The Welsh seaside resort has already seen a fall in offending and drug use, now a £20m investment and a fresh approach to building job skills is bringing new opportunities for under-25s
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illing time playing pool at the West Rhyl youth club, friends Sienna, 19, and Jake, 26, are unanimous when asked what a tour of the north Wales seaside town should look like. “The first place I’d show anyone is ‘Crackhead Circle’,” Sienna says.
The small public garden behind the town hall and a paved area by the closed home bargain store Wilko in the adjacent high street host several strung-out characters on a cold February afternoon. Police cars crawl through the area every 15 minutes or so as part of Project Renew, a year-long crackdown on gang activity and drugs.
On the seafront, a row of Victorian hotels look out over the milky-green Irish Sea, but their glamour has long faded; the dilapidated buildings now serve as emergency accommodation for the council.
