Author: Rhys Gregory

At the prestigious Welsh Veterans Awards ceremony in Cardiff yesterday (Thursday 30th June) Monmouthshire County Council was named the Employer of the Year for its support for ex-Armed Forces personnel and their families. As an employer, the Council has proactively demonstrated forces-friendly credentials in its recruiting and selection processes, and actively ensured that its workforce is aware of the authority’s positive policies towards issues facing people who are serving or who have served. This award comes two years after the Council received a Gold award in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme. In January 2020, the Council also affirmed its commitment…

Merthyr Tydfil community groups can apply for up to £500,000 from a fund established to help improve the quality of life for local residents. The Ffos-y-fran Large Grant Scheme will open for applications today (1 July). Grants of between £5,000 and £500,000 are available for projects that help create a ‘strong, sustainable and diverse economy’, support people in developing new skills, and contribute to making Merthyr Tydfil a more ‘vibrant, attractive, safe and sustainable place’ to live. County Borough Council Leader and Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Housing Cllr Geraint Thomas said: “Ffos-y-fran funding continues to contribute greatly to the…

The Welsh Government is investing £8.5 million in building significant new industrial space in Blaenau Gwent aimed at attracting leading businesses to the area, Economy Minister Vaughan Gething has announced. A 50,000 sq ft industrial unit will be built at Rhyd y Blew, in Ebbw Vale, in the Tech Valleys area. The modern building will form the first phase of a wider site masterplan, and help satisfy huge demand for such industrial space in the South East Wales area. Companies in the automotive and food sector have already expressed an interest in the development, which also sits within the Ebbw…

All employers have a duty of care and an ethical responsibility to their workers and should ensure staff health and safety is prioritised in the workplace. In some unfortunate situations where injuries are sustained in a work environment, employees can sadly be denied their rights Figures by HSE show that in 2020/21 441,000 workers suffered a non-fatal injury at work and 51,000 of these were reported by employers. Most of the injuries were as a result of a slip, trip or fall and just over 100,000 were absent from work for over seven days as a result. We’ll look at…

Blackjack is a classic casino game that has seen many players sit at the table and try their luck at beating the dealer with a hand not exceeding a total of 21. With this in mind, let us flick through the history books and visit some past winners to see if their luck can rub off and help us to manifest a win when we next take a seat at a virtual table to play Blackjack online. Scroll to reveal winning names. Kerry Packer – $47 million Packer has not one, but two big Blackjack wins, with the first in…

Three people have been sentenced for murdering five year-old Logan Mwangi, whose body was discovered by police officers in a river near his home in Sarn, in July, 2021. Angharad Williamson, 31, John Cole, 40, and a 14 year-old boy who cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared at Cardiff Crown Court on Thursday, June 30. They were convicted of murder and perverting the course of justice back in April. During a trial which lasted for 10-weeks, the court heard how the defendants colluded in an attempt to cover-up Logan’s murder in the hours that followed his death. Logan’s body…

Business confidence in Wales fell three points to June 23% in June , according to the latest Business Barometer from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking. Companies in Wales reported lower confidence in their own business prospects month-on-month, down three points at 28%. When taken alongside their optimism in the economy, also down three points to 17%, this gives a headline confidence reading of 23%. Welsh businesses flagged a range of growth opportunities for the next six months, including evolving their offering with a new product or service (33%), investing in the growth and development of their team (32%), and introducing new technologies to advance their operations (28%). The Business Barometer, which questions 1,200 businesses monthly,…

Cult Cardiff noodle wizards Matsudai Ramen have confirmed an early August opening date for their first bricks and mortar ramen restaurant, Matsudai Ramen at the Bank. Following a five-month refurbishment of the former Natwest bank site in Grangetown, Cardiff, Matsudai founder James Chant will throw open the doors to his 70-cover ramen shop at 6pm on Saturday 6th August 2022. Since starting out in late 2019, Matsudai Ramen’s pop-up events have taken over kitchens in London, Manchester and Bristol, delighting die-hard ramen fans and ramen newbies alike. And while in-person events were out of the question, thousands of DIY ramen kits were freshly…

The fast-growing Jones Village Bakery in Wrexham is aiming to recruit 30 new apprentices over the next two years. It’s part of a major expansion by the family firm who have just invested £16 million in a new, high-tech production line and announced plans to create a total of 100 extra jobs. The state-of-the-art equipment has been installed at the company’s new 140,000 sq ft bakery on Wrexham Industrial Estate. The headquarters complex is also home to their ground-breaking Baking Academy and Innovation Centre. The company has a track record of growing their own and most of their bakery managers…

Principality Building Society colleagues volunteered more than 500 hours to their charity partners Tŷ Hafan and Tŷ Gobaith during Children’s Hospice Week. Children’s Hospice Week celebrates the incredible work that is done by children’s hospice and palliative care services across the UK, as well as the seriously ill children and young people they support. The Principality team exchanged their work in offices and branches to help the charities in their shops, and also baked cakes to raise vital funds for these two important charities. Shaun Middleton, Head of Distribution at Principality, said: “We are very proud to call both Tŷ…