Author: Rhys Gregory

Four fantastic projects from Wales are amongst 17 finalists from across the UK appealing for public support in order to be crowned Project of the Year in the 2023 National Lottery Awards. Hear We Are, a project run through Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff to encourage a more accessible arts sector for Deaf and Hard of Hearing people; Pembrokeshire mental health support charity Get The Boys A Lift (GTBAL); Project SIARC (Sharks Inspiring Action and Research with Communities), which aims to safeguard sharks, skates and rays, off the Welsh Coast whilst cultivating a new appreciation for the underwater environment in…

A toy charity in Caerphilly that collects unwanted toys and donates them to children in need across the Valleys, has saved 9000 kg of plastic from landfill and provided 3000 children with toys since being established just two years ago. The Toybox project, which was established by father of three, James Morgan in 2021, is a not-for-profit organisation run by volunteers. Its Bedwas based warehouse currently takes in around 200-300kg of unwanted toys every week. The toys are cleaned, checked, and put on display in the warehouse ready for collection by teachers, health visitors, nurses, and social workers. They are…

A guest house set in picturesque rural West Wales is set for expansion with the support of the Development Bank of Wales. Picton House, an eight-bedroom hotel based in a former coaching house near St Clears, Carmarthenshire, has been able to start expansion plans into adjoining land and renovating old outbuildings into new rooms thanks to a six-figure loan from the Wales Tourism Investment Fund. Owners Gareth Peters and Holly Nelmes took on ownership of the hotel in 2017, and have since turned it into an attractive guest spot for those visiting the beaches and scenic highlights of the West…

The first images of Wales’ first dual-stream language school have been released. Ysgol Gynradd Groes-wen Primary School is located north of Plasdŵr’s Groeswen neighbourhood, near Danescourt and Radyr, and is the first of several planned schools for the community over the next 10-15 years. The school follows a dual-stream model, providing 420 places across both Welsh and English classes. It provides half Welsh-medium and half English-medium classes, and 96 part-time nursery places. The two-storey building comprises of nursery, reception and infant classrooms on the ground floor, with junior classrooms located on the first floor. The school was designed by Powell…

A SWANSEA student has helped build a playground in Uganda for disadvantaged children thanks to money raised from a local opticians. Specsavers in Swansea raised £500 for the charity after local resident, Abby Sly, got in touch with the store and asked if they could hold a fundraiser. Ms Sly, an 18-year-old who studies at Swansea University, was in Uganda for two weeks with Play Action International – a charity that provides safe and fun play facilities for disadvantaged children in Uganda. Specsavers, which also offers a Home Visits service for those unable to visit one of its 1,000 locally…

Ashmole & Co’s staff from across south and mid Wales will be swapping their calculators for walking boots later this month to hike 10 kms of the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path to help raise funds for the DPJ Foundation. With thirteen offices spread across mid and south Wales, approximately 100 staff, including Partners from Ashmole & Co, are currently in training to walk approximately seven miles from Amroth to Tenby via Saundersfoot. Jim Cornock, Partner with Ashmole and Co said, “We recently launched a year of fundraising in aid of the DPJ Foundation, to help support those in the agricultural sector,…

A couple who targeted a vulnerable man and took over his home and finances have been jailed. Muhamet Hoxha and Somaia Bahumaid pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud and were sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court yesterday (Tuesday, September 12). The couple befriended the vulnerable man during lockdown, moved into his house, gained access to his bank accounts, and started spending his money. Hoxha, 34, even made enquiries with an estate agent to sell the house without the victim’s knowledge, while Bahumaid, 35, wrote a ‘will’ for the victim, leaving all his belongings to her. Their fraudulent activity came to…

Two outstanding UK schools – both for the first time in Wales – have been named Top 3 finalists for the $250,000 World’s Best School Prizes 2023. The five World’s Best School Prizes, founded last year by T4 Education in collaboration with Accenture, American Express, Yayasan Hasanah, and the Lemann Foundation, are the world’s most prestigious education prizes. Cadoxton Primary School, a state school in Barry, Wales, UK, which has transformed the lives of its children and become a beacon for its disadvantaged community through a trailblazing ‘pay as you feel’ shop to tackle food poverty amid the cost-of-living crisis,…

The Unite Union’s industrial action over nationally-negotiated pay awards has now been extended until October 16th. Unite began UK-wide strike action on September 4 and this was due to end on September 18th. Now the union has advised that it will extend its strike action until October 16 – albeit with a week’s break between September 18 and September 25. Due to the extended strike, other Cardiff Council services may now become impacted by industrial action. The council has said it will let residents know as soon as they can what services are affected if this happens. Some waste streams…

Two respected services today announced that they plan to make their future homes in Swansea city centre’s emerging community hub Y Storfa. They are the Swansea office of Careers Wales and the main base of Citizens Advice Swansea Neath Port Talbot. They’re the first non-council services to be named as tenants in Oxford Street’s former BHS store. Council services due to be part of the public-friendly hub – just a short distance from bus stops, cycle routes and car parks – include a main public library and the West Glamorgan Archive Service. Y Storfa, whose name was announced last week…