Author: Rhys Gregory

Cardiff’s multi-million pound investment in education, including new schools and improvements to existing school buildings, has been outlined in a new report published this week. The Annual Report onInvestment in the Education Estateprovides an update on the progress of investment across the city and next steps of future investment. Since 2012 Cardiff Council and Welsh Government have worked collaboratively to deliver a major, long-term and strategic, capital investment programme with the aim of creating a generation of excellent zero carbon learning facilities at the heart of the community. Band A of the Sustainable Communities for Learning Investment Programme (formerly known…

People are being asked for their views on a proposed Neath Port Talbot Council budget for 2023/24 which is focused on protecting hundreds of vital services and safeguarding jobs. The council’s Cabinet will be asked for permission to consult on the proposals at its meeting on Thursday, January 19th. Although the provisional settlement from the Welsh Government last month was welcomed because it was better than expected, the council is still left with a huge 2023/24 funding gap of £23.867m. The proposed budget has been drawn up against a background of the Ukraine War, the Covid pandemic and Brexit. The…

An update has been provided on the embankment repairs at Ynysybwl Road in Glyn-coch. The newly-appointed contractor will complete a week of works on site from January 16 to inform the final scheme, scheduled for this spring. Major embankment stabilisation is required at this location following several unauthorised and illegal excavations of land, which removed the support to the road above. Traffic lights have remained in place on the southbound lane of B4273 Ynysybwl Road, while the footway closest to the embankment has been brought out of use – to ensure the safety of road users and pedestrians. The scheme…

Caerphilly County Borough Council is beginning preparations to develop a new later living scheme on the site of the former Ty Darran care home in Risca. Work has now begun to prepare the site, including measures to protect trees and clearance of vegetation.  Site investigations are then planned, before demolition of the existing building takes place at the end of January. When completed, the new scheme will be used to relocate existing Council contract holders from sheltered housing schemes in the locality that have been programmed for closure. The building will be designed with high levels of energy efficiency to…

MonLife’s award-winning Youth Service is gearing up for another successful year after recently securing a Bronze Quality Mark for Youth Work in Wales. The Youth Service received the Welsh Government accolade following a week-long assessment of its services in October 2022, with the award officially given on the 17th of November 2022. The Quality Mark is awarded to organisations and service providers who meet a range of criteria as set out by gold, silver and bronze standards and supports the aims and objectives of the ‘Youth Work Strategy for Wales.’ The Quality Mark is regarded as being the only system…

Education Minister Jeremy Miles has announced funding for university mental health and wellbeing services. The funding will help address cost of living crisis facing learners and students of all ages. It will improve and promote money advice services in higher education, including for those moving from college or school to higher education. It will also help support students facing financial pressures by extending hardship funding. The funding has been provided to the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW) and aims to benefit university students and those moving into higher education. HEFCW will be asking universities and colleges to work…

Run 4 Wales (R4W) and London Marathon Events (LME) have announced an innovative new partnership which brings together the leading mass-participation events organisations in England and Wales, which deliver the most iconic running events in their respective countries, but who also share a common social agenda with an emphasis on inspiring running and activity for adults and children. R4W was set up in 2012 to promote, manage and deliver world class sporting events in Wales with a positive social impact, championing mental health, women’s running, community regeneration, volunteering, fundraising and environmental sustainability. Its profits are passed to its parent charity, the…

Young people across the UK have been given an exciting opportunity to win funding to help tackle climate change as part of a ground-breaking initiative from the Woodland Trust. The Youth Innovation Competition offers young people the chance to secure part of a £20,000 prize to support their own environmental projects. The competition comes against the backdrop of an alarming Met Office announcement that 2022 was the warmest year in the UK on record, highlighting the desperate need for climate change action. Nine individuals or small groups (aged between 16-25) will win up to £5,000 project funding each, along with…

This week, Dr George Rose is graduating with his PhD from University of South Wales (USW). His research, into pre-surgery exercise tests has uncovered important findings for clinical practice. In collaboration with Cardiff and Vale University Health Board Department of Anaesthetics and supervised by Professor Damian Bailey, Dr Rose analysed over a decade of patient data to better identify and guide care for patients who may be at high risk of dying or having complications after surgery. Testing the fitness of patients is often used in hospitals to assess suitability for major surgery by recording the performance of the heart…

Parents living in Cardiff who have decided to separate or divorce in 2023 are being urged to find out how to avoid courtroom confrontation to settle money and parenting arrangements, with the launch of Family Mediation Week, 16 – 20 January. January usually sees a dramatic rise in the number of parents deciding to live apart, or to start the separation or divorce process, as the various pressures that go hand-in-hand with the Christmas period act as a final straw for relationships. Jane Robey, CEO of National Family Mediation (NFM), the largest provider of family mediation in England and Wales,…