Author: Rhys Gregory

You get the sense that it is now or never for Belgium at the Qatar World Cup. Having come third in the 2018 tournament, the European powerhouse looked to have had the perfect blend of potential and experience, with Vincent Kompany’s side just 90 minutes away from the final. However, a defeat to France ensured they would miss the big night in Moscow, and now as Roberto Martinez leads an ageing side to the Middle East, you wonder if their Golden Generation can live up to the hype for those making a World Cup 2022 bet. The likes of Thibaut…

RHUG ESTATE is stepping into Christmas with a series of fun festive events for all the family. The popular organic farm estate, based near Corwen in North Wales, is celebrating the yuletide holidays with more activities and attractions than ever before. Father Christmas will pay Lord Newborough and the team a visit on Sunday December 11 for breakfast and afternoon tea at a specially prepared Santa’s Diner. In between you’ll find him in his grotto handing out gifts to children from across the region. On Thursday December 15 a carol service will take place at Rhug Chapel, there is to…

Earlier this month (Tuesday 6 December) leading Welsh entertainers including ‘It’s a Sin’ star Callum Scott Howells and Steve Speirs of ‘The Tuckers’ thrilled a sell-out audience at Cardiff’s David’s Hall, headlining the charity’s Christmas 2022 fundraising concert.  This came hot on the heels of Tŷ Hafan’s #WhenYourWorldStops fundraising appeal which netted £342,922 in just 60 hours, totally smashing its appeal target of £250,000.  Maria Timon Samra, Chief Executive of Tŷ Hafan, said: “Following a very challenging couple of years, it has been a phenomenal couple of weeks for the charity. First our #WhenYourWorldStops fundraising appeal raised an incredible £342,922, almost £80,000 more than our original target.  “And just…

A nurse who turned to poetry as a way of coping during the pandemic has had his heartfelt words published in his own book. Michael Jenkins used his experiences as an emergency department nurse as inspiration for a number of his poems. Despite always having an interest in poetry, it was only during the pandemic that Michael put pen to paper. He has since written around 100 poems, many of which detail what it’s like to be a nurse and care for patients in a high-pressured environment. “I’ve always had an interest in poetry since I was a child but…

The headline NatWest Wales Business Activity Index – a seasonally adjusted index that measures the month-on-month change in the combined output of the region’s manufacturing and service sectors – registered 49.8 in November, up from 49.1 in October to signal broadly unchanged levels of output. The slower downturn was linked to a less marked contraction in new business during the month. Alongside firms in the North East, Welsh companies registered the joint-highest headline index reading, with the UK average indicating a modest decrease in business activity. Welsh businesses recorded a fourth successive monthly decline in new orders during November. Where…

THE number of pupils attending extra-curricular activities designed to support their health and wellbeing has surged in past months. Ysgol Eirias has introduced designated weeks where Areas of Learning and Experience can host innovative activities and events to encourage learning and mindfulness outside of school hours. Led by Assistant Headteacher Alex Metcalfe, the sessions are held on-site in Colwyn Bay, but wellbeing trips and educational overseas visits are also in the pipeline to build a stronger culture of togetherness post-pandemic. As well as sporting activities and fixtures utilising their outstanding facilities, there will be cooking and nutrition lessons that will…

Young kidney patients and their families have enjoyed a long-awaited Christmas treat thanks to Swansea-based kidney charity, Popham Kidney Support, and a donation of £1,000 made by the charity’s corporate sponsor, Swansea Building Society. The donation was originally made in 2021 to the kidney charity’s Christmas Day Out Appeal, which offers young people cared for at the Children’s Kidney Centre and their families the opportunity to enjoy a festive day out together. Last year’s event was planned to be a trip to see Beauty and The Beast in the Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff. Unfortunately, due to the emergence of new…

Krazy Races, the popular, free to attend national soapbox derby has today confirmed that Wales Air Ambulance, will become it’s headline charity partner for the event which is set to take over Swansea on Sunday 18th June 2023. The national award winning soapbox derby event that sees a mixture of local and business teams, build and race weird & wacky soapboxes through the centre of Towns & cities while raising money for local charities has seen nearly 50,000 people coming out to support the free to attend events when Krazy Races visited Shropshire, Cheshire and Wolverhampton City Centre this Summer.…

Local and award-winning housebuilder, St. Modwen Homes, has offered a helping hand by donating a generous £8,000 to Llamau charity – an organisation that aims to prevent homelessness for young people and vulnerable women in Wales. Llamau supports young people and women who are experiencing homelessness by supplying homely, communal accommodation. Set up to promote independent living, socialising, and the development of life skills, these spaces are completely subsidised by the charity, which relies on donations to fund its important work. St. Modwen Homes’ donation will be utilised to renovate two of the local supported accommodation’s garden spaces, which are…

The RSPCA is inviting people to help mend broken hearts as it launches its Christmas video. The film named Heart – made in-house and starring the charity’s staff who gave up their own time for filming – features a beautiful, exclusive cover of Blondie’s Heart of Glass by Gabrielle Aplin. The clip tells the story of an injured and abandoned dog who is helped to safety by an RSPCA rescuer before his life is transformed by love and care. The video was created by the RSPCA’s small in-house video production team Alan Laxton and Lewis Jones, with help from Lewis’s…