A well-known Bow Street carpenter has praised the community and friends for rallying round him after his van full of tools was stolen from outside a hotel in Birmingham.

Carwyn Lloyd Jones, of Timber Design Wales, was staying at the Heath Lodge Hotel last week when his van, and tools which are vital for his livelihood, were taken from the car park early in the morning of Wednesday, 10 October.

Father-of-three Carwyn said that having his van stolen was “the worst feeling ever” but that he has been “overwhelmed” by people offering help.

Carwyn, who was in Birmingham taking part in a project to build a tiny house of the future at the NEC UK Construction Week, has appeared on television and in the Cambrian News with some of his creations.

The 45-year-old former member of staff at the Centre for Alternative Technology, near Machynlleth, has featured on the hit Channel 4 show, George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces, with a quirky caravan created from an old caravan trailer chassis upcycled with reclaimed material, and on the show’s one-off special 24 Hour Build, where he helped build a lakeside cabin using the natural raw materials in the surrounding lakes, hills and valleys near Machynlleth.

Carwyn added: “I’ve had a lot of support from friends, and they even diverted their company vans to come and pick my stuff up - amazing. I have been overwhelmed by the support offered by individuals to help me sort things out.

“Somehow I’ll get through this, it’s times like this you realise how many friends you’ve got."

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