News & Diary of Events

Bulletin Board:         December 2012

              Pics of the week...........

                         Celerbrating Advent with carols, candles and storytelling around the evergreen spiral in the roundhouse

rom fNovember 28th 2012 

Raising the second phase of the cruck oak workshop by hand with block and tackle. All the framing and raising has been carried out entirely by trainees and volunteers. There are five new trusses to be raised in all and we should be finished by mid December

• new staff appointed:
  • We are pleased to announce the appointement of Nia Wyn Griffith and Wil Parry as 2 new full time staff at the centre for the next 2 years to:
• develop and deliver a programme of Green and Heritage Tourism training courses including accredited courses for both young people and established existing businesses. This will include working in close partnership with a local business skills training and support agency to provide a holistic programme of both practical and desk-based training courses to encourage and support the generation of new sutainable tourism enterprises in the region.
• develop training placement opportunities for course participants with other local heritage & environmental centres
  
• establish a permanent Tourism Enterprise Training Facility at the Felin Uchaf Visitor Centre

These posts are funded by the BIG Fund’s Coastal Communities Fund

 

• We are pleased to welcome Jacquie Hughes Jones who will be taking on the the role of part time Administrator and VolunteerCoordinator

 

• volunteering update : 

• our residential facilities for traines and volunteers are currently full from now until January 2013.

 

• The Felin Uchaf Appeal:  

support Community Ownership..Please Help Push The Boat Out !

• In order for the charity to permanently secure the land and buildings at Felin Uchaf for the benefit of everyone - for ever- we need to raise £270,000 to pay off the remaining purchase bank loan/ mortgage and therefore buy the property outright. We aim to raise the full amount through donations and pledges from forward thinking private supporters sponsors, businesses and trusts. Every one of your donations helps achieve another step closer toward the target. Your pledges will be called only when the full ammount is raised .To support the appeal or find out more please click here

• Some Fantastic News! :
• Match funding has recently been awarded by the Countryside Council for Wales toward the building of a new state of the art Visitor & Community Centre. The purpose designed eco-building will include a shop and catering facility as well as meeting room and office.  This means that from September we'll be looking for experienced eco-builders and craftspeople to help with the construction through to Seoptember 2013. Have you got the kind of skills we need...if so please contact us and download the volunteer information & application form

    the proposed new stone,earth and timber framed Visitor and Community Centre at Felin Uchaf to be built during 2012-13

consructional sketches of the green oak framed, stone walled & straw bale walled New Visitor Centre Building currently under construction by trainees and volunteers at Felin Uchaf between 2012 to Sept 2013

• Green Oak Timber Framing & Reed Thatching Training 2012/13

  From September we will be looking for expereienced & motivated trainees/apprentices who would like to learn traditional woodworking skills in building the second phase of a new thatched, cedar clad, cruck-oak timber framed barn ( pending HLF grant funding) Trainees will be able to stay at the centre, basic accommodation will be provided and trainees will be expected to help with all the various other jobs from gardening to housekeeping. For full details please see the Essential Volunteer Information posted on the contribute page

• Oak Barn Raising update - phase 2  from 2012-14: the building of a new wooden boatbuiding workshop

• We raised phase 1 : the woodworkshop's 5 trusses of cruck oak frame by hand. Many thanks to the 40 volunteers who took part in the raising team from all around the country, and to the many other supporters and well wishers who cheered us on. The next step will be cedar cladding the sides and reed thatching the roof.For more photos and information  follow the BBC link http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/northwestwales/hi/people_and_places/nature/default.stm
• We are looking to raise the next 5 cruck frames sometime around the end of November - mid December 2012
  

• Office Opportunities: We are in need of help from people with good fundraising skills.  If you think you can help and would like to contribute towards a very worthwhile project then please do contact us

Diary 2012

Date	Activity or event	What to bring
Every Wednesday 10 - 4.00 pm	Local volunteer days A wide range of activities from conservation work, organic gardening to stone walling, traditional building and woodworking. Suitable for all ages and abilities,a great way to learn new skills, keep healthy and fit and share good company. The 2012 Spring projects are: building an outdoor Eco-clasroom with the local primary school Ysgol Llidiardau, using stone,cob, poles and reed thatch reed thatching the main oak barn from April reciprocal pole roofing & turf roofing thecob walled herb house Organic gardening in the Community veg. and herb garden including harvesting seaweed & building new raised beds coppicing the willow beds for basketry & charcoal material for full details on this summers volunteer projects please click here:                                     VOLUNTEER WORK SHEDULE SUMMER 2012	shared lunch provided, bring workwear & sturdy boots,   all safety clothing supplied as are tea,coffe and biscuits!
Every Tuesday during school term	School visits day. Please contact Dafydd at the office if you would like to arrange for your school to visit the Centre Workshops themes include: The Celts, Experiential Archaeology, Eco Building, Ecology & Conservation, Organic Gardening & Rural Craft Skills Activities may include fireside storytelling in the roundhouse,site archaeology, bread making in a clay oven,building a wattle and daub wall or traditional cob wall, thatching and artwork, growing organic veg and herbs and nature studies- we have 23 acres of farmland managed as a nature reserve.	Remember to bring sensible outdoor clothing and footwear .....and waterproofs!
middle Friday of each month throughout the summer: May 18 June 15 July 13 August 17	Evening Workshops in the Roundhouse Tune Learning Workshops monthly traditional Welsh acoustic instruments workshops with Anna Georgina Chitty Fridays evenings 7.00- 8.30pm : May 18th,   June 15th,   July 13th   and August 17th  for more details and to book a place contact anna.georgina@hotmail.co.uk or telephone 01758 770454 www.sesiwn.com these events are part of the Sessiwn Dros Gymru by CLERA programme of Welsh Traditional Instruments workshops across Wales www.sesiwn.com,     www.clera.org

