THE Portuguese community in Wrexham is seeking a £5,000 grant for facilities to enable members to pick up IT and internet skills.

Wrexham Council invites applications for its 'Together in Wrexham' enabling grants, and the bid has been made by the CLPW CIC Portuguese language speaking group in Wrexham.

In the grant application, chair and founder Iolanda Banu Viegas outlined the reasons for the bid.

She said: "CLPW CIC was established to promote communication links between the Portuguese speaking community the Welsh and English communities, to help members overcome the language barriers, to strengthen the bonds of friendship between members of the community, especially the more vulnerable to strengthen the cultural bonds of members with local residents.

"We represent 2,000 community members from some eight different countries that speak Portuguese; Portugal, Angola, Mozambique, Guinea, Cape Verde, Brazil, Timor and San Tome and Prince - a few are refugees.

"These CLPW members are all based in Wrexham.

"We wish to run some basic usage of internet training sessions for ethnic minority people from Portuguese speaking countries, including refugees.

"CLPW CIC will deliver the training by engaging an IT specialist who is able to speak fluent English and Portuguese. We will also utlise volunteers.

"We hope that the trainees can be upskilled to be able to provide support to other members with limited IT and language skills, thereby being a sustainable system of getting help and helping others."

She added: "The basic internet usage sessions will bring together community members from diverse disadvantage backgrounds to aid their personal and professional development.

"We believe that they not only gain new skills but the interaction reduces isolation and segregation.

"If funded, this grant would be transformational for many who are isolated and disadvantaged."

Their bid has been supported by Caia Park Community Council who voted unanimously to back it at their monthly meeting, with Smithfield Cllr Adrienne Jeorrett adding that the ward has a large Portuguese community.