Can you spot these wildflowers in Denbighshire?

As the weather gets warmer our county wildflower meadows are starting to spring to life.

Back in 2019, Denbighshire County Council declared a climate and nature emergency with the aim to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss.

One of the first actions was to start managing some of the Council’s grassland for wildflower meadow creation across the county. The aim of the project is to restore and increase the amount of habitat available throughout the county for pollinators and wildlife.

This project also brings many benefits or ‘ecosystem services’ to residents in the county, such as reduced flooding, improved air quality, and air cooling.

Here’s a guide to the flowers you could spot by visiting our meadows across Denbighshire which are recognised by our Bee Friendly signage

May wildflowers

Bird's Foot Trefoil

Visiting our wildflower meadows in May you will find bird's foot trefoil in bloom. Bees and other pollinators love it as it is very rich in nectar and is the larval food source for some of our favourite butterflies - Common Blue, Dingy Skipper and Green Hairstreak.

Red Clover

Have you spotted red clover at our wildflower meadows during May? This lovely little wildflower is rich in pollen and provides an essential food source for bees - in the past it was known as "bee bread". It's not just our pollinators that enjoy this little flower, cows love it too!

Red Campion

Red Campion is visible across our wildflower meadows during May. This woodland wildflower can grow to almost 1m high and attracts bees and butterflies to its deep pink flowers by opening the petals during the day. Where to find it: Shady areas such as hedge banks, woodlands, woodland edges and rural roads.

June wildflowers

Bee Orchid (Ophrys Apifera)

Have you spotted the bee orchid in any of our wildflower meadows this month? These little orchids are the masters of deception! The flower not only looks like a resting bee but it is also slightly hairy and even produces a scent similar to a female bee – all to attract the attention of a passing male bee.

Yellow Rattle (Rhinanthus minor)

Yellow rattle is managing the height of our wildflower meadows this month. This little wildflower is great for wildflower meadows! As a hemi-parasite it restricts the growth of grasses by feeding off their nutrients and weakening them. By weakening the more aggressive grasses, the more delicate wildflowers are able establish themselves.

Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea)

The Foxglove is blooming in June around our meadows, one of most recognisable wildflowers which splashes our woodlands edges and rural roadsides with bright pink bell-shaped flowers. According to Plantlife a single 'glove' can produce a million seeds!

July wildflowers

Field scabious (Knautia arvensis)

The purple–blue flowers of Field scabious are great for attracting our native bees, moths and butterflies. It’s also an essential food source for some of our most vulnerable species such as the Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk moth and the Marsh Fritillary butterfly.

Common Knapweed (Centaurea nigra)

July brings the common knapweed into bloom across our meadows. A standout wildflower with bright pink thistle-like flowers. Common knapweed is one of our top pollinator friendly wildflowers. It provides a great source of quality nectar for bees, butterflies and beetles. Later in the season its seeds provide a sought after food source for a variety of our native bird species.

Meadow Crane's-bill (Geranium pratense)

Meadows crane’s bill is our most wide spread Geranium wildflower provides a splash of blue/violet in early summer and can last for a number of months at our wildflower meadows. In the autumn months the leaves change from green to a deep red prolonging this amazing wildflowers visual impact – it’s no wonder it has become a favourite in many cottage gardens!

Oxeye daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare)

A resilient flower, look for oxeye daisies in our wildflower meadows. Oxeye daisy flowers from May to September.

Have you met our fabulous Bookstart Team? ❤

They run free, weekly, bilingual rhyme times for babies and toddlers in all our libraries. It’s never too soon to start sharing books and rhymes with your baby and you will find a great selection of books for all ages in our libraries.

Our libraries are free to join; books are free to borrow and there are no late charges!

The rhyme times are a great way to build up your confidence sharing books and rhymes with your little one, and a brilliant way to meet other new parents.

Please book your free rhyme time place here 👇🏼

https://bookwhen.com/denbighshire-bookstart

Josh’s Journey

Due to a relationship break down, Josh, who is 34, found himself seeking the Council’s homelessness team’s help at the start of last year. In February of 2025 Josh was placed in temporary accommodation and was assigned a homeless support practitioner.

Josh

“I was homeless at the start of last year. I had been in homeless before and was placed in temporary accommodation previously, but I wasn’t in the right mindset previously to try and sort out my wider situation.

I was only in there briefly this time. I was asking everyone, trying to find a flat of my own. I eventually found one and moved out of temporary accommodation quite quickly.”

A month later, Josh had found himself privately rented accommodation to live in and was looking to write the chapter in his story.

“Whilst I was in temporary accommodation, my homeless support practitioner mentioned the intuitive thinking skills courses to me.

