FEATURES

2117 (PORTHCAWL & KENFIG HILL) RAF AIR CADETS

small bus/van to send to Zambia where volunteers will work with adults and teachers to get more people reading. At the end of the Rally we had raised £1000 towards her total.

On Monday 8th of May we were ready to celebrate the King’s Coronation with a party in President Mel’s back garden, which was looking a picture. The sandwiches, quiches and cakes were ready when the rain decided to fall. It takes a lot to deter the Inner Wheel from having an afternoon tea so everything was moved inside where over 40 members and guests carried on as planned. The raffle raised £121 and will be matched by Rotary meaning £242 will be donated to charity.

Liz Jones

Soroptimists Hear About Bawso

During May half term 9 cadets and 3 staff from the squadron were part of the 90 cadets and 30 staff who attended No. 3 Welsh Wing’s Dragons Eye 2023 Camp in Llanmadoc. The cadets enjoyed a busy timetable of activities which included Day Walks, Clay Target Shooting, Archery, Outdoor Climbing, Canoeing, First Aid, Stem plus much more. Our cadets were successful in gaining awards and commendations made at the end of the camp, including Best Cadet Dragons Eye 2023. We recently had our annual inspection where we were joined by the Wing Commander, Wing Staff, Cadet’s Parents and Representatives from Porthcawl and Pyle Councils and Porthcawl & Kenfig Hill RAFA. It was a great night where the cadets and staff were able show off some of the activities that take place on squadron.

The next few months will continue to be busy. There are more camps, Duke of Edinburgh Expeditions, and other activities. We plan to be involved in some community events so feel free to come and chat to us if you see us.

Huw Price

adj.2117@rafac.mod.gov.uk

Porthcawl Inner Wheel Club

At the Bridgend Club’s recent Speaker/Supper meeting held at the Heronston Hotel Bridgend Nancy Lidubwi, Policy Manager spoke of her involvement with BAWSO and the varied issues concerning Violence against Women, Trafficking, FGM, and Modern Day Slavery victims including men. BAWSO have offices in Cardiff, Newport Swansea and Wrexham enabling them to service the whole of Wales. Demand for their services continues to increase and in spite of funding from the Welsh Government and Social Services they are also dependant of charitable donations. Housing for refugees features heavily on their workload, which includes meeting educational and social needs. President Lesley Davies thanked Nancy for her presentation to the club and pledged to support BAWSO in the coming year. Follow Soroptimists on Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/ BridgendSoroptimists New members welcome Photographed President Lesley Davies with Nancy Lidubwi from BAWSO

Newton Wi

For the June meeting a ‘Fashion Show’ had been arranged. Firstly our President presided over a number of W.I. Business details. We were then treated to a very colourful and delightful display of casual and formal clothes from ‘KLASS’. Six of our members did a very professional job as Mannequins, they all looked superb. Everyone enjoyed the evening and are probably planning a visit to KLASS.

Porthcawl club had the honour of hosting the Overseas International Rally in the Hi-Tide. We hosted seventeen clubs from 2 districts and 94 Inner wheel members and guests sat down to a three-course meal, which was served very efficiently by the excellent staff in the venue.

We were given an enlightening talk and video by Association Service Committee Chairman Pam Boyes about her charity Book Bus. She is aiming to raise £40.000 to buy and equip a

Our Coronation party, which was held on May 17th. was a great success, the hall was beautifully decorated, the tables looking splendid with an amazing variety of cakes, scones and sandwiches. After the tea we were entertained by Eryl Ring, who spoke about the ‘Crown Jewels’.

Our members are now looking forward to Shirley’s monthly lunch at the Globe Inn and the garden party at Margam Park in July, where best hats and frocks will be the order of the day.

M Freeman

It was with immense pleasure for several members of Porthcawl Rotary club who recently attended West Park Primary School for the presentation to Zoe Baldwin.

Rotarian Judith Shawe presented Zoe (who is a pupil at West Park Primary), with the first prize and certificate for winning the annual Rotary District under 10’s category of Rotary Young writer competition.

