Author: Rhys Gregory

A special Commonwealth Day event and flag raising ceremony has been held at Cardiff Castle, joining more than 1000 Commonwealth flags around the world which were raised at the same time to mark a shared celebration of the amazing family of nations that encompass the globe. The Rt. Hon The Lord Mayor of Cardiff, Councillor Rod McKerlich hosted the event and was joined by Sir Brooke Boothby, Vice Lord-Lieutenant of South Glamorgan, who readHer Majesty The Queen’s Commonwealth Day Message. Special guests also includedrepresentatives from the British Army 160th (Welsh) Brigade; Keith DunnOBE CMLJ ,President of the Consular Association in Wales,…

Work on a brand-new children’s placement and assessment hub in Brynmenyn is now underway, the facility is being built on the site of a former primary school in the area. The initial works on site involved the demolition of the old school in August 2021. The project is for the construction of a new two-storey detached building which will be a new Children’s Placement and Assessment Hub. The facility, which is jointly funded by Bridgend County Borough Council and Welsh Government through the Integrated Care Fund (ICF) capital programme, will bring together a range of services for children and young…

Located next to Swansea Arena, the coastal park includes plenty of new greenery, benches, soft play areas and other facilities. Both the coastal park and arena are part of the £135m Copr Bay phase one district being developed by Swansea Council and development managed by RivingtonHark. Buckingham Group Contracting Ltd is leading on its construction. About the same size as a football pitch, the coastal park also includes water features and a selection of new trees. Cllr Robert Francis-Davies, Swansea Council’s Cabinet Member for Investment, Regeneration and Tourism, said: “We’re delighted that the coastal park has now opened to the…

Plans for a major new manufacturing plant in Swansea creating hundreds of well-paid jobs are making significant progress.  The 60,000 square-metre plant, earmarked for a plot of land just off Langdon Road in the SA1 area of the city, will make high-tech batteries for the renewable sector. The proposed new plant forms part of the £1.7bn Blue Eden project developed by an international consortium, led by Bridgend-based DST Innovations. In-principle heads of terms have now been agreed between Swansea Council and the organisation for the plot of land, which is currently owned by the council. The development will bring the…

An additional 49 easily accessible life-saving defibrillators are being installed at retail locations in communities right across Swansea in the coming months. Swansea Council is working with the charity Heartbeat Trust UK to increase public access to this vital equipment and to become the UK’s first ‘defib-friendly’ city. The Council has agreed more than £60,000 in grant funding that will enable the Charity to place and insure defibrillators in locations that have 24-hour access in all 36 council wards. These will include additional machines in retail locations in the city centre, high streets in communities including Morriston, Clydach, Gorseinon, Pontarddulais and Sketty and outside…

​​​​​​​Work has been completed on a new Swansea Council housing scheme. It combines the refurbishment of a former education centre as permanent homes and the neighbouring installation of residential pods for people who need temporary accommodation. The whole scheme, in Uplands, was commissioned as a rapid response to the housing shortfall at the start of the pandemic. Conversion of the main house into four one-bedroom flats was completed in December and has brought an empty building near the city centre back into use. The pods – which are fully furnished self-contained units – will soon be offered on a short-term…

A major investment to build an impressive new teaching block complete with canteen, kitchen and hall, together with new outdoor sports facilities and refurbish some existing classrooms, has been completed at Ysgol Gyfun Gwyr. Minister for Finance and Local Government, Rebecca Evans, officially opened the £6.7m project this week. It has been jointly funded by Swansea Council and the Welsh Government under the Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme and is part of a £170m investment in new and improved school facilities in Swansea. Council Cabinet Member for Education Improvement, Learning and Skills, Robert Smith, welcomed Ms Evans to the school.…

Pembrokeshire County Council is beginning to outline the next steps to redevelop the Western Quayside in Haverfordwest, but not before a significant archaeological dig is complete. Dyfed Archaeological Trust is working at the retail and hospitality redevelopment site for 18 weeks following the discovery of artefacts and human remains dating back to the 14th Century AD. The team and Council officers were surprised at how well-preserved remains survived across some of the site. This work is a great opportunity for the dig team and residents to find out more about an area in the town that has significant historical value.…

Pupils and staff from Waldo Williams Primary School celebrated St David’s Day in style by moving to their newly-refurbished school site at Scarrowscant Lane, Haverfordwest. Formerly the home of Ysgol Glan Cleddau, the site has undergone a £3.5 million refurbishment over recent months ready for the influx of more than 250 pupils, teachers and school staff. Headteacher Mrs Cora O’Brien said: “Everybody in our school community is overjoyed with the exceptionally inviting, exciting and stimulating learning environment which has been created for our wonderful pupils and staff. It has been described as ‘awesome’ by our pupils. “We have had a…

A couple from Mountain Ash have shown they are partners in crime not just in life as they both receive a FINE for £928 for fly-tipping! The couple were caught red handed after their waste was found dumped. Their waste consisted of 18 black bags of waste and a bicycle on an embankment in Blaenrhondda, opposite a residential area. Despite failing to attend a number of PACE interviews and a change of address, the pair were no match for the Streetcare Enforcement team and were tracked down and held to account for their joint actions at magistrates court! The items…