Author: Rhys Gregory

Midtec, one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of chimney cowls and flue systems has completed the construction of 2500 square feet of additional manufacturing space at Capel Hendre Industrial Estate near Ammanford, using a £220,000 loan from the Development Bank of Wales. Formed in 2003 by Managing Director, Trefor Jenkins, Midtec first benefitted from investment from the Development Bank in 2005. They have since had several rounds of funding from the Development Bank to support growth plans and the next generation is looking to the future with the new additional space being used to house a state of the art…

A 500 year-old oak tree in Monmouthshire is among the unique specimens in the running to be crowned the prestigious winner of the Woodland Trust’s Tree of the Year for 2022. Tree experts at the Woodland Trust and members of the public have selected a shortlist of 12 trees from around the UK, all which have all been recorded on the Trust’s ‘hall of fame’ for ancient trees, the Ancient Tree Inventory (ATI). The annual Tree of the Year competition celebrates these living legends; the Woodland Trust’s panel picked favourites from an original cast of hundreds highlighted by eagle-eyed volunteers since the…

University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD) has launched a grant to offer current students and alumni support to develop their business ideas.  The Futures Fund Entrepreneurship Start-Up Grant will award funding of up to £500 if applicants can demonstrate how financial assistance will help them on their journey to starting a small business or becoming a freelancer. This could be to assist with the purchase of materials, create a website or cover the costs of professional services, such as legal advice. Applicants receive a business planning session with an Enterprise Team member to explore their idea in greater depth…

After a two-year delay, farmer Iestyn Meddins and fellow members of Côr Meibion Machynlleth are embarking on a mammoth 250-mile cycle ride this month to raise money for the Bronglais Chemo Appeal. Iestyn, 45, is organising Le Tour de Côr to support his wife Dr Elin Jones, who is locum consultant oncologist at Bronglais Hospital and is the Clinical Lead for the planned new chemotherapy day unit. And among the cyclists taking part is Mallwyd farmer Geraint Morgans, who was treated by Dr Elin after being admitted to Bronglais Hospital, aged 37, with suspected appendicitis but found to have bowel…

RSPCA Aberconwy Branch’s Llandudno charity shop is sadly prone to being targeted in the night by people taking donations away with them, throwing items all over the pavement, urinating on them and even trying to set fire to them. The charity is extremely grateful for donations and welcomes them to be left outside the Mostyn Avenue shop inside a donation bin – but, on occasions, items are being left on the floor which the charity are not even able to accept and struggle to dispose of. North Wales Police have been informed of the issues and have stepped up patrols.…

A major campaign has been launched to recruit more police officers in North Wales. The drive is being spearheaded by Chief Superintendent Sian Beck who has just started a new role in charge of local policing across the region. She is keen to get the message out that being a police officer is a great career with  “amazing job satisfaction”. The window for applications is open from August 18 to August 29 and details can be found on the North Wales Police website www.northwales.police.uk Chief Supt Beck, a mother-of-one, said: “It’s a fantastic job with a whole range of career…

A talented singer and choral conductor whose passion is sharing her love of music with her local community has been honoured with a top award. Jenny Pearson is the first ever recipient of the new Pendine Arts and Community Trust Award for Music announced at the prestigious 2022 annual Welsh Music Guild awards ceremony in Cardiff. Jenny works extensively across North Wales as a bilingual freelance singer, choral conductor, singing teacher, vocal animateur and workshop facilitator for many organisations including the pioneering Pendine Park care organisation, Welsh National Opera, National Youth Choir of Wales, Only Boys Aloud, NEW Sinfonia Voices…

Bellway Strategic Land officially launched its South West and Wales region at an exclusive event in Bristol. The homebuilder, which relaunched its strategic land business unit last year, now has teams working on medium to long-term land opportunities across all of England, Scotland and Wales. In the South West and Wales, Bellway’s team of land development experts are already working with landowners and agents to plan sustainable new communities in line with Local Plan priorities set out by councils across the region. The newly-formed team welcomed guests to a reception in Glass Wharf, Bristol, last week where land agents, landowners…

WJ Group, the market-leading road marking and safety business, has made a further acquisition, expanding into the Welsh market by acquiring Nolan Roadmarking Ltd. Nolan, an established road marking business serving South Wales providing a range of services including anti-skid surfacing, road crack and joint repairs, road studs, car park marking and solutions for sports courts and playgrounds and is the first investment that WJ Group has made in Wales, further expanding WJ Group’s coverage of the UK’s Road networks. The acquisition, which completed on the 2nd of August 2022, is the fourth acquisition by WJ Group in the last…

An authority that plays a leading role in the education, training, development and shaping of the healthcare workforce in Wales has begun offering bilingual apprenticeships to its employees. Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) was established in 2018 to sit alongside health boards and trusts as part of NHS Wales and employs 570 staff. HEIW is tasked with ensuring that the right staff have the right skills to deliver world-class healthcare to the people of Wales. Huw Owen, HEIW’s Welsh Language Services manager, reports that the number of staff wishing to learn the language is increasing and more young people…