Author: Rhys Gregory

Cardiff and Vale College has joined forces with FinTech Wales and leading local financial services employers including Admiral, Deloitte, Hodge Bank and Principality to create a unique, fast-track training programmes designed meet the growing need for skilled people to fill job vacancies in FinTech. FinTech – Financial Technology – involves businesses using technology to enhance or automate financial services. A rapidly growing industry, FinTech has benefits for businesses and customers alike. CAVC has worked with employers including Admiral, Deloitte, Hodge Bank and Principality to develop the innovative fast-track training programmes designed to give people the skills required to fill vacancies…

It’s a sausage, it’s ten feet long, weighs three tons and is probably the biggest banger in Britain. It’s the latest artwork from top chainsaw sculptor Ed Parkes and it now stands proudly speared on a wooden fork outside the Conwy headquarters of Wales’s best known butcher. Edwards the Welsh Butcher commissioned local boy Ed, whose stunning wooden artworks include a Spitfire for the RAF’s 100th anniversary and a pair of snow leopards for Colwyn Bay Mountain Zoo. Chairman Ieuan Edwards, who founded the business in Conwy High Street in 1984, was keen to make use of a dead ash…

The Royal Mint Experience based in Llantrisant, South Wales, has today announced a monthly autism-friendly tour in support of World Autism Acceptance Week. On the first Sunday of every month, starting from May, the award-winning visitor attraction will host autism-friendly tours to accommodate those with autism by reducing sensory triggers. The exhibition volume will be reduced wherever possible and lighting neutralised to make the experience a more comfortable environment. The sessions will also have a reduced capacity to ensure no one feels overcrowded, and tours will be extended to provide additional time to process information in each room of the…

A bereavement charity has pledged to improve accessibility around dementia through new work with a leading end of life organisation.  As part of the wider charity; Cruse Bereavement Support – the UK’s leading bereavement charity that supports people across England, Wales and Northern Ireland – Cruse Cymru helps people in Wales through one of the most painful times in life, with bereavement support, information and campaigning. Making dementia specific resources available in hard copy including larger A4 size, and digitally Increasing accessibility in local Cruse area offices and support venues by making use of guidance by people affected by dementia…

Low Cost Vans, based in Skewen, Neath Port Talbot, have just launched their very own motorhome hire which is now part of the LCV Hire service, enabling customers to hire the motorhome to explore South Wales and across the UK. Conveniently located in Neath just off the M4, Low Cost Vans are a short drive away from Swansea, a bustling city break destination and gateway to the Gower Peninsula, the UK’s first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a surfer’s paradise dotted with award-winning places to eat and drink. From a relaxing beach break to a cultural getaway, there is…

The Additional Learning Needs Team at Grŵp Llandrillo Menai (GLLM) has been awarded the Autism Wales certification for its support for learners. The Autism Aware scheme is aimed at increasing awareness and understanding of autism, and certified organisations are recognised in the Autism Wales directory. Grŵp Llandrillo Menai has a number of autistic learners, with an increasing need for bespoke support. Initatives such as Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Mentors, quiet safe spaces, including designated Pods, and whole organisation training programmes have been put in place to help create autism friendly environments for students at the college campuses. These initiatives are…

Diana Berriman, 53, from Llandrindod Wells, joined Mel Giedroyc to get the Royal Jubilee party planning started at a special Big Jubilee Lunch event in Her Majesty The Queen’s Buckingham Palace Garden. Seasoned organiser, Neelam, shared tips as people across the UK start planning their own Big Jubilee Lunch celebrations from 2-5 June. In just two months’ time, neighbours around the UK will be coming together to mark The Queen’s 70-year reign with Big Lunch street parties and community celebrations. To kick off the festivities, broadcaster, actress and comedian, Mel Giedroyc was joined in the gardens of the iconic Royal…

Unsung community heroes who have helped the people of Swansea through the pandemic were honoured at a special event. Certificates were presented to more than 80 individuals and organisations – and trophies went to 34 others. The help they have provided to local communities during the Covid crisis has ranged from emergency food supplies to online social conversations and essential medical deliveries to family shopping. The Brangwyn Hall Unsung Community Heroes awards evening was organised by Swansea Council. It was supported by partners such as the BAME Mental Health Support, Swansea Bay University Health Board, Swansea Council for Voluntary Service,…

A Neath man received custodial sentences totalling 24 months at Swansea Crown Court on Monday 28th March 2022, in connection with a fraudulent attempt to claim a £25,000 Covid grant aimed at helping businesses stay afloat during lockdown. Shaun Ceri James, 28, of Gardners Lane, Neath, had previously pleaded guilty to two charges under the Fraud Act 2006. His Honour Judge Geraint Walters sentenced him to 15 months in prison. This offending however was committed at a time when Mr James was already subject to a suspended sentence order from March 2019, for previous convictions of dishonest trading.  The Judge…

Littering hot spot in Caerphilly County Borough have been successfully cleaned by volunteers. Caerphilly County Borough Council teamed up with Keep Wales Tidy to organise a Community Clean-Up event in Lansbury Park and proved successful, with volunteers working alongside the Recycling Team to help tackle litter. The Clean-Up saw bags of litter as well as discarded items such shopping trolleys removed from the housing estate and disposed of correctly. Rhodri Lloyd, Principal Waste Management Officers said: “We would like to thank those residents who are continuing to help make our borough cleaner and greener by recycling more and minimising litter…