Although Zoe did not progress to the National competition, she did very well to win the district competition, which is a great achievement. Well done, Zoe.

To achieve this Zoe wrote a poem about peace, which in the current climate is very apt and greatly impressed the judges. Rotary would like to thank everyone who attended and supported the competition events during the past year. If any member of the public would like to know more about Porthcawl Rotary activities, please contact Andrew Singer on 01656 785628 or email Andrew at andrewbsinger@icloud.com

Rtn Robert Lee

Porthcawl Lions

On Friday June 9th everyone involved enjoyed the annual Porthcawl Lions’ golf day at the Grove Golf Club. 18 teams took part in the tournament, which was won by South Wales Police second team. The money raised enabled donations of £1,000 to be given to

Prostate Cymru and Porthcawl Stroke Club. Porthcawl Lions would like to thank all the teams who took part and the Grove for hosting the event.

Meanwhile the car boot sales, held every Sunday at Pyle Rugby Club, are gaining support week by week. They are well worth a visit, parking is plentiful and free to buyers and sellers pitches are only £7.00.

Porthcawl Lions Club meets at 7.30pm. on the first and third Tuesday of every month in the Hi-Tide, Mackworth Road. The club is always looking for new members, but for those who feel they cannot commit to full membership at this time, the club is also looking for Lion Friends. These are volunteers who are willing to help at fund raising events when they can and are also invited to the club’s social events.

Anyone interested in learning more about either membership or becoming a friend please contact Pauline on 01656 859505 or visit the website porthcawllions.org.uk

JMC

Bridgend Soroptimists

12th July Bridgend Soroptimists meet at Heronston Hotel Bridgend 7pm for Business meeting.

26thJuly Summer Outing to Gileston Manor for afternoon tea and garden tour. 1.30pm. £35pp.

Http://www.facebook.com/BridgendSoroptimists. New members welcome.

Eileen Bayley

Mynydd Cynffig Wi

Tuesday the 13th and we were in our usual venue The Talbot Center Kenfig Hill we meet on the second Tuesday of the month. The 13th was not an unlucky day for us the sun was shining and we had a good turnout of members. We discussed our trip to Cardiff to the National Federation of Women’s institute AGM. in May. We read out our report to the members for their attention. It was our turn to vote for several other WI and the report was sent to each of them. We discussed WI business including the Glamorgan Show in July, we had several successes last year and we will keep our fingers crossed for this year. Our trip in August will be to Abergavenny and Monmouth. Tuesday market in Abergavenny with lunch and then tea in Monmouth we are hoping for fine weather as it should be a good day out . Our speaker was from Pyle Life Center she was Elaine Whinstanley and gave a good talk telling us about everything that goes on there it’s amazing how they manage to organise it all. Next month we have Sarah Magan. Giving us a demonstration on hand made soap. We finished our meeting with tea and biscuits we are a great bunch of ladies and look forward to meeting you call in any month.

Christine Callaghan

Porthcawl Townswomens Guild News

Summer at last! On a scorching afternoon members gathered to hear Zoe Davies speak about her life at sea - and what an interesting and entertaining life! After training as a Dock Officer in the Merchant Navy she travelled the world on cargo ships and is now a Marine Pilot between Swansea and Newport. As our chairman was our delegate to the National AGM at Llandudno the meeting was chaired by DIana Richardson. Our meeting this month is on Wednesday July 12th 2.00p.m. at the Grove Golf Club when Dean Powell will be our guest speaker. He has been before so we know he will be good whatever the topic so do come along and hear him. Don’t forget our “Pop In” coffee mornings at 10.30 at the Pavilion the third Wednesday of the month. All welcome!

Dorothy Thomas 772157

CLASSIC MOVIES: CASABLANCA

Over the past few months I’ve been running the Golden Age of Hollywood Mega Movie Poll on the social media platform Mastodon. The poll attracted a terrific response and from a starting list of 96 movies we reached the final, Casablanca v Citizen Kane. The result: 68% to 32% in favour of Casablanca.