I was a little sceptical about doing the courses at first, but I didn’t realise until I sat them, that really, I had nothing to lose, and everything to gain from giving them a go.

I started the courses in April and March. I did the skills to life course first, which I really enjoyed and learned a lot from.

It teaches you how to deal with your own mindset, and how you think about problems. I used to really struggle with my confidence and doubt myself all the time.

They asked me at the start of the course what I would like to improve on, and so I put down work on my confidence.”

Josh then went on to take the Information, advice and guidance course, and dove deeper into his learning.

“I went on to do the Information, advice and guidance course, which taught me some more technical aspects. I would be put in other people's shoes, and I learned how to help those who may be more vulnerable.

I learned how to help others who may be in circumstances such as homelessness or maybe struggle with substance misuse.”

In early summer, Josh was offered an ambassador placement with the Intuitive Thinking team, with the hopes of that scheme then leading to a permanent job within the team itself.

“I was really buzzing as that was the placement I wanted the most out of the ones that were offered to me. I learned to give speeches and administer training by shadowing members of the team. That helped my confidence so much, standing up and speaking in front of people. I was terrified at first, but it got easier and easier over time.

I was about two months into my placement with the team when I got offered a job in the energy sector which I felt I just couldn't turn down.

The skills I learned during the courses I took, and my placement have given me so much confidence in my new role. This job is so different from what I’ve done previously, and these new skills have given me the confidence to go and try something new. That’s the main take away for me.

I was very much set in my ways of staying in my comfort zone before I did these courses. I would just do what I’d always done, but ultimately, I kept getting the same results. I feel like I spent years at a standstill really.

Since I’ve sat these courses, I’ve never felt better in my life. It sounds crazy to say that a course can change that, but I learned why I am thinking things and how to deal with those thoughts.”

Josh has chosen more positive ways to ways to pass the time.

“I have chosen more healthy options in life now, I struggled with boredom when I got sober about four years ago, I needed different outlets.

I started playing golf and going to the gym. I am now a member at Rhyl Golf Club.”

Josh has now graduated from the Intuitive thinking courses, with a number of certificates under his belt, and is enjoying his new role in the energy sector.

“I think these courses would benefit everyone; you don’t have to be in a bad position to take it. You can’t lose anything from learning from this course, as long as you are invested in it, you’re going to benefit from it.

People have said that they can see a change in my confidence. From where I was in February,  to where I am now, it feels like two different people. I felt lost and had no hope really. It taught me to think differently and rationally think about situations. It has helped me to gain the focus and drive to get what I want.

It was like a snowball effect, as soon as I decided to start helping myself, things got gradually better.”

Restoring the Past, Building the Future: Nantclwyd y Dre

Ruthin is a town is steeped in history. Razed to the ground by Owain Glyndwr in the year 1400, the historic feel of the town as we know it today comes in large part from the timber-framed vernacular style of architecture which was used during the town’s reconstruction.

Among the charming streets and historic frontages sits an important piece of Ruthin’s built heritage. Originally built in 1435 as a weaver’s hall house, Nantclwyd y Dre boasts nearly 600 years of local history and is one of the oldest timber-framed townhouses in Wales open to the public.

Now managed by the Denbighshire Heritage Service, visitors to Nantclwyd y Dre historic house and gardens can relive the house’s fascinating past through immersive soundscapes, interiors and exhibits that give a captivating insight into what life was like for the families that lived there.

In 2023, funding was granted to restore parts of the site as the UK Government confirmed their intention to provide £10.95 million of grant funding for 10 capital projects aimed at protecting Ruthin’s unique heritage, wellbeing, and rural communities.

This funding, known as the Local Regeneration Fund (LRF), was awarded exclusively for successful projects included in Clwyd West and cannot be directed to other projects.

As one of the successful projects, £667,000 was allocated to redevelop some currently unused parts of the house in need of some repair to preserve this important piece of local heritage for generations to come, create new opportunities for the attraction to improve its future sustainability and make some exciting additions to the visitor experience.

Construction works began in October, focussing on bringing the largely unused west wing of the property back to life. This section of the house will become a small holiday let, designed and furnished in keeping with the historic nature of the building, and see improved facilities on the first floor with a dedicated space for the weekly volunteers who are a critical and valued part of the day-to-day workings at Nantclwyd.

However, before the works could begin, one set of longstanding residents needed to be taking into consideration. Denbighshire County Council consulted with ecologists to ensure that the planned developments would not disturb the resident protected bat maternity roost, which houses a significant number of the Pipistrelle and Lesser-Horseshoe population in Wales. Contractors were given specialist training, and a large bat shelter was installed in the garden, giving the winged residents an additional space to thrive.

