Author: Rhys Gregory

The second International Media Festival of Wales (IMFW) took place at University of Wales Trinity Saint David’s (UWTSD) Yr Egin building in Carmarthen last week, to celebrate and elevate local and international media talent. The festival, only in its second year and run by UWTSD Filmmaking Lecturer Brett Aggersberg, included a variety of submission categories, including Drone, Adventure, Animation, and Virtual Reality, among others. The Festival received submissions from countries including France, the United States, Kuwait, China, and New Zealand, as well as a large amount of films by UWTSD students and members of the local south Wales media industry.…

LORD NEWBOROUGH has again been nominated for one of the most prestigious entrepreneurship titles in the country. The owner of the sprawling 12,500-acre Rhug Estate, located near Corwen in Denbighshire, has made it to the final of the Unretirement Entrepreneur of the Year category at The Great British Entrepreneur Awards. This accolade specifically recognises individuals who have surpassed conventional expectations and pursued their entrepreneurial passions during what is typically considered retirement. Last year, Lord Newborough received a prize at the ceremony for the remarkable success of Rhug’s sought-after organic Wild Beauty collection, which is crafted from natural ingredients sourced on-site.…

A well-known women’s fashion shop on Mumbles seafront has been able to develop an online presence, thanks to a funding boost. Helen Bowden, the new owner of Solo on Mumbles Road, successfully applied to Swansea Council for a business growth grant being funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. Helen took over the ownership of the business in the summer following the retirement of her friend and Solo founder Lynne Kettles, who had run the business for 40 years. The funding from the council has now helped Solo invest in an online retail shop and live…

A priceless collection of photos showing Swansea more than half a century ago is now in the safekeeping of Swansea Museum. The evocative images show the area in the 1960s and 1970s – around the time it became a city. They were all taken by celebrated artist George Little who died in 2017, aged 89. His widow Carolyn, of Caswell, has gifted them the Swansea Council-run museum for the good of people across the city. Council cabinet member Elliott King said: “George Little’s photo archive is a beautiful collection of important imagery. “It’ll be valuable to local people now and…

Swansea is once again coming together to spread some festive cheer to people in need at a very special Christmas event. JR Events and Catering, with support from Swansea Council, is throwing open the doors of the Brangwyn Hall on Tuesday December 5 to dish up a free two-course Christmas dinner for people in Swansea who are vulnerable, feel isolated or may be homeless. Lasting from noon until 3pm, the Together at Christmas event will also see representatives from a range of services and charities providing information on assistance available. It comes as more support than ever is in place…

St David’s Dewi Sant Cardiff has appointed City Hospice as its charity of the year for 2023/2024, supporting the vital palliative care and counselling services that City Hospice provides to the local community. City Hospice, Cardiff’s local hospice, is the only provider of home-based specialist palliative care in the capital. In addition to providing care and services including welfare advice and complementary therapies to patients with terminal or life limiting illnesses, the charity offers counselling and support services for their families. The charity needs to raise £2million each year to provide their services free of charge and the work would…

A small and dedicated team of helpful staff at the heart of Pembrokeshire County Council has been celebrating two decades of providing information and assistance to the public. The Council’s Contact Centre is often the first port of call for residents and visitors to Pembrokeshire to access the many services offered by the Local Authority. The team answer around 21,000 telephone calls a month plus about 3,600 digital enquiries on anything from parking and pest control to weddings and waste and recycling. “The contact centre strives to provide an excellent service to our residents, dealing with phone calls, emails, webchat…

County Hall will be lit in purple today (Tuesday 7th November) in support of Purple Tuesday – a day dedicated to improving the customer experience for disabled people and their families. Purple Tuesday – which is celebrated annually – aims to make organisations aware of the numerous commercial and social opportunities available to them once they become more disability inclusive. The day also promotes the Purple Pound, which refers to the spending power of disabled people and their families. In the UK alone it was most recently estimated to be worth a staggering £274 billion and is said to be…

RCT Council has announced that a £1 maximum single fare for all bus journeys that start and end in Rhondda Cynon Taf will be applied for the whole of December 2023 – providing cheaper travel this festive period. Subsidised bus travel was successfully provided for a six-week period earlier this year, between July 24 and September 3. Following a recent delegated officer decision, the offer will be repeated next month using a further allocation from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund secured by the Council for 2023/24. During the previous six-week offer, local bus operators reported a positive experience to the…

Minister for Climate Change Julie James will today (Tuesday, November 7) announce the Help to Stay Wales mortgage support scheme, a new funding package for Welsh homeowners having difficulty paying their mortgage. With rising interest rates, energy costs and cost-of-living expenses, not being able to meet mortgage repayments is a reality many homeowners are facing. As part of the Co-operation Agreement between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru, a commitment was made to explore Local Authority Mortgages. The Help to Stay Wales Scheme has been considered as part of discussions about the mortgage market and how we can provide targeted…