A community hub has launched an appeal to raise £30,000 to secure its future.

Cletwr in Tre’r Ddol has been hit by Covid, massive electricity bills, 20 per cent inflation, large increases in minimum wage, increases in the cost of stock, and wanting to keep services affordable for the local community, but Storm Darragh “was about the last straw for us and things have now reached a crisis point,” a venue spokesperson said.

To secure Cletwr’s future, the people behind the community owned and run venue have launched a fundraising page to save the essential services they provide in the isolated rural area.

“We are so proud of what we have achieved here over the past 12 years, taking on a redundant fuel station and buildings, and creating a hub for locals and visitors,” the appeal states.

“Public sector services are facing closure, down sizing and centralisation - this all has a disproportionate impact on rural communities. Spaces such as Cletwr are therefore even more essential in the current economic climate. “However, recent years have not been kind, and now we are asking for your help to secure the future of Cletwr.

“We have applied for a community bank loan to help with the business moving forward but need some capital to keep things going while that is being processed.

“To that end we’ve launched a crowd-funder via JustGiving. Any contribution will help sustain the business and give us the breathing space to plan our next steps.

“To paraphrase a larger retailer - "once it's gone, it's gone” and that would be such a loss.”

The first two days of the fundraising campaign have been well supported with 127 people donating over £5,000.

Cletwr said thank you to those people on social media.

“Over 100 people have already responded,” the post said. “Thank you all so much. But we’re not there yet – there’s still a long way to go.

“If you can help – even a fiver is better than nothing (but £50k would be even better, to be honest!) – please go to our JustGiving page.

“And please mention this to your friends.

“We are working to finalise a loan that will allow us to re-organise things so that Cletwr will have a secure, long-term future, providing vital services to our community.

“We have been developing a long-term strategy to help us recover from all these problems, and also to reduce the risks of a repeat in the future.

“But that will take time to put into practice, and in the meantime bills and wages need to be paid.

“So please help if you can, and also please just come to Cletwr; eat and drink in the cafe and buy lovely things in the shop.”

Cletwr’s convenience store and cafe is set in an award-winning eco building, which also serves as a hub for a wide range of activities including a fuel syndicate, art gallery, knit and natter group, gardening group, community events, children's activities.

To donate to Cletwr’s JustGiving page, visit https://shorturl.at/Fddga.