Author: Rhys Gregory

An exhibition telling the story of Wales’s contribution in the largest air battle ever recorded is coming to Port Talbot this autumn. The Wales and the Battle of Britain Touring Exhibition was created by the RAF’s Air Historical Branch (Dr Lynsey Shaw) together with Air Commodore Adrian Williams, Air Officer Wales, and his team, to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Unfortunately due to COVID the planned tour could not take place at the time. When restrictions eased it was felt that the story of the Battle of Britain told from a Welsh perspective was so important…

The Cabinet of Bridgend County Borough Council has confirmed that resurfacing works for the local highways network will continue as planned despite recent inflationary increases in material, labour and machinery costs. The commitment follows concerns raised by one of the council’s contractors, Centre Great Ltd, over a number of recent cost increases triggered by national and global events such as steep rises in oil and fuel prices. With Bridgend County Borough Council intending to invest more than £5m into highway resurfacing works over the course of this specific contract, the increase amounts to 8.93 per cent or an additional £446,500.…

Bridgend Indoor Market is set to host events and activities this summer ranging from free activities for children to pop-up stalls from new businesses. Every Tuesday throughout August, a Kids Club will take place between 11am – 2pm to keep children entertained with free arts, crafts creative play sessions. The Kids Club sessions will begin on 2 August when Tanio Cymru holds a ‘Create Art With Nature’ event. Alison Moger will visit the market on both 9 August and 16 August to host ‘Flower Power Crafts’, and the last Kids Club of the month will culminate with Circus Eruption’s ‘The…

Motorcyclists are invited to sign up to a free enhanced riders training course to help improve their riding skills and the safety of Powys roads. Powys County Council’s Road Safety team are providing these courses free of charge to any motorcyclists who live in Powys or use Powys’ roads, with funding from the Welsh Government. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) Enhanced Rider Scheme is suitable for full motorbike licence holders who want to improve their riding skills, for those returning to riding after a break, riders who have just passed their test, people upgrading to a more powerful…

Sessions to provide children and young people with healthy meals and educational activities are back on the menu this summer with the return of Food and Fun. The Welsh Government has provided up to £4.85m for the provision of Food and Fun which is run by the WLGA in schools over the summer holidays. The sessions offer children and young people a healthy breakfast and lunch, physical activity and enrichment sessions, and information on food and nutrition. The scheme is aimed at providing support to those from disadvantaged areas, and this year the funding is expected to provide around 8,000…

Andreas Christou is a 27-year-old award-winning restaurateur with two Italian restaurants in Wales — and later this summer, he will open his latest branch in Merthyr Tydfil. Casa Bianca, which boasts sister restaurants in Abergavenny and Monmouth, is expected to open on the corner of Glebeland Street and High Street Merthyr Tydfil by late summer 2022 — providing a new lease of life for one of the town’s empty historical buildings. The new venture has been made possible by an investment from the Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns Placemaking scheme, delivered in conjunction with Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. Proud winners…

Welsh racer Matthew Rees claimed a trio of top-ten finishes in the GB3 Championship at Silverstone over the weekend (July 30/31), scoring a valuable haul of points as he aims for a strong finish to the season. In a tight qualifying session where just 0.351s separated the BRDC SuperStar from the pole sitter, fine margins made all the difference, with the 17-year-old disappointed not to bank a stronger lap time on the challenging Silverstone Grand Prix circuit. The JHR Developments driver was eager to score good points in the first race of the weekend and that he achieved by scoring…

Work has commenced at a new all-through school in Abergavenny, with Morgan Sindall Construction selected as the main contractor for the £61m development. The rebuild will replace the existing King Henry VIII High School and combine it with the Deri View Primary School to create a single 1,900 place all-through school for three to 19-year-olds. Plans for the school were put before councillors earlier this year when the existing comprehensive school’s building was considered for replacement. The new facility is part of the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme (formerly 21stCentury Schools Programme), a long-term investment to improve buildings…

The Llanelli Rotary Club has raised £7,000 for the Ty Bryngwyn Hospice in Llanelli thanks to generous match-funding from Swansea Building Society. The funds were raised by Llanelli Rotary Club when it hosted a James Bond themed charity ball at the Diplomat Hotel in Llanelli. The amount raised on the night came to just under £3,500. Swansea Building Society, with branch offices in Swansea, Mumbles, Carmarthen and Cowbridge, then more-than match-funded the amount, bringing the total to £7,000. Speaking at the event was the outgoing Llanelli Rotary President and current Chairman of Swansea Building Society, Ieuan Griffiths. During his speech,…

More than half of the homes at Bellway’s Heron’s Mead development in Newport have now been completed. Bellway is building a total of 152 homes on the former Llanwern steelworks site off Queen’s Way, comprising 137 properties for private sale and 15 affordable homes for shared ownership or rent. Residents have now moved into all 99 homes built at the site so far, which includes 87 private houses and 12 affordable homes. A further 22 properties have been reserved off plan ahead of their completion. Heron’s Mead comprises a mix of detached, semi-detached, and terraced properties ranging from two to…