Author: Rhys Gregory

The British Business Bank announces the first smaller loan deals from the £130m Investment Fund for Wales (IFW), with three investments totalling £95,000 from the Smaller Loans fund, managed by appointed fund managers BCRS. The £40,000 investment into Wrexham-based Wynnstay Self Storage, £30,000 to Blackwood-based photonics specialist manufacturer, Bluebox Optics, and £25,000 to takeaway Metro Eatery Ltd in the Vale of Glamorgan, are the first small loans announced on behalf of the Investment Fund for Wales. The Investment Fund for Wales was launched by the government-backed British Business Bank in November 2023 to boost the supply of early-stage finance to…

Former Wales rugby international Shane Williams and top comedian, actor and writer Steve Speirs, joined keen golfers from across Wales on last Friday for Tŷ Hafan’s 25th anniversary Charity Golf Day sponsored by Mitie. Twenty four teams played 18 holes at Cardiff’s Radyr Golf Club and raised £20,850 in the process, making Tŷ Hafan’s third annual golf day an undisputed hole-in-one success. “It was an honour to host the Tŷ Hafan golf day at Radyr Golf Club,” said Shane Williams. “Thank you Tŷ Hafan for making me very welcome and allowing me to be part of this amazing day. With everyone’s…

It’s just days to go until the first event in the Run 4 Wales race calendar – the ABP Newport Marathon Festival – kicks off, and the start-line nerves and excitement will be starting to creep in. While all your training preparation should now be complete, there’s still some important things to keep in mind come race day. Here, Run 4 Wales Race Director, Steve Brace, who is a double Olympian and former winner of the Paris and Berlin Marathons, shares his last minute dos and don’ts ahead of the event: Do eat a normal breakfast: Don’t eat anything you…

Fast-growing Welsh company Paramount is relishing the challenge of creating an “irresistible dining destination” after winning the contract to play a key role in the multi-million transformation of the McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Bridgend. The Cardiff-based design, build, fit-out and refurbishment specialist will spearhead the re-development project of the shopping centre after being handed responsibility for revamping its popular food court over the summer.In the coming months, the development will see the Food Court transformed into three modern, and bright restaurants, welcoming new food and beverage brands to the centre and creating more than 100 new job opportunities for the local community. Paramount’s Construction…

Local history, personal stories and even past secrets are being recorded and kept for future generations thanks to a new project launched today across Gwynedd and Ynys Môn to coincide with Global Intergenerational Week. A Menter Môn project, ‘Ein Hanes Ni’ (Our Own History) was first trialled in Llannerchymedd in partnership with the Isle of Anglesey County Council. Local children gathered and recorded stories from the area in conversations with the older generation about their memories of the village. Now, with the help of a £250,000 National Lottery ‘People and Places’ grant, the scheme is being rolled out to communities…

Five years on from a quad bike accident that fractured Beca Glyn’s skull, wearing a safety helmet is programmed into her subconscious, and is as familiar to her as wearing a car seatbelt. On that fateful day in March 2018, when she was thrown from a quad bike while rounding up sheep, the young sheep farmer became a health and safety statistic. Although she continues to live with some of the consequences of that accident, Beca says she is lucky. “I lost my sense of taste and smell, I suffer from migraines and need to take tablets to give me…

A consultation on the potential transfer of residential care services from Tregerddan Residential Care Home to Hafan y Waun Care Home is currently underway, following Cabinet approval on 19 March 2024. The aim of the consultation is to explore the views of residents and their families, staff, and the wider community on the future of Tregerddan Care Home in Bow Street, and the opportunity to transfer the care provision to Hafan y Waun Care Home in Aberystwyth. Following the Council’s decision to take ownership of Hafan y Waun Residential Care Home in late 2023, there is an opportunity to restructure…

A North Wales mum has completed the TCS London Marathon to fulfil a promise she made to her son shortly after he was diagnosed with brain cancer. Catherine Kelly, from Holywell, completed Sunday’s race in six hours and 50 minutes, despite missing weeks of training after a series of setbacks. The amateur runner was forced to halt training after suffering an anaphylactic shock from reaction to medication she was taking for a knee injury. Days later she was in hospital, this time caring for her son Edward – who she made a promise to run a marathon – after a…

The current levels of investment in older people’s mental health and wellbeing in Wales are not meeting needs.  This was the key conclusion from an Age Cymru event called A spotlight on the mental health and well-being of older people held in the Senedd Buildings (Welsh Government) on Thursday 18 April 2024.  The event called for a clearer focus on older people’s mental health backed by adequate and sustainable funding not only for specific statutory and third sector mental health support but also for services that underpin a good quality of life for older people such as the availability of…

The Vale of Glamorgan Council has secured funding from the Welsh Government for various transport initiatives, totalling £3,759,954. The funding is dedicated to enhancing travel infrastructure and road safety, encompassing safer community routes and improved active travel. The Active Travel funding is allocated exclusively for designated transport projects, secured through a competitive bidding process open to local authorities. This investment will enable crucial improvements to the region’s infrastructure, particularly enhancing safety around schools. Projects include pedestrian enhancements near Sully Primary School and the improvement of footways connecting schools, shops, and transportation hubs. Additionally, funding will support the implementation of timed…