Author: Rhys Gregory

A four-wheel drive mobility service will launch at Parc Cefn Onn next year as work on a £660,000 project to conserve the parks heritage and improve access and facilities for visitors reaches completion. The new ‘Tramper’ service, is the final piece of the “Into the garden and beyond” project, part funded by a £454,000 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, that has delivered a range of improvements to the Grade 2 listed park in north Cardiff, including: a new boardwalk to improve accessibility. works to the ponds and waterways. improved signage and wayfinding. upgraded toilets and disabled changing facilities.…

A near £550m programme to modernise council homes in Swansea has seen thousands of tenants get new kitchens, bathrooms, home insulation and other energy-saving support. The 20-year Wales Housing Quality Standard (WHQS) programme has featured upgrades for 13,000 homes and local communities, creating and supporting hundreds of local jobs and apprenticeships. And the ambitious modernisation programme is set to enter a new phase in the coming years, aiming to make council houses even more energy-efficient and fit for a carbon net zero future. Andrea Lewis, Cabinet Member for Homes and Energy, said the achievements of the WHQS programme over the…

Plans for a £250m adventure resort in Port Talbot’s Afan Valley with a 50-bed hotel, spa, restaurant, viewing area, 570 lodges and biking and walking trails have taken a major step forward. On Tuesday (November 8th), members of Neath Port Talbot Council’s Planning Committee, which has already granted the project outline planning permission, approved a reserved matters application from developers Wildfox Resorts Afan Valley Ltd. The reserved matters involve outstanding details not covered in the original outline planning application including those relating to access, layout, landscaping, scale and appearance. The committee also approved a discharge of conditions application from Wildfox…

Applications for nursery aged placements starting in January 2023, and reception age placements starting in September 2023 at a new Welsh language primary school in Neath are now open. The newly refurbished Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Tregeles is located at the premises previously occupied by Neath Abbey Primary School at St John’s Terrace, Neath Abbey. Placements will open in a phased approach with nursery pupils starting at the school first in January 2023. Full capacity of the school will be reached in September 2029. When fully established, the school will have capacity for up to 210 full-time primary pupils and 45…

Caerphilly County Borough Council is appealing to residents, staff and local businesses for donations to support local foodbanks this festive season. Foodbanks provide emergency food and support to families and individuals who find themselves in financial crisis. They rely heavily upon donations, particularly over Christmas, and have seen demand for their support increase throughout the pandemic and as a result of the current cost of living crisis. The council is collecting cash donations as part of this year’s appeal to enable foodbanks to purchase the supplies they desperately need. Donations can be made online, via the Council’s website. For more…

Apprentice Evan Coombs, Laboratory Technician at PCI Pharma Tredegar, who has been shortlisted in the finals of the prestigious Apprenticeship Awards Cymru 2022. Evan joined the leading pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical global solutions business through the Aspire Blaenau Gwent Shared Apprenticeship Programme. Evan, 19, from Blaenavon, was a gold medallist in the Laboratory Technician category at the Skills Competition Wales earlier this year and has saved his employer time and money with the data he gathered for a continuous improvement project. Now Evan has been shortlisted for the Tomorrow’s Talent Award at the Apprenticeship Awards Cymru 2022. Winners will be announced…

Merthyr Tydfil residents and visitors will be treated to a ringside seat later this month when our latest homegrown boxing champion switches on the Christmas lights. British and Commonwealth lightweight champion Gavin Gwynne from Treharris will be at Redhouse Cymru on Saturday, November 19 to perform the duties at the first live switch-on in three years. 32-year-old Gavin, whose nickname is the Merthyr Mexican, secured his first major title in February 2021 when he became Commonwealth champion, and shortly afterwards beat Luke Willis to bring the vacant British title back to Wales. The Christmas Family Fun Day will inlcude a funfair, inflatable snow…

A footbridge near Machynlleth temporarily closed during COVID is to be closed permanently for public safety, Powys County Council has confirmed. The bridge over Afon Hengwm on footpath 260/40/1 at Hengwm Cyfeiliog near Machynlleth was closed during the COVID pandemic with the hope that it would re-open after repairs. But damage to bridge supports is so bad the structure could collapse, and the bridge must close permanently for public safety. Walkers will be diverted to another bridge crossing approximately 500m upstream along adjacent footpaths – the diversion will add approximately 890m onto the route. Cabinet Member for a Greener Powys,…

A tree growing programme aiming to tackle the climate emergency is celebrating after a landmark 20 million Welsh Government-funded trees were planted in Uganda. The Mbale Trees Programme – orchestrated by the long-standing Wales and Africa initiative – aims to plant 25 million trees by 2025 in the hilly, heavily deforested area of eastern Uganda in a bid to increase community resilience to the impacts of climate change. Working with the charity Size of Wales, the Mount Elgon Tree Growing Enterprise (METGE) and four other local NGOs, distribute free tree seedlings are distributed to local farmers and schools to be…

A group of experts want to hear your views on how to protect the future of our Welsh-speaking communities. The Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities was set up by the Welsh Government to make recommendations on how to help make sure all our Welsh-speaking communities can thrive. The call for evidence will be crucial to their report, which will make recommendations to the government. They are looking to hear from members of the public and organisations. The Commission wants to hear your views on all kinds of issues affecting Welsh-speaking communities, from housing and education to community development and regeneration. The…