All the movies we featured, from the silent era through to 1969 (I’m currently running a 1970s poll) are classics, but in Casablanca, with its iconic characters and memorable dialogue, I believe that we have a worthy winner.

It’s amazing that the actors did not know until the last day of shooting how the film was going to end. Screenwriter Howard Koch later acknowledged: “When we began, we didn’t have a finished script. Ingrid Bergman came to me and said, ‘Which man should I love more?’ I said to her, ‘I don’t know, play them both evenly.’ You see we didn’t have an ending, so we didn’t know what was going to happen!”

Congratulations to Casablanca. As Humphrey Bogart’s character Rick Blaine said in the movie, “Here’s looking at you, kid.”

Hannah Howe, author of Tula and Sunshine, novels set during the Golden Age of Hollywood. https://hannah-howe.com

Deadline date for the August issue is: SATURDAY 15TH JULY

Street Vendors Of The Past

Throughout the 20th century it was common to see a variety of hawkers or tinkers visiting local streets. Two such visitors to Porthcawl were the Onion Men and the Umbrella Pedlars.

Known as Onion Johnnies (Sioni Winwns in Welsh) they came from the area around Roscoff in Brittany. They found more profitable markets in Britain than in France and would come across the Channel in July, store their onions in rented barns, and return home at the end of the year. A trade that had begun in 1828 witnessed the 1920’s as the highest point of the trade; with 1,400 Onion Johnnies bringing approximately 9000 tons of onions to the UK. Unfortunately, the Great Depression, (photo Picton Avenue) led to far fewer ‘Sioni Winwns’ coming to Wales, yet it was estimated that Onion Johnnies visited Porthcawl until early 2000’s.

Another photo shows an Umbrella Pedlar on New Road outside the Brogden Hotel sometime in the early 1930s. The umbrella pedlar was one of many tinkers and hawkers that travelled the country. Economic trends affected their employment and where it was carried out. It is possible that this pedlar came to Porthcawl as it was one of the more affluent places, than the most parts of South Wales during the depression.

Ceri Joseph

Cost Of Cancer

We are not too far away from releasing the date and details for the National 3 Peaks Challenge for 2024. We have changed organiser which is why there’s been a delay. I will keep you all posted.

The cost of living crisis doesn’t seem to be going anywhere at this moment in time and it’s only getting worse with the Bank of England’s interest rates getting higher each day which is why it’s important to tell your family and friends about the help we give out.

It can be really hard asking for help we know. But please rest assured we give total discretion to those we help. We leave it up to the individual and their families to say if we are helping them or not.

We got you.

Nicky, Emma & Cath Trustees

COULD YOU HELP TURN A TINY BUNDLE OF FUR INTO A LIFE-CHANGER?

Sandra Corben is a volunteer puppy raiser for Guide Dogs Cymru in Porthcawl and finds the role extremely rewarding.

“A puppy arrives in your home at eight weeks old and stays for about a year,” she said. “My latest, Souly, left in January and is currently in guide dog training. Souly was very active, with great character, and very loving – my cheeky monkey.

“We aim to hand over a puppy who is well behaved and well socialised – one who has experienced shops, cafes, buses and trains while enjoying lots of love and fun along the way. Giving Souly back to Guide Dogs was hard, but he was definitely a puppy with a purpose.”

Sandra visited Souly at the training centre in St Mellons and watched him working in harness with his trainer. “My heart was bursting with pride, tears of joy not far away, watching him all grown up, being someone’s eyes, guiding them around obstacles and safely crossing roads,” she said.

Guide Dogs staff offer support and guidance, and the charity covers veterinary and feeding expenses. To find out more, visit www.guidedogs.org.uk/puppyraiser or ring 0800 781 1444.

