim of the project is to secure a more prosperous future for local people and strengthen the community by reducing the impact of rural and digital isolation. The project will work towards securing community prosperity by developing rural skills and enterprise; addressing rural isolation; supporting digital inclusion and access to services thereby strengthening the community.
We hope that this will be of benefit to the Parish of Llantysilio residents and Community Centre users alike as it will hopefully mean that we will have access to a new wifi system; access to a community transport system from Corwen through Pentredwr to Llangollen, and a wide range of regular heritage craft skills for every-one to enjoy.
Pen-y-bryn Farm
Pen-y-Bryn is a 4 acre smallholding situated on the outskirts of Llangollen owned by Katherine & Robert. Their pledge is to live a self-sufficient off-grid, lifestyle, only using our share of the planet resources. They run on solar power, coppice wood, harvest rainwater and grow 65% of their own food.
In June 2022 an experimental trial was undertaken at Pen-Y-Bryn Smallholding Llangollen to test the value of using felted, mountain type, sheep fleece as an alternative bedding material for strawberry growing.
The trial demonstrated the benefits of using felt as a bedding material in strawberry growing, sufficient to warrant further larger scale trials.
Plas Newydd Historic House & Gardens
Textiles in the Garden will be set up every Tuesday between 10 AM - 2:30 PM at Plas Newydd Historic House and Gardens, Llangollen. In the historic Bard's Memorial, visitors can pop in to see the traditional craft of working with wool.
This is a project to create four seasonal coats for the resident, life size, fibreglass sheep and her lamb. We are currently working on autumn leaves. The children will help with the summer coat during August and the winter coat will start in October. It's a very informal drop-in. Everyone is welcome to stop a while, have a chat or join in. All four coats will be worked with recycled wool donated by local residents.
The idea of the project is to show local people how their donated yarn is being used, and to encourage people to try something new in a very informal and supported way.
Loggerheads
Gwlangollen was invited to dress a life sized ewe and lamb for the visitor centre at Loggerheads. This was made entirely out of donated fabric yarn and hand-spun wool, with the design on the coats reflect the wildlife and landscape of the AONB.
The feedback from staff and visitors has been very positive.
Llangollen Railway
The Llangollen Railway was started in 1975 by a group of enthusiasts who saw the potential for a scenic preserved railway through the Dee Valley. The railway runs for 10 miles between the towns of Llangollen and Corwen using historic steam and diesel trains, providing visitors with a memorable experience of the Golden Age of train travel. Volunteers and paid staff maintain and preserve a historic fleet of locomotives, carriages infrastructure and heritage buildings. The line, located within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), remains close to the waters of the River Dee for most of its length.
The Llangollen Railway promotes the advancement of citizenship, community development and individual wellbeing for all ages, backgrounds and ethnicities through the promotion of volunteering, learning and training including training and development in at-risk heritage skills.
Brymbo Heritage Trust
We work with Brymbo Heritage trust to run wool related workshops with their visitors. The project includes learning about stitching history, the exploration of the fusion between art and science and stitching fossils.
The trust are leading the vision for the conservation, restoration and celebration of Brymbo's rich natural, industrial and social history, and for helping the community make the most of the spaces and facilities it has on its doorstep. Read away, ask us a question, or step forward and join us in making the magic happen.
Armory Conservation Trust
Our workshop is based out of the old prison, belonging to ACT who thanks to their charitable donations rent the space to our project at a discounted rate.