Author: Rhys Gregory

Two leading businesspeople have praised the ongoing regeneration of Swansea. Rowland Jones, Director at RJ Chartered Surveyors, and Carwyn Davies, Managing Director of Hacer Developments, think the scale of development work in the city augurs well for a bright future. Schemes led by Swansea Council include the Copr Bay district, with Swansea Arena, the new bridge over Oystermouth Road and the new coastal park having now been open for over a year. Projects where construction work is continuing include the 71/72 Kingsway office development at the former Oceana nightclub site that will provide space for 600 workers in sectors like…

Wagonex, a platform for car subscriptions, recently added two new members to its product development team. Joel Livermore will serve as Head of Product, while Claude Compere will take on the role of Lead Software Engineer. Joel is head of the product team at Wagonex and has six years of experience in developing products for various sectors, such as consumer, financial, and real estate. He is currently leading the development of Wagonex’s next generation car subscription platform and has created a product strategy and roadmap to ensure its excellence. Previously, Joel worked at Rolls-Royce, as a continuous improvement engineer where…

A Cardiff social housing provider has doubled the space it holds in a local community allotment after realising the positive mental health and financial benefits for its residents. Taff Housing, based in Canton, purchased 15 plots in the Leckwith council-run allotment back in 2019. However, after receiving positive feedback from residents has managed to secure additional space, enabling more people to enjoy its many benefits. Studies show that seeing and being around plants and greenery helps us to feel calmer and more relaxed, which consequently decreases levels of anxiety. Nurturing and caring for plants has also been proven to reduce…

A Bridgend man has appeared in court to face over 100 charges of child sexual offences as part of an investigation by the South Wales Police Online Investigation Team. The investigation started when police received intelligence about suspicious online activity, involving the downloading of indecent images of children from the dark web. The offender was confirmed as 23-year-old Lewis Edwards from Bridgend and identified as a serving police officer. Following his arrest, Edwards was immediately suspended from duty and resigned. An accelerated misconduct hearing was held which delivered the sanction of dismissal. He has been added to the barred list,…

A warzone nurse from Merthyr Tydfil has completed nearly a million steps on the road back to fitness after treatment for breast cancer. Andrea Davies-Tuthill, 52, who was keen to regain her strength as she’s unable to exercise like she used to , was one of the stars of the popular S4C show, FFIT Cymru. Her battle to get fit and maintain healthy eating habits are not helped by the long shifts she works at the hospital and gruelling tours of duty with the Army which have included visits overseas to war-torn Afghanistan. Over seven weeks Andrea and the four…

Community groups in North Wales are being urged to bid for a slice of a special £25,000 fund set up to celebrate the 25th anniversary of a crime-fighting charity. Since being established in 1998 the North Wales Police and Community Trust (PACT) has given more than £2 million towards local initiatives across the region – appropriately, much of it cash seized from criminals and recycled for the public good. The organisation works closely with North Wales Police’s neighbourhood policing teams, particularly the network of Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs). Its main focus is to provide funding to community and voluntary…

A 19-year-old entrepreneur who hit the sweet spot in Penarth for her dietary-inclusive home-baked delights is now exploring mouth-watering business expansion alongside Big Ideas Wales. Meg Hitchen was 17 years old when she first launched Meggobakes from her family kitchen. Over a year later Meg’s completely customisable creations, once a simple sweet treat for family and friends, has expanded into a thriving business catering to loyal customers and corporate clients alike. During her first year of trading, Meg produced over 400 unique orders to clients across Wales, alongside supplying Wilmore’s 1938 with treats to tickle its customers’ tastebuds. Following such…

Care home owners in Torfaen have accused the local council of double-standards after they refused to fund pay rises for frontline Covid heroes. As a result the new rates announced by Torfaen Council are based on only 65 per cent of care workers receiving pay increases with the remaining 35 per cent left high and dry. They say that Torfaen Council have offered care homes a 7.5 per cent increase in funding at a time when food and heating inflation is running at over 20 per cent. At the same time they are paying more to their own in-house care…

Mostyn – a centre for contemporary visual art with Welsh roots – is excited to unveil its programme for Isdyfiant / Undergrowth, which blooms across Spring to late Summer 2023. The project aims to support and improve physical and mental health by allowing people to connect to the natural world through creative activities: a series of free events, which take place at the gallery’s home in Llandudno; a community-focused artists’ residency in Penmachno; and a closed health and wellbeing programme which will take place across North Wales. At Mostyn, Llandudno, there’s something for the naturally curious in a programme of…

Dear Editor  Volunteers Week takes place 1-7 June every year. It’s a chance to recognise the fantastic contribution volunteers make to our communities and to say ‘thank you’ to them.  The theme of Volunteers’ Week 2023 is ‘a time to celebrate and inspire’.  The aim is to highlight that our diversity is our strength, show that there’s more than one way to volunteer and encourage people to be the change that they want to see.  Volunteers play a vital role in the success of Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice – in fact, they make up a large percentage of our Tŷ Hafan family.   We have over 500 volunteers in a variety of roles and the contribution of each and every one of them is integral to our…