The planned improvements will also make the kitchen area more suitable for event catering, and the summerhouse will be restored to its former glory for visitors to enjoy during the summer months, also serving as an additional space for the ceremonies taking place at the historic house such as weddings and civil partnership ceremonies.

Undertaken by B&W builders & decorators alongside TACP Architects, the project is expected to be completed by April 2026. A more sustainable approach to the improvement works has also been implemented through using wool to insulate the building rather than the more widely used oil-based insulation which emits higher carbon emissions and isn’t renewable.

Councillor Jason McLellan, Leader and Lead Member for Economic Growth & Tackling Deprivation said:

“The beginning of these improvement works to Nantclwyd y Dre serves as a major milestone in securing the future of such a prominent historical site that sits at the heart of Ruthin. 

“Nantclwyd is as a great visitor attraction and community hub for our dedicated volunteers, and we are looking forward to seeing the newly developed spaces being enjoyed and used by visitors.

“The wellbeing of the bat population will remain as a priority whilst the works are being carried out, and we will be in continuous communications with the ecologists throughout the completion of the works”.

Career change for St Asaph man helps build continued support for frontline service

A career change with help from a council scheme has inspired a St Asaph man into stepping forward to help make a difference for local Denbighshire communities and the county environment.

County Voice sat down recently with Waste and Recycling Relief Team Leader Owen Lokier to find out how a decision to jump career tracks has helped gather knowledge and experience in the service on a professional and personal level.

Owen said: “Originally I was an engineer; I worked in the steel industry as a fabricator and welder and just basically fancied a change in career

“In January 2022 I saw an advert for the Working Denbighshire scheme for refuse collectors, so I decided I’d go and give that a shot. I started that in the January, it was a three-month scheme based in Ruthin, and off the back of that I ended up landing a full-time contract with the council as a refuse loader. The Working Denbighshire scheme was definitely a positive for this.”

Operating as a loader for 12 months, an opportunity came for Owen to expand his skills in the service.

“My line manager gave me the opportunity to drive our smaller cage vehicles a couple of days a week. This was mainly driving up to the farms, rural areas. It was based in the south, from Trefnant all the way down to Llangollen, it gave me an insight into the driving side of the service. “

The wheels of progression in the service did not stop there for Owen as spurred on by operating the smaller class of vehicle, he decided to go and do the class two LGV licence through a Welsh Government backed scheme.

“This gave me the opportunity to progress into the role of a full time driver that came available. So, I had worked my way with Working Denbighshire’s help to a grade two loader, to a grade four driving a smaller cage vehicle and then with my LGV licence I became a grade five.

“That was where I was up to until we came to Denbigh in June 2024, I was what you would call a floater at the site, I’d cover lads on sickness and one of the benefits to that was I was able to learn a lot of different rounds across the county which gave me s lot of knowledge.

“It came with its challenges as one day you could be doing something and the next day something completely different, but I liked the variety of it and also working with different teams.”

Getting to meet a lot of the service workforce helped Owen into a position to use his experience to support the service even stronger as in November 2024 he alongside another colleague was successful in applying for two relief team leader posts that help cover sickness and annual leave management from the office.

Waste and Recycling staff can also access training opportunities and whilst carrying out his current role, Owen is also working towards more qualifications with the support of Cambrian Training.

He explained: “I enrolled on a Level 3 Diploma for Sustainable Recycling Activities (Supervisory) course which I’m currently studying for. I’m hoping to progress as well from this to a level 4 NVQ to keep working my way up.

“Bev from Cambrian is very helpful, she understands that learners have different ways of learning, I like to have a bit freer rein doing the coursework, we meet once a month and I will go away and try to do a lot of it in my own time.”

Changing careers to make a difference to the local environment by helping residents with their recycling and waste, also means a lot more time engaging with county communities according to Owen.

He said: “I enjoy working outdoors and I enjoy engaging with the public which is quite a big one because you do have some positive and also some negative engagement, but I always try to turn the negatives into a positive.

“One thing I’ve always said is refuse collectors they are a part of the council that everyone in the public sees every week of their lives.

“If someone’s’ got a problem with the pavements, with the roads, we do hear that and we always try to turn it into a positive and a lot of positives do come out of it, especially around this time of year at Christmas and New Year when you look at the lads and how grateful the public are for them being out there in all weathers 52 weeks of the year.

“Also, for the elder community the refuse collectors might be the only person bar the postman that they may see in the week, so when I was on the rounds I’d try to take a couple of minutes just to say hello, how are you. That goes a long way for them as well.

