Author: Rhys Gregory

Thousands of residents and visitors turned out for Swansea’s annual Christmas parade on November 21. They enjoyed the free Swansea Council event that featured a vibrant mix of local community groups, spectacular professional entertainers, marching bands, magical floats, colourful film characters and festive inflatables. Santa was there too, switching on the improved and expanded city centre Christmas lights. Council cabinet member Robert Francis-Davies said: “The Christmas countdown for Swansea really did start on Sunday night! This year’s parade – another free event provided by the council – was another great spectacle. “It was probably Swansea’s biggest ever Christmas parade – and probably…

Neath Port Talbot Council’s Cabinet has agreed an updated Biodiversity Duty Plan demonstrating how it will continue to help halt the decline of biodiversity. And at their meeting on Wednesday (Nov 17th, 2021), Cabinet Members also agreed the council will sign up to the Edinburgh Declaration – a commitment to tackling the twin challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss by integrating nature-based solutions into the way it works. The Environment (Wales) Act 2016 already places a duty on public authorities to maintain and enhance biodiversity by promoting the resilience of ecosystems in its functions, meaning Welsh councils and other…

Powys residents are being urged to remain Covid-safe in the run-up to Christmas with case numbers in the county remaining high. The county has seen an average of 100 new cases per day in the past month with a 500+ case rate per 100,000 population. This puts Powys above the Welsh average for case rates currently. Powys County Council Leader, Councillor Rosemarie Harries said: “The county has seen consistently high case numbers since the autumn with infection rates frequently above the Welsh average. With thoughts turning to Christmas and the party season it is important that we do all that…

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Ystrad Mynach Town Centre as it prepares for the Winter Food and Craft Market. As the second market in a series of Winter Food and Craft Markets being held throughout the Borough, Ystrad Mynach Town Centre is set to be transformed into a Winter Wonderland with approximately 25 food and craft stalls.  There will be French macarons, produce from Pembrokeshire Chilli Farm, chutneys and preserves, children’s books, doggy treats, ale, cider and a selection of spirits on sale, to name just some of the delicious and delightful products available! The festive,…

The First Minister Mark Drakeford and Leader of Plaid Cymru Adam Price have spoken of their ambition for Wales as they unveiled the Co-operation Agreement. The agreement is a joint policy programme covering 46 areas, ranging from the delivery of free school meals to all primary school pupils; a commitment to take immediate and radical action to address the second homes crisis, to long-term reform of the Senedd. This is a new form of political working arrangement. The two partners – the Welsh Government and the Plaid Cymru Senedd Group – will work together to jointly develop and oversee the…

A £45m package of funding that will help small businesses across Wales to grow and support thousands of people to train to work in key sectors is being made available by the Welsh Government, Economy Minister, Vaughan Gething, announced today. As part of the package, £35m will help small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) in Wales relaunch, develop, decarbonise and grow