Benefits Of Green Tea Extract

Thanks to its high antioxidant content, green tea extract has been shown to help improve health and body composition. Many studies have shown that green tea extract can promote weight loss, blood sugar regulation, disease prevention, and exercise recovery. It can also help keep your skin and liver healthy, reduce blood fat levels, regulate blood pressure, and improve brain health. It can be consumed in capsule, liquid, or powder form. The recommended dose is 250–500 mg a day, and it’s best taken with food. Amounts above this may be toxic. Plus, people with diabetes or those taking certain medications should speak with a healthcare professional before taking any amount of green tea extract. Whether you want to improve your general health or decrease your risk of disease, green tea extract is an easy way to add health-boosting antioxidants to your diet.

Read the full article at www.healthline.com/nutrition

Supplied by Glyn Hardwicke

I Am Enough

Me? I am enough? Surely not!

Well only today I started to get ready to leave the house and I was distracted and I realised later I had left something behind. Then my boss asked me to complete some new work and it was not perfect.

A while ago something happened in the family and someone needed my help and what I did was not my best effort. Also, I met up with friends and was introduced to someone new and I think I said something inappropriate, though maybe it was OK. As I get older I have put on weight, changed shape, lost my level of fitness, don’t look so good and eat and drink foods that make me tired and give me brain fog.

Now as I read this a whole lot of other memories come flooding in of times in my life when I have not met my very exacting standard and I am starting to feel very uncomfortable. Stop! What if you were to realise that it is ok to do the best you can on the day and some days your efforts will be better than others. No one notices how you are doing because we are all too busy judging ourselves!

Next time the doubt creeps in repeat… I Am Enough.

Margaret Brown

UP UP UP...WHERE WILL IT ALL END?

We live in strange and difficult times, with interest rates seemingly changing every couple of days, then being withdrawn with little or no notice. It also seems that we will have to ride this one out for some time to come, so what are YOU going to do with your mortgage arrangements?

The first thing to remember is that if you are due to rearrange your mortgage arrangements soon, the problem will not sort itself. The second thing to remember is that an experienced independent mortgage Adviser will have access to the whole market and be able to guide you to the scheme that best suits your circumstances from the thousands of schemes still available.

What you now have to bear in mind is that speed is critical as deals can be withdrawn overnight but we will have access to every scheme from every lender that is available to you, something the High Street, your Bank or Building Society simply couldn’t offer as individual lenders. Truth is, you need an independent Broker now more than ever before. It will cost you nothing but an hour of your time for us to get an appraisal of where best to place your mortgage borrowing, whether it means staying with the same lender if they offer a new deal or moving you if another lender is offering something that is sufficiently better for you, everything considered. However, that hour could lead to you savings hundreds perhaps thousands over the term of the loan.

INTEREST-ONLY MORTGAGE DUE AND YOU HAVE NO CAPITAL

This goes too for those in retirement or about going into it, who still have a mortgage because they either need to or because they simply don’t have the cash to pay off the loan. In the current climate, although the mortgage situation is likely to get worse in the foreseeable future, we could still help you sort your mortgage needs now, subject of course to your circumstances.

Where your current lender insists on increasing your interest rate, because legally they can, you must still pay the interest at that very much higher rate, an intolerable position for some borrowers to deal with. However don’t panic, tell them that you are speaking to us with a view to making alternative borrowing arrangements.

Pick up the telephone to us and we’ll do all we can to help you through this. We have the tools and the knowledge to support you as best we can and whilst we can’t guarantee success in every case, at least we could give you a chance to lessen the burden for you. 01656 782545 or 07768 418308 are the numbers you need, even on weekends.

PAUL FIELDING

Dragon Financial

Call 01656 782545 / 07768 418308

Glass

INVESTORS NEED TO EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED!

In years gone by, I feel advising clients on their investments was infinitely easier than it is today.

Previously, we agreed the clients risk profile and then advised accordingly with the best asset classes that suited them, from UK Equity Income Funds, European Funds, US Funds, some Corporate Bond funds, and Commercial Property. You weren’t putting their eggs in one basket, all very relaxed and the gains came rolling in over time.