2011/12 Current Acivities Gallery........ 

               fireside storytelling and music      building the new shower house    constructing a roundhouse roof

           traditional skills apprentiships     volunteering on the oak barn project    framing the next phase of the cruck oak barn

    pizas in the roundhouse    school performance            clay oven building course               storytelling with children

        stages in building a cob compost tiolet:

     laying the stone foundations      cob/earth walling                     timbering the roof         locally sourced reed thatching

        lime plastering and limewashing the finished cob-earth wall           Mark dancing the cob wall down on the Seed Buiding

         timbering the roof                   cob walling the Seed Building              coppicing hazel poles            stone walling

        fishing in the Bardsey Sound                            clay oven baking                                 the grass cutting volunteers....

                      candle-lit storytelling & music with over 90 people in the earthouse               Urien fishing for supper !  

       volunteers enjoying lunch fresh from the community gardens          making raised beds           laying out the oak frame

        stacking the oak beams            harvesting seaweed         willow weaving  building the stone walled barn foundations   

          school visit - baking bread         raising the green oak barn                dry stone walling

Recently Awarded Funding:  

 DIOLCH YN FAWR / THANK YOU to:

Firstly to all our members for your continued vital suport and to everyone who has generously donated towards the project

Awards For All Wales -Dec 2008, £5000 to build a new volunteer workspace

O2 It's Your Community Grant- Feb 2009, £1,000 to wards the building of the new stone, straw bale and turf roofed shelter in the Community Herb Garden

Criminal Justice Intervention Wales & Drug Intervention Programme- May 2009, £82,000 investment toward the repayment of the initial property purchase loans

The Rosa Butler Trust - April 2009, £1,000 Towards the Community Land Initiative

Charitable trust (Anon.)- May 2009, £2000 Towards core funding costs.

Mantell Gwynedd WCVA Gwirfol Youth Led Grant  May 09 £400 toward the purchase of new equipment for a dedicatedyoung people's office space at the Centre

Environment Wales Project Grant June 2009 £4,600 towards new publicity and exhibition matterialsfor a touring exhibition from the end of summer onward

Mantell Gwynedd's Galluogi Gwynedd Grant June 2009 £10,000 towards capital items for the construction of a new oak framed and thatched workspace

Council For the Protection of Rural Wales CPRW Jan 2010  £500 grant award toward meeting the centre's core funding costs

The Ernest Cook Trust Feb 2010 £2,000 to support environmental education programme for young people

Environment Wales(5th year of support) Feb 2010 £5,500 awarded towards Project Manager costs

Cymorth Gwynedd March 2010 , £6,000 towards improving young volunteers' facilities at the centre

Tidy Towns/Keep Wales Tidy, £1200 towards purchasing tools and matterials for new habitat creation and woodland management

Gwynedd Youth Fund- youth resources fund July 2010- £6,000 toward development officer costs

WCVA Engagement Gateway Sheme July 2010 £51,000 over the next 2 years for developing education and training resources for volunteers at the Centre

Llyn AONB Sustaiable Development Fund July 2010- £20,000 over the next 3 years towards volunteer development officer staff costs.

WCVA  Volunteering in Wales Fund , June- £ 23,000 towards voluntreer projetcs officer costs

Anon. Chaitable trust, June - £2,500 , unrestricted funding /donation

Countryside Council for Wales, August - £5,000 , capacity building revenue grant

Comunities First Trust Fund, January 2011 £1,700 - New IT equipment

Countryside Council For Wales, Jan 2011 - contract to make special carved oak gates & benches for Ynys Llanddwyn Nature Reserve worth £7,000

Environment Wales - Feb 2011, pre-project grant, renewable energy sources - wind turbine feasability study in partnership with the West Wales Eco-centre  £4,000

Big Lottery Fund Community Wildlife Fund , May 2011, for running a varied programme of wildlife events and primary schools environmental projects , £7,000

Countryside Council For Wales Access and Interpretation Grant February 2011, for developing access and rural craft skills learning opportunities at the centre , £ 12,000

WCVA GwirVol Opporunities Grant , March 2011, for developing a range of volunteering opporunities for young volunteers at the centre , £9,000

Environment Wales Project Grant, May 2011 , for developing the rural skills training hub - capital items - thatch etc £8,600

Countryside Council For Wales Communities & Nature Grant - July 2012 -£ 100K ( Welsh Office / European Deveolpment Fund) 2012-Sept 2013 for the building of a new Community and Eco-Visitor Centre

Big Fund - Coastal Communities Fund -August 2012 £200K 2 year revenue funding employing 2 staff to develop & deliver a Green and Heritage Tourism Project

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