VILLAGERS who lost their shop, pub and post office have rallied together in a bid to “rebuild community spirit”.

The Big Clean Up of Rhuallt was organised after the establishment closures which meant there was “little community spirit left”.

It came after a Rhuallt Residents Committee (RRC) meeting which discussed improvements that could be made in the village.

The project, in early March, saw groups of 20 to 30 residents of all stripes in Rhuallt met and collected more than 40 bags of litter, cut back trees and strimmered grass.

“All villages are losing places and it is a sad time because once your pub and shop close it can be difficult,” said Chris Evans, RRC chair.

“There are elderly residents and young families, while grandparents brought their grandchildren along, so there was a big mix of people who wouldn’t normally meet up.

The committee is planning to carry out the litter picking and maintenance work three to four times a year.

It also wants to stage a ‘Band in the Park’ summer party featuring live music and children’s activities and build a nature garden at he village playground.

Mr Evans, a dad-of-four,who hopes hopes the project will inspire villages in Denbighshire said: “We wanted to make the community as a whole a better place, and it is good to see residents taking a hold of it. The are other villages in Denbighshire that are struggling too so hopefully similar things can be done there.”