So, what’s changed? Well, for starters we have huge Technological Change and with AI around the corner who knows what could happen next in the tech zone, and are you over invested or under invested. Money moves faster than ever, and in ways you could not have imagined even just five years ago.

Next comes Climate Change and Global Warming. If you think this is not going to affect your investments going forward, then you are still in denial. Even the kids in nursery school know more about climate change than the retired population and will be savvy enough to take advantage of the investment opportunities sooner than you think.

We didn’t need to take account of the Impact of War when building portfolios in the past. Now the World Economic Forum (WEF) place it at the top of their list in terms of impact on your investments.

Here is a great one, The Political Economy. The past ’social responsibility’ of business was just to make profits and the intervention of governments to disrupt the free market was a bad idea. How things have changed; we now have responsible investment to consider and the advent of Environmental Social Governance (ESG) new ways of thinking and investing. Clients have a choice to avoid tobacco, oil and armaments and a whole range of other unsavoury investments. One client asked recently if there was an LGBT investment fund they could invest in, and I thought he/she was kidding!

Health Risk is another area we did not have to manoeuvre around in the past but since Covid life has become that little bit more complicated.

A curved ball you never expected is the ‘groping fund manager’ who gets sacked under a cloud, e.g. Crispin Odey last week , leaving his funds in disarray along with client losses. You couldn’t make it up!

So, what is the answer for the discerning new investor? You guessed it, find a savvy financial advisor who know how to diversify.

PHILIP VAUGHAN

Independent

Financial Advisor

at Abacus Assurance Call 01656 772222

Civil Partnerships

A civil partnership gives couples very similar rights and responsibilities to marriage and can be registered or dissolved in much the same way. It is available to both same-sex and opposite-sex couples. It is regarded as an alternative to marriage.

You can register your civil partnership at a register office or at any venue that has been approved for registering marriages and civil partnerships.

The process of registering the partnership is a brief civil ceremony, conducted by a registrar. You each sign the civil partnership schedule, with two witnesses.

Once your UK civil partnership has been registered, you receive a civil partnership certificate.

A key advantage of registering a civil partnership is it provides a higher degree of financial security for each party (particularly the more financially vulnerable party) than if they only live together in a relationship.

Civil partners are treated in the same way as married couples for taxation purposes. This can have a major advantage in terms of inheritance tax (IHT), because assets passed to your partner are not taxed.

If a partnership has not been registered, the surviving partner may face significant financial difficulties, such as having to sell the family home to pay the IHT bill.

Civil partners are also treated as married couples in terms of capital gains tax (CGT), allowing them to pass assets to each other without any CGT liability. However, if you both own a home you will no longer each be able to claim CGT exemption for your own home; one home will have to be nominated as your main residence. Gains on the other may be taxable. Registering a UK civil partnership is a good opportunity to review your financial planning generally, including pension arrangements, life insurance and so on.

In addition, registering the partnership automatically revokes any existing wills. Each partner will have an automatic right to inherit at least part of the other’s estate on death, but this may not provide the outcome you would want - so you should each prepare a new will.

If the relationship breaks down, either partner may be able to make a financial claim in the same way as when a married couple divorces – with the provision of property, or money, or pensions, or ongoing maintenance support.

A registered civil partnership remains in force until it is dissolved (or in rare cases annulled) by the court. If you separate without dissolving the partnership, neither of you can enter a new registered partnership (or get married). You cannot apply for dissolution of the partnership within a year of its registration.

You apply to the court for a dissolution order. Since 6 April 2022 dissolution has been on a ‘no fault’ basis, meaning that you do not have to give a reason to end your civil partnership.

SWANSEA | MUMBLES 01792 65

Arrangements For The Children During The Summer Holidays

With the summer holidays fast approaching, the issue of how to address school holiday arrangements for children as a separated parent is a hot topic. This is something lawyers are often asked to assist with, and so the following may be of some assistance.

It is essential to discuss holiday plans with your ex-partner well in advance to avoid any last-minute conflicts. This will allow time for you both to consider the other’s proposal and try to reach an agreement. Sometimes it’s not possible to reach agreement in this way, so it may be necessary to apply to court. This can take time which you may not have if the dispute arises close to the holidays. Mediation is a quicker means of trying to agree holiday arrangements, but both parties need to be prepared to compromise within the timeframe before the holiday arises.

If you have a court order in place, make sure you follow it unless you have agreed a variation with your ex-partner. If you change the arrangements unilaterally, you put your self at risk of your ex taking the matter back to court which could be expensive. Keep communication channels open with your ex-partner during the holidays. Use written communication methods where possible, as these are easier to track in case of any disputes. There are parenting apps available now to assist with this.

Holidays can be tough for children of separated parents as they might witness or sense disputes between them. Try to make things as easy as possible for your child by remaining civil with the other parent.

If possible, be open to compromise and be flexible when planning holidays. It’s important to put your child’s needs first, so try to come up with a schedule that works for everyone, so that everyone enjoys this special time of year.

RLE Law welcomes new member to the Family Team

RLE Law is pleased to announce the appointment of Tracey Murphy to our family team. Tracey is a veteran in family law matters, being a Resolution Qualified All Issues Family Law Mediator and also a qualified Facilitator of the Domestic Violence Freedom Programme.

Tracey started her career in 1989 with a Pontypridd firm before joining a long established firm in 1993 where she assumed responsibility of the matrimonial department at their Talbot Green Office. Tracey has specialised in all aspects of Private Family Law, dealing with a large and varied caseload of Private Family Law matters to include divorce and separation, financial claims, children issues, domestic abuse and Pre-Nuptial/Cohabitation & Separation Agreements, acting for both private and legally aided clients.

As a member of Resolution Tracey is committed to resolving disputes in a non-confrontational and constructive manner whenever possible and is firm in her belief that the relationship between the lawyer and client is of central importance to achieving this.

Tracey will be available to clients across the firm and will have a base at the firm’s Treorchy office. Tracey is local to the area and began her career at Bence and Samuels solicitors in Treorchy some 40 years ago and is looking forward to returning to Treorchy to work.

Emma Hardwidge, Managing Director of the firm commented that ‘We are very pleased to have Tracey join the team. Tracey’s experience and approach will add a further dimension and breadth to what we can offer to our clients , who are often looking for a pragmatic and cost effective solution at a very difficult time’

What are the rights of cohabitees?

The Office of National Statistics shows that the number of cohabiting couples is growing faster than the number of married couples. Despite this, often cohabitees do not fully appreciate that you do not have the same legal rights as married couples and that the ‘Common Law Marriage’ is a myth.

If you are cohabiting it is essential that you know your rights and where you stand if your name is not on the title deeds. In many cases, couples choose to live in a property that is only owned by only one party. Without any formal agreement in place, this can create problems if the couple later split up and the property owner asks the other to leave, potentially leaving them in financial difficulties and possibly homeless.

Without any agreement in place, you would need to establish whether you have a Beneficial Share under a Resulting or Constructive Trust and this may need to go to go to court if no agreement can be reached.

Resulting Trusts

If you have made financial contributions to the ownership of a property, either through the deposit or subsequent mortgage payments, a court may decide that as a result of these payments, you have a beneficial interest in the property. This is known as a resulting trust.

Constructive Trusts

A constructive trust might imply you have a beneficial interest in a property if it can be established that both parties had a 'common intention' about the beneficial ownership of the property, arising either from the time of purchase or a later date. It isn't necessary to have had an explicit conversation about this in order to establish beneficial ownership. A court will simply look at the conduct of both parties in order to assess whether or not you had 'common intentions' with regards to the property during your relationship.

What can you do?

The best thing you can do is set up an agreement before you cohabit so you are both clear about who will be responsible for bills, how any payments will be treated and whether you intend both of you to have an interest in the property. This can be set out in a Cohabitation Agreement.

If you split up and you have no agreement in place, then RLE Law can advise on what Beneficial Ownership Rights you may have.

Email:treorchy@rlelalw.com