BEAUTY SPOT'S NO LONGER A 'NOT SPOT' FOR MOBILES

THE scenic Welsh village of Penmachno is steeped in history dating back to the 13th century and is the birthplace of the bishop who translated the bible into Welsh.

- By OWEN HUGHES Chief Reporter

The Eryri village of Penmachno Daniel Tomos and Paul Huckstep

Like many communities in north Wales it saw its population swell on the back of slate quarrying, but this came to an end in the 1960s.

Situated in Cwm Penmachno in Conwy, the village with a strong farming community is surrounded by beautiful landscapes, but is also fairly isolated. When it came to mobile services it was truly 'cutoff'.

The village - home to around 600 residents - was among the “forgotten” four per cent in the UK without a reliable mobile signal from any operator.

Residents had to travel to nearby villages to make mobile phone calls, could struggle with organising home deliveries of food and medication, and were restricted with access to secure online banking and other digital services.

A holiday cottage operator said for them it meant some “negative reviews” due to the nonexistent mobile service.

That has all changed now.

EE, with the support of Bro Machno Community Council, has discreetly built a new mobile mast at the edge of a forest on the slopes of the Machno Valley, providing fast and reliable 4G connectivity to the village, as well as critical signal for the emergency services as part of the Home Office's Emergency Services Network.

“We've always been 100% behind the mast and that has helped our journey to where we are today, with a mast in the forest and signal for everybody,” said Daniel Tomos, clerk of Bro Machno Community Council.

Being in the heart of Eryri National Park means Penmachno attracts a lot of tourists, including hikers and mountain bikers.