Author: Rhys Gregory

Living Streets Cymru, part of the UK charity behind the biggest walk to school campaign is encouraging families to leave the car at home as schools return. With rising fuel prices and cost of living, the charity is advocating walking to school to save money while also getting more active. It comes as a recently published report revealed that Wales’ children are amongst the most inactive in the world with just half of 3-17-year-olds exercising the recommended 60 minutes a day. The ‘2021 Active Healthy Kids Wales Report Card suggested the situation has worsened since the pandemic. Currently, fewer than…

Zip World, the adventure company best known for the world’s fastest zip line, is offering an hour of FREE adventures to families local to their four Wales-based adventure parks every Saturday during the month of September 2022. The new initiative is in response to the financial difficulties brought about by the pandemic combined with the cost-of-living crisis. Families who feel they need help can claim free tickets for any of the 15 Zip World adventures on offer. Zip World’s Commercial Director Andrew Hudson said: “All families are having to make difficult choices right now about what they can and can’t…

Mass strandings of pilot whales may be linked to disruption to their family groups new research has suggested. Recent genetic analysis in both the northern and southern hemisphere by a team including academics from Aberystwyth University challenges existing thinking as to the role of social behaviours in mass strandings of these animals. Mass stranding events in cetaceans – a group of marine mammals including the whale, dolphin and porpoise – have been reported since the times of Aristotle and there has been a long drive to understand what causes them. Long-finned pilot whales – a gregarious species with complex social…

As part of the charity’s Cancel Out Cruelty campaign, the RSPCA has revealed it received more than 100 reports of animals being abandoned every single day throughout 2021 and sadly these figures are on the rise this year. A total of 38,087 abandonment reports were made to the charity’s cruelty line last year across England and Wales – an average of over 3,000 reports a month, 104 a day or four abandoned animals every hour. In Wales there were 2,509 abandoned animals reported to the RSPCA in 2021. This included 279 alone in Rhondda Cynon Taff, 191 in Caerphilly and…

Cardiff’s Summer of Fun continues to keep thousands of children and their families amused, educated and active and a series of camps at Ysgol Glantaf in north Cardiff saw around 150 young people try their hand at a wide range of sports. The programme – a series of organised events during the school holidays funded by the City Council – includes free-to-attend events throughout the city, all designed to appeal to youngsters of all ages and abilities. The sports camps at Glantaf were run by Wales’ largest youth organisation Urdd Gobaith Cymru whose coaches guided around 50 youngsters a day…

Visitors to Aberafan Shopping Centre will be greeted with a full-size replica of a Battle of Britain Mk I/II Supermarine Spitfire plane next month. The striking exhibit will be at the Centre from Monday 5 to Friday 9 September during the Wales and the Battle of Britain Touring Exhibition, which tells the story of Wales’s contribution in the largest air battle ever recorded. Visitors to the event will be able to find out more about the Spitfire – one of the most important aircraft in history, the Battle of Britain and World War 2, as there will be an educator…

Rhondda Cynon Taf Cabinet will next week consider proposals for the Council to provide an overall funding package of £2.89million, to further support local families and residents who are likely to be affected by the Cost of Living crisis. A report to Cabinet at their meeting on Tuesday, September 6, will provide details of a proposed local Supplementary (Discretionary) Cost of Living Support Scheme. The report proposes four specific areas of support as part of the Scheme, alongside implementation arrangements and timescales, and if agreed the Scheme will be progressed by Council Officers. The proposed Scheme would be on top…

RHA Wales will build thirteen affordable apartments at 122-126 Dunraven Street in Tonypandy town centre. The empty site was previously commercial premises on the ground floor with residential accommodation above. The building was demolished after being damaged by a fire. Rhondda Cynon Taf Council provided £148k to RHA Wales from Welsh Government’s Targeted Regeneration Investment (TRI) programme to pay for demolition work. The site occupies a prominent location in the town centre. The Council identified the site as a strategic priority for the wider Tonypandy town centre regeneration plan. Regeneration of the site will visually improve the town centre and…

Newport Market is hosting a recruitment fair on 21 September in partnership with Newport City Council, Job Centre Plus and Restart Newport. It follows a similar successful event in Newport Centre in May when more than 40 employers showcased their vacancies. Employers from all sectors are due to attend the September recruitment fair including some of the largest in South Wales. Newport Market is an ideal venue, offering excellent facilities and a great city centre location close to public transport links with public car parks a short walk away. The event will take place between 10am and 2pm. To register…

Following the driest five-month period in more than 40 years, Natural Resources Wales have extended the drought warning announced earlier this month for Pembrokeshire and parts of Carmarthenshire, to cover all of South and Mid Wales. While this may sound worrying, there are currently no concerns about drinking water supply and Public Health Wales is keen to reassure people that they can continue to drink water and wash, as well as use water more generally for cooking and cleaning as usual. The decision to move these areas from prolonged dry weather status to drought status was agreed following the meeting…