Author: Rhys Gregory

Local brewer Little Goat is busy bottling ahead of their first appearance at foodie festival favourite the Cowbridge Food and Drink Festival, which will take place over the Easter Bank Holiday Weekend (17-18 April). Based in Ynysmeudwy, the home-based brewery – which produces a range of core beers and limited-edition bottles and brews – is very much a family affair, set up and run by Mark Wallace and son-in-law Steffan James, and supported by Mark’s wife Annette and their daughter Eleri who is married to Steffan. Established in 2018, the team has created a thriving business during difficult times, which…

With employers from all sectors across Wales facing a recruitment crisis, CIPD Wales has launched a first-of-its-kind campaign to help plug the shortfall by matching thousands of potential jobseekers with businesses. Wales’ jobless figure currently stands at a near record low of 3.1% and almost every sector is reporting staffing shortages as the country emerges from the pandemic. This campaign will work with some of the most disadvantaged groups in society, including young people, carers, ex-offenders and those who are experiencing or have experienced homelessness. Hidden in Plain Sight will encourage people into or back into the workplace and help…

The first business conference and exhibition to be held in the new Swansea Arena took place on March 17, bringing 2500 people, 125 exhibitors and 20 speakers together to celebrate and showcase the best of Swansea City Centre. Big news released at the event included council leader Rob Stewart’s announcement of plans for a new aquarium on the seafront and a potential hydrogen ferry link with Devon and Cornwall, and an announcement from Penderyn Whisky director Nigel Short that his housebuilding company, Short Brothers Homes, is setting up a new charitable foundation for the city – The Swansea Bay Foundation. Carrying…

After the disruption of the last two years plans are being made for the return of the Montgomery Canal Triathlon, the canal’s biggest event of the year, in its tenth year. The Triathlon is organised by the Friends of the Montgomery Canal and is supported by the Canal & River Trust in aid of the restoration of the Montgomery Canal. It is one of the most popular cross border events, starting in Newtown in Wales and ending in Shropshire. This annual event supports the restoration of the canal and ran for eight years before the coronavirus in 2020 caused a…

RCT Cabinet Members have agreed to progress proposals to build a brand new £9m primary school for the community of Glyn-coch – having considered the outcome of a recent public consultation. At the Cabinet meeting on Monday, March 21, Members considered a report which presented the feedback received from the public in relation to the proposals – which would amalgamate Cefn Primary and Craig yr Hesg Primary by 2026 and build a new school to serve the catchment area of both existing schools. The proposal is to build the new school on the current Craig yr Hesg Primary site and land…

With the cost of living crisis impacting thousands of people across Wales now is the time to check what discounts, exemptions and other support you may be entitled to. You may be eligible for support if you are: Living alone A carer A care leaver A student Living with a disability Living with a severe mental impairment Receiving Universal Credit or a legacy benefit Find out about the Council Tax Reduction Scheme. Visit: www.gov.wales/pay-less-council-tax  to find out if you are eligible.

The way people work has significantly changed since the pandemic and the Welsh Government is keen to do all it can to help lock in the positive benefits experienced by many and encourage more businesses to adopt this new approach to working. In a strategy published today the Welsh Government sets out its plans to work with businesses, trade unions and key stakeholders to help more employers to adopt a more agile and flexible approach within their workplace, so that employees can make a choice on the way they work, whether that’s locally from a shared work space, from home,…

Wales will continue to gradually relax some of its remaining pandemic protections, First Minister Mark Drakeford will announce later today. From Monday, face coverings will no longer be required by law in retail settings and on public transport, though they will continue to be recommended in public health advice. And the requirement to self-isolate will also move into guidance. A £500 self-isolation payment to support people will continue to be available until June. However, two key legal protections will remain in place as coronavirus cases have risen sharply in recent weeks, driven by the BA.2 sub-type of the omicron variant.…

A team of staff and alumni from Llanishen High School will be running the Cardiff Half Marathon in aid of City Hospice, Cardiff’s local hospice, on March 27. Eight staff and 12 alumni will be taking part in the event and aim to raise £6,000 for the charity which is the only provider of home-based specialist palliative care in the capital. City Hospice provides care for patients with terminal or life limiting illnesses, in addition to essential counselling and support services for its patients’ families. The team will be spurred on by the memories of loved ones as they complete…

As much as it will hurt Welsh rugby union fans to hear this, the inescapable truth is that Australia have been the dominant side since the two nations first started competing against each other in 1908. Over this time, Wales and Australia have locked horns on 44 different occasions with the Wallabies boasting 30 wins whilst the Dragons have notched up just 13 victories, the only draw between the two occurred in Cardiff in 2006 when the score ended 29-29. Indeed, it has been relative one-way traffic over the last 113 years but that hasn’t stopped this fixture from being…