Ken Skates AM welcomes launch of fledgling firm with a local flavour

ASSEMBLY Member Ken Skates has welcomed the launch of a new business which will provide employment opportunities for young people with autism.

Clwyd South AM Mr Skates recently met Dawn Roberts and Del Roberts-Jones, whose Llangollen-based firm Brythonium produces novel family legacy cards.

Both Dawn and Del are former Wrexham County Borough Council economic development employees who led the successful bid for World Heritage Site status for the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal.

Now the pair have turned their attention to a new business project which they have financed themselves.

Dawn said: “As mother of a young woman with autism, I saw no hope for her adulthood and wanted to try to provide meaningful employment for Elinor and as many of her peers as possible. Del and I have started a new business purely with the intention of providing sheltered employment for young people with autism and learning difficulties in the Dee Valley area.”

Dawn said the cards ‘are designed to allow everyone to write down their precious memories and family stories and history’. She added: “They are a personal way of creating a family legacy as they are handwritten, with no need for complicated research or computers.”

Mr Skates said the unusual business – which launched its new website last week – is ‘an amazing concept’.

He added: “I loved this idea as soon as I met Dawn and Del. They both come from Llangollen and some of the cards depict fantastic images from the Dee Valley area, so it is certainly a business with a very local flavour.

“They have also identified a lack of employment opportunities for young people with autism and have incorporated that within their business model, which makes a wonderful idea even better. I wish them both every success with their innovative project.”

For more information visit www.brythonium.co.uk.