Author: Rhys Gregory

Mark Buchanan, 42, who was involved in a large-scale drugs network, has been jailed for 16 years, following an investigation by Tarian, the southern Wales Regional Organised Crime Unit. Buchanan, a courier travelling from Liverpool, was arrested on September 23 2022, on the M5 near Birmingham. Buchanan is a Liverpool based member of an organised crime group supplying drugs into Wales and the South West. 7kgs of cocaine, worth approximately £700K was located in a front passenger seat bulkhead when the vehicle was searched. Buchanan’s vehicle was adapted to hide the substances within the rear floor of the van and…

Wales’ first high street-based community repair and reuse outlet in Newport has reported saving customers over £30k in its first year. Since opening just 12 months ago, RE:MAKE Café in Newport has proved to be a successful location for people to meet friends, learn new skills, and embrace a sustainable lifestyle. It has also saved customers more than £30k by offering them the chance to borrow items from their ‘library of things’, which includes everything from carpet cleaners to pressure washers. Project Manager, Katie Bellaris, who works at RE:MAKE Newport said: “We initially launched RE:MAKE as a place for people…

A bakery with 40 new jobs up for grabs is helping staff to combat the cost of living crisis with tasty perks and a pledge to pay at least the Real Living Wage. The Wrexham-based Jones Village Bakery has signed up to a loyalty scheme which means its 800 staff can get discounts of up to six per cent on their weekly supermarket shop at the likes of Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Asda. Also available are cut price deals for holidays, gym membership, meals in restaurants, trips to the cinema and a host of other everyday items. On top of…

A historic library commemorating a political giant of the Victorian era is having its priceless collection preserved for future generations in cyber space. Gladstone’s Library in Hawarden, the UK’s only prime ministerial library, was set up in the 1880s with a bequest from the Grand Old Man of Victorian politics, four-time Liberal prime minister William Gladstone. Now 140 years later thousands of books and documents housed in the Grade One-listed building, including Gladstone’s own collection, are being stored on the Cloud with the help of Rawson IT, part of Wrexham-based business communications and equipment company Rawson Digital. The Library’s treasures…

Community centres in Conwy are being opened up to people struggling with heating and food bills because of the cost of living crisis. Soup and rolls along with cups of tea and coffee are being provided free of charge in the Warm Welcome/Croeso Cynnes centres located across the county. Housing association Cartrefi Conwy and its subsidiary, Creating Enterprise, are managing the scheme in the community centres they run. They are working closely with Conwy County Borough Council who are making their libraries available as well, along with other housing associations and organisations in other parts of North Wales.  The community…

This year’s most exceptional Welsh business leaders have been named at the Great British Entrepreneur Awards 2022 Grand Final. The programme, in partnership with Starling Bank, has recognised the UK’s most inspiring entrepreneurial success stories for a decade and developed a community-oriented network of alumni which grows year on year. The ceremony was held at Grosvenor House in London and saw 1,400 entrepreneurs and colleagues join together to celebrate a collective £2 billion generated in turnover and over 17,000 jobs. 12 Wales-based entrepreneurs went home with prizes in categories from Health & Beauty and Sustainability to Family Business and the…

The doors to a beautifully decorated 13th century castle in Welshpool will stay open late for visitors this Christmas. After a year of planning and a month of decorating, the team at Powis Castle and Garden are excited to open a ‘Treasured Christmas’ in the castle from 3 December. As a special treat this year, visitors will be able to see the castle lit up inside and outside until the later time of 7pm from Saturday 3 to Sunday 18 December. Sarah Johnson, Visitor Operations and Experience Manager, said: “We started thinking about this Christmas display before Christmas last year…

Market Dynamics, a pioneering fintech start-up on a mission to democratise systematic trading for retail financial traders, has moved its operations to Brigantine Place, Cardiff following equity investment from the Development Bank of Wales. Market Dynamics unlocks systematic trading for new traders and all those not able to code, simplifying a formerly complex process. Their intuitive visual-based app allows traders to build, test and trade using fully automated strategies without writing a single line of code. The company recently closed a pre-seed round of £520,000 led by the Development Bank alongside a cohort of strategic angels, including Bebo co-founder Paul…

NATIONAL homebuilder Redrow has scooped two accolades at the WhatHouse? Awards, known as the ‘Oscars’ of the housebuilding industry. The Flintshire based business scooped a silver award in the Best Large Housebuilder category, beating tough competition from larger developers, and just missing out on gold to Berkeley Group. Its Saxon Woods development in Devon – the UK’s first-ever pollinator-friendly housing development – claimed a bronze award in the Best Public Realm category for its wildflower planting, bumblebee trail and support for wildlife. Judges said: “Redrow has a sense of place and space that intuitively gives its developments a premium feel.…

Cardiff’s Bute Park employees have been crowned ‘Team of the Year’ in this years’ Green Flag ‘UK Best of the Best’ awards. The Green Flag ‘UK Best of the Best’ awards recognises the exceptional teams and individuals who work tirelessly to make their parks and green spaces fantastic places for everyone to enjoy. Team Bute Park received the ‘Team of the Year’ accolade at a virtual ceremony on Tuesday 15 November. Since 2010 the dedicated team at Bute Park have transformed and restored an underutilized space into the vibrant green heart of Cardiff that it’s known as today. With yearly…