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Latest News from the Friends of the Heart of Wales Line Trail
I think the last couple of months since my last update can best be described as a period of gradual progress for the Friends of the Heart of Wales Line Trail (FHWLT).
Since the granting of Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) status I have spent some time submitting details which the Charity Commission requires. However, we still need to do more work on adopting policies on a range of subjects, having previously been covered by the policies of the HWL Development Co. Getting this right should mean that securing grants to develop the Trail will be easier, as funders may well expect to see certain policies in place before considering applications.
Meanwhile we have now been able to open an account with the Co-operative Bank, largely due to the efforts of Andy Bull, who has taken on the role of Treasurer.
This means we can now start to appeal for Trail supporters to join the Friends. The committee has decided that at first the basic annual membership fee will be £10.00 and Lisa Denison has offered to run the membership side of things. So once an online membership application form has been finalised and loaded onto the Trail section of the Community Rail Partnership website, all systems will be go!
As I’ve said before in these reports, one of the main reasons for setting up the Friends as a stand-alone organisation is to try to get more help. We would like to have an online newsletter as part of the membership offer, but for that to happen an editor or editorial team is needed – volunteers please!
On November 14th we held our annual Trail Champions (TCs) meeting at the Victoria Hall in Llanwrtyd Wells, where we received a very warm welcome from the hall volunteers. A splendid buffet lunch was laid on at the nearby Neuadd Arms before we returned to the hall for the second part of the proceedings. I think those who attended enjoyed the day, but some felt unable to travel because of train cancellations. In addition Lewis Brencher, (Communications Director of Transport for Wales) had to send his apologies, but we were very pleased to welcome in his place Geraint Morgan, TfW’s Community Rail Manager (South), who gave a very interesting presentation. It was great to be able to thank the TCs for their continued efforts to check the route and report issues – and to hear their ideas for the future of the Trail. As FHWLT is not blessed with significant funds at present, we were very grateful that Owen Griffkin, the new Community Rail Officer, was able to let us have £300.00 towards the cost of the meeting.
I ought to mention that we could do with some extra TCs on the section between Llandrindod and the Powys/Carmarthenshire boundary. If you would like to know more about what this would involve or if you think you might be able to help do get in touch.
As I mentioned last time, we continue to seek ways of diverting the Trail off road not far from Llanbister Road station so that it runs through Pentwyn Farm, which is being developed by the Radnorshire Wildlife Trust (RWT) as a haven for wildlife. Andy and I recently attended a site visit there with representatives of RWT and Powys County Council Rights of Way team. All three organisations agree on how the farm and the Trail can go forward together, but the sticking point is that significant funding will be needed to pay for two bridges over the stream that flows through the site. Andy has put a lot of effort into identifying potential funders and preparing grant applications – but if anyone reading this feels that they could find the money, please let me know!
Best wishes for Christmas and the New Year
Mike Watson
Chairman/ FHWLT
alunwatson@hotmail.com