He added: “Overall, as a career it’s great, it’s working outdoors, good for the environment as well.”

And what is Owen’s advice to someone who is considering a track change into the service?

He said: “I think the council is a great authority to work for. You get out of it what you put in. So, if you show you’re enthusiastic, flexible and willing to help others out that’s a great help. Teamwork, that’s a massive factor in this line of work…just don’t stop, show the willingness to learn and keep having your goals.”

Ever wondered where your Council tax goes?

Many people think that Council tax pays for everything that a local authority delivers, however, the money collected from residents annually only accounts for 26% of total Council spending.

The majority of funding (62%) comes in the form of a ‘Revenue Support Grant’ from Welsh Government, while the remaining 12% comes from business rates which is a property tax that businesses pay to help fund local services. You can find out more about how the Council is funded on our website.

So where does your Council tax actually go? We’ve produced an infographic based on a Band D property council tax bill to help give a clear explanation of how council tax payments are used to fund the range of services for residents in the county. While this infographic gives a picture of how the money is shared between different services, understanding what residents gets for that money is really important.

As you can see, the majority of council tax spending goes towards protecting the most vulnerable in our society, with 66% spent on schools and education and adult and children’s social care.

With Education accounting for 36.7%, it means that Denbighshire can educate approximately 16,500 pupils in 44 primary schools, 2 all-through schools, 2 special schools, 6 secondary schools and 1 pupil referral unit across the county, with approximately 780 teachers delivering this education

Still in the field of education, school transport accounts for 2.9% for which the Council transports approximately 2,871 learners safely to schools throughout the county. In total, there are 650 school bus and taxi trips every school day.

Meanwhile, adult and children’s social care accounts for 29.8% of Council tax spending. For this, in 2024-2025, an average of 668 members of staff had over 25,000 contacts with the most vulnerable children and adults and provided a package of care and support where necessary giving these residents the opportunity to exercise choice, voice and control over their lives.

In other service areas, 1.9% goes towards public protection and environmental health and the Council’s teams inspects approximately 720 restaurants, cafes and take aways every year to ensure they’re operating safely for the residents of Denbighshire.

Emptying bins and recycling accounts for 1.8% of your council tax bill, which equates to £32.89 per year (based on a Band D property). That involves collecting around 73,000 containers from over 47,000 households every week across the county.

For 1.8% of council tax, we maintain 1,419km of carriageways (excluding trunk roads), 601 highway bridges and culverts, 302 retaining walls and 26,000 gullies. And for 0.8%, we maintain 11,763 street lights and 1,547 illuminated signs and bollards throughout the county.

Other services residents may not be aware that are delivered by the Council are the Countryside and Heritage Services. With 1.1% of council tax going to the countryside service, the teams manage over 80 sites and more than 1,200 hectares of public green for both recreation and conservation. These range from the Country Parks of Loggerheads and Moel Famau, the county tree nursery at St. Asaph, Brickfield Pond in Rhyl, Prestatyn Dyserth Way, Llantysilio Green in the Dee Valley and numerous smaller amenity community spaces across the county.

While the heritage service accounts for 0.9% of Council tax spending and for this, the service preserves and promotes the county’s unique history, caring for important historic sites including Ruthin Gaol, Plas Newydd, Nantclwyd Y Dre, Rhyl Museum (based in the library) and a large collection store. This work ensures Denbighshire’s rich history remains accessible for education, wellbeing, and enjoyment.

Planning and economic development accounts for 0.7% of Council tax spending and for that the Local Planning Authority processes around 1,000 planning applications each year alongside 10-20 appeals and 50-100 pre-application enquiries. We also respond to over 500 planning compliance cases.

Libraries account for 0.5% of Council tax spending and in 24-25, Libraries delivered 514 Bookstart sessions to nearly 6,500 children for this money. It also lent  2,869 audiobooks to 1,028 library members on Borrowbox (part of the Digital Offer) and printed over 56,000 pages on public access printers.

Not all Council tax collected pays for council services, 2.5% goes towards the Fire service to contribute to the funding of fire protection and prevention across the county.

Councillor Delyth Jones, Lead Member for Finance at Denbighshire County Council said, “I am pleased to see the production and release of this infographic information. It will, I hope, provide residents with the context they need in order to understand how their council tax payments are used to support the breadth of services delivered by the Council.

“In what is a continuing financially challenging climate, I think it’s important to be open and clear about the costs and the pressures. It’s also important to emphasise that many of the aspects of expenditure are, quite rightly, aimed towards the legal requirement to provide Adult Social Care, Children’s Services, and Education etc. These are the areas that support the most vulnerable in our society.”