Author: Rhys Gregory

Flint wet wipe manufacturer is heading towards a plastic-free future, having removed more than 15,000 tonnes in the last three years. Nice-Pak International, which produces wipes for global brands and retailers, has been working with customers to cut out plastic from more than 60 per cent of its products, up from less than 10 per cent in 2018. Banning plastic in wet wipes has been tabled in a Parliamentary Bill proposed by Labour MP Fleur Anderson, with Nice-Pak welcoming the politician on the journey. Robert Woodall, managing director at Nice-Pak International, said: “We have big ambitions for the future, as…

Defence engineering specialists MMEngineering are enjoying record growth as they prepare to relocate to their second home on the Port Talbot Waterfront Enterprise Zone. Established in 2016 by James Morton and brothers Chris and Martin McDermid, the company has grown by 30% over the last year reaching a turnover of £2.6miliion. This is expected to exceed £3.5 million in 2020/21 with increased customer demand prompting the need for additional space. An initial loan of £175,000 from the Development Bank of Wales enabled MMEngineering to set-up in a 6,000 square foot unit on Port Talbot Waterfront Enterprise Zone. The company has…

A Denbighshire community hub is providing sustainable support to eco-conscious shoppers. Y Tŷ Gwyrdd, established June 2020 and opened on Back Row, Denbigh during June 2021, is inspiring a new level of eco responsibility amongst the local community. The Community Hub houses an eco re-fill shop on the ground floor, with additional studio space on the first and second floors. Marguerite Pearce, Y Tŷ Gwyrdd Director, said: “We sell groceries, household and gardening re-fill products, locally sourced where available.  We support and deliver green-themed and mental health & well-being projects, collaboratively with local artists, other community enterprises, and public and…

Ascona Group (‘Ascona’), one of the UK’s fastest-growing forecourt operators, is delighted to announce that it has donated £10,000 to PATCH, the Pembrokeshire based charity that aims to relieve the effects of poverty for people across the Welsh county. The donation will help to support PATCH’s mission to help those that are experiencing hardship throughout the Christmas period and winter months and will enable the charity to continue to give free food parcels, clothing and household items to those in a financial crisis. Darren Briggs, Chief Executive of Ascona Group commented: “Since we started Ascona back in 2011, supporting the…

Visitors to Wales’ biggest ever Christmas lights trail were treated to all the festive feels when a young graduate got down on one knee and proposed to his girlfriend during its opening weekend. Adam Clement asked his partner of four years, Cassie Kilby, to be his wife in front of stunned and delighted visitors enjoying the first ever Christmas at Bute Park, which opened to the public last week (November 25th). The pair have been together since 2017, when they met as students on the same course at the University of South Wales, and where they both recently graduated from.…

Pupils and staff at Ysgol Gyfun Gwyr have moved in to a brand new two storey teaching block as part of a £6.7m investment in facilities at the school. Contractors Kier Construction have completed the first phase of the project which has eight new classrooms along with a new hall providing a vastly improved dining area and served by a new school kitchen. New state-of-the-art sports facilities including a multi-use games area, running track, 2G and 3G training pitches, are also proving popular and are being well used. The project has been jointly funded by Swansea Council and the Welsh…

More new homes built by the council are set to welcome their first tenants in the coming weeks. The four one-bedroom flats have been created in the former Bryn House education centre in Walter Road, Uplands. Andrea Lewis, the council’s joint deputy leader and cabinet member for climate change and service transformation, said tenants will be thrilled with their new homes. She said: “The new flats in Bryn House are of a very high standard, in a great location, with parking and lovely grounds and views. “The two ground floor flats have accessible bathrooms making them ideal for those with…

Proposed designs have been unveiled for a new central Swansea location for the city’s main library and other key services. The drawings by architects Austin-Smith:Lord Ltd  – on behalf of the council – reveal a new look for the former BHS/What! building. They appear in a new document that supports a council application to change the use of the building from shopping to a community hub. The design document says that the appearance of the new-look building – built in the 1950s – should have “impact” appropriate to a public building, with open and active shop frontages to maintain vibrancy…

Work has begun to create Community Nature Spaces at the Rockfield Estate in Monmouth. Community Nature Spaces offer much more than traditional play parks, they include the provision of wild play opportunities, pollinator planting, shrubs, tree planting including fruit trees and orchards and community food growing beds which will be available for all in the community. Monmouthshire County Council has been awarded Welsh Government ‘Local Places for Nature’ funding via the Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA) to undertake the project. The overall aim of creating spaces for nature and for people on the Rockfield Estate is to involve local…

The Royal Air Force’s ‘Wales and the Battle of Britain’ free exhibition has arrived in Monmouth’s historic Shire Hall and tells the story of Welsh service personnel that took part in the Battle of Britain between July and October 1940, a pivotal battle of the Second World War. The exhibition was officially opened on Wednesday 1st December by Air Commodore Adrian Williams, with Squadron Leader John Dunn, and was attended by Monmouthshire County Council Leader Cllr Richard John, Monmouth Town Mayor Terry Christopher, Chair of Monmouthshire County Council Mat Feakins, Monmouthshire County Council’s Armed Forces Champion Cllr. Lisa Dymock and…