Author: Rhys Gregory

An inspirational cyclist who has Parkinson’s has completed an epic 380 mile journey for charity. Determined Phil Doyle, who lives in Llanelidan, near Ruthin, thought his cycling days were over when the symptoms of the condition began to take hold. But the extraordinary 69-year-old, who was born and raised in Liverpool, has fought back and has completed a version of the Snowdonia 360 as part of a 12-person strong cycling team. The retired service engineer, who’s love of cycling began when he was in his teens, said he was so emotional that “burst into tears” when he reached Cwm Penmachno…

Members, stakeholders and visitors to the Royal Welsh Show gathered yesterday, Tuesday 25th July, at the Farming Connect stand to hear about the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society’s plans to unveil a new-look Horticulture Section in 2024. We were pleased to also welcome the Minister for Rural Affairs, Lesley Griffiths MS to the launch. The promotion of horticulture is one of the Society’s key charitable objectives and plans are underway to establish a new Horticultural Village at the 2024 Royal Welsh Show. The village will celebrate all aspects of horticulture in Wales – from community to commercial growing, competitive showing and…

HYRO – a joint venture between RES and Octopus Energy Generation – has submitted a planning application to Flintshire County Council for its Coleshill Green Hydrogen Project. The scheme is one of two projects located on existing Kimberly-Clark sites which aim to assist the roll out of this reliable, and cost-competitive source of power for industrial businesses.   The Coleshill Green Hydrogen Project comprises a Green Hydrogen Electrolyser production and storage facility on land near Kimberly-Clark’s Coleshill paper mill, off Aber Road, Flint, CH6 5EP.  It will use electricity from renewable sources to split water using electrolysis and create green…

A new multidisciplinary team in Morriston Hospital is helping keep elderly patients as active as possible in a bid to make their stay as short as possible. Research shows that the longer a frail patient remains in bed, the harder it is for them to get back on their feet again and resume normal routines necessary to stay independent. The therapy assessment unit – made up of occupational therapists, physiotherapists and clinical nurse specialists for care of the elderly – is based within the hospital’s acute medical unit (AMU) to assess patients for discharge home. To support a patient’s timely…

Umar Hussain MBE, Chief Financial Officer at South Wales Police, has been awarded an Honorary Fellowship by Cardiff Metropolitan University. With 15 years at South Wales Police, following Finance Director roles in Lincolnshire Police and Gwent Police, Umar provides strategic direction, control and advice on all financial matters within the force. Speaking on receiving an Honorary Fellowship, Umar said: “I am surprised but delighted to have been nominated to receive an Honorary Fellowship from Cardiff Metropolitan University. It has taken me right back to the days of my secondary school, where leaving school with some A Levels was the exception.…

On Monday, 24th of July at the Royal Welsh Show, Growing Mid Wales partners attended a reception to reflect on the progress that has been achieved to date and to look ahead at the next stages of development across all the region’s work. Among the attendees were businesses across Ceredigion and Powys, senior political representatives and key stakeholders from a range of partner organisations. The event heard of the progress being made since the Growing Mid Wales partnership was formed back in 2015, which included: The programmes and projects being supported across different funding streams – from EU funds, UK…

AN ACCLAIMED accountancy practice is powering ahead with its net zero vision. Salisbury’s Chartered Accountants has installed 24 solar panels, an energy storage system and electric charging points at its St Asaph headquarters and unveiled plans to continue lowering the carbon footprint at its other offices in Ruthin, Beaumaris, Tywyn, and Menai Bridge. In partnership with Carbon Zero Renewables – part of Carbon Zero Group based in Old Colwyn, St Asaph, Mochdre, Llandudno and Deeside – a state-of-the-art system was fitted earlier this year and is already having an effect, saving the company more than 1,114kg of CO2, the equivalent…

Fonmon Castle near Barry is known for its dinosaur park, Medieval village, beautiful gardens and wildlife walks – but over the summer it offers much more besides, with exciting activities taking place every weekend. On July 29 and 30, a Medieval Weekend will feature a one-of-a-kind foot combat display full of smashing heads and clashing armour. There will also be living history displays with swords and weapons and skills on show from the medieval period. The Fonmon Pirate Weekend, on August 5 and 6, is a swashbuckling adventure with opportunities to walk the plank, test your skills with ropes and…

Approximately 404 million sq ft of UK warehouse space, or 60 per cent of all units above 50,000 sq ft, will fail to meet the EPC Grade B energy performance requirement set as a minimum from 2030 and risk becoming unlettable, according to global property consultancy Knight Frank. And in Wales just 24 per cent of warehouses over 50,000 sq ft currently meet the EPC B grade. Neil Francis, head of the Knight Frank Industrial and Logistics team in Cardiff, said: “A large proportion of warehouse units in Wales risk becoming unlettable by 2030 unless investors and landlords accelerate the…

The Senior Open’s return to Porthcawl is moving ever closer (27-30 July) and the much-anticipated major golf tournament is set to offer a boost to the economy right across Bridgend County Borough and Wales as a whole. The tournament, which is being sponsored by Rolex, is being held at Royal Porthcawl Golf Club for the third time after previously attracting visitors and media coverage from all over the world during its previous hosting duties in 2014 and 2017. Over 43,000 spectators attended the event in 2014 which generated an estimated economic impact of £2.16m. Then in 2017, the comprehensive television…