Author: Rhys Gregory

A memorial has been unveiled in Abergynolwyn village to mark Llechi Cymru,  Slate Landscape of North West Wales, being designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Bryneglwys Slate Quarry, Abergynolwyn and Talyllyn Railway formed an integral part of the successful bid as the central hub of the slate industry in Southern Snowdonia. The bid was led by Gwynedd Council in partnership with Cadw, the National Museum of Wales, Royal Commission on Ancient and Historical Monuments in Wales, Bangor University, The National Trust, the Slate Wales Partnership and Snowdonia National Park Authority. Llechi Cymru is the 32nd UNESCO World Heritage Site in…

Children’s charity Barnardo’s Cymru has announced the opening of a new community office in Caerphilly, which will become the main hub for it’s adoption and fostering services in Wales. For the first time since the formation of the not-for-profit Barnardo’s Cymru Adoption and Fostering Services in 1980, the charity is moving out of Cardiff city centre and will be based at the Welsh ICE Campus, which also offers coworking space and business support for startups and small companies. The move comes alongside the team’s transition to a blended approach to working, with the option for staff to work from home…

More first time visitors discovered Mid Wales as a tourist destination this year due to the staycation boom, an annual meeting was told. MWT Cymru, which held the virtual meeting on Thursday last week, urged everyone involved in the Mid Wales tourism and hospitality industry to work together to ensure that these new customers return in 2022. Nia Meddins, of Wigwam Holidays Hafren, Staylittle, near Llanidloes, told the meeting that 60% of her business’ customers this year were first time visitors who loved the quietness and slow pace of life in Mid Wales. Some of them were retired couples who…

A new Wales-wide Click and Deliver service has been set up by Barod, a substance misuse charity in South and East Wales, where people can order the life-saving drug naloxone online and get it sent to their house, free of charge. Naloxone is a medication used to temporarily reverse the effect of opioid overdose, which can happen when using drugs such as heroin, tramadol, and morphine. Naloxone comes in two forms, an intramuscular injection and a nasal spray. This life-saving drug has been available from all Barod and consortium-based services since the Take Home Naloxone programme was rolled out by…

The Cornerstone Finance Group has launched a new financial business arm which will specialise in providing hassle-free international payments and finance sourcing for UK businesses trading overseas. Working in partnership with leading fintech payments company, Equals Money, Cornerstone’s new offering will help reduce the cost of international payments to companies. Cornerstone International, the Group’s eighth arm, will allow businesses to make regular or one-off payments, with the added security of a fixed current exchange rate up to 12 months in advance. Cornerstone International will also allow businesses looking to purchase commercial property, or finance new ventures abroad, access to international…

Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW) members and officials recently met with Anglesey MP Virginia Crosbie to discuss the most urgent issues affecting the industry. Hosting the visit was FUW Anglesey county chairman William Hughes, who farms 45 commercial suckler cows and a flock of 350 ewes on the 240 acre farm near Holyhead. At the top of the agenda of discussion were the trade deals with Australia and New Zealand, the Northern Ireland protocol and the agricultural budget allocation for Wales. Union officials also took the opportunity to raise the issue of procurement for school meals on the island. Speaking…

Businesses throughout Swansea and the City Region as a whole have the chance to benefit from work packages forming part of a major new development in the city centre. An online Meet the Buyer event is being held on Thursday December 16, helping inform supply chain businesses about opportunities at the high-tech office scheme planned for the former Oceana nightclub site on The Kingsway. Organised by Swansea Council and Bouygues UK – the council’s main contractor for the scheme – the event will cover opportunities in areas including structural steel, masonry, street furniture, kitchens, waste management, road markings and signage.…

New and refurbished schools, the major redevelopment of Neath’s town centre, the building of a self powering technology centre to attract new jobs and investment and the nearly completed Plaza Cinema project in Port Talbot. These are just some of the exciting projects contained in a progress report on the delivery of Neath Port Talbot Council’s £82.4m 2021/22 capital programme given to members of the council’s Cabinet in November. Capital projects are generally major schemes which are either new build, acquisition of land or property, lease of property, the refurbishment of an existing building or the purchase of new pieces…

Pupils at Neath Port Talbot Council’s Welsh-medium 3-11 primary school Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg (YGG) Cwmllynfell are enjoying extra space and modernised facilities after the successful completion of a £640,000 renewal project. The work, carried out on behalf of the council by contractors Jones Brothers (Henllan) Ltd, has provided an extra classroom and childcare setting, with the aim of increasing the capacity of the school, improving Foundation Phase provision and providing space to develop pre-school Welsh-medium provision. The project also aimed to prevent drift to other schools in neighbouring authorities, strengthening the development of Welsh language in the area and impacting…

HGV driving is one of the jobs experiencing shortages that will be helped by a £10 million boost from the Welsh government for further training. Other UK government interventions, such as introducing temporary visas for foreign lorry drivers, together with company initiatives to fast-track HGV testing for drivers in Wales, are also helping to tackle the UK-wide shortage of drivers.  While taking action to increase the number of drivers is essential, it is also vital to ensure safety is not compromised. With the use of online training, digital monitoring and in-cab technology, road safety and the security of drivers can be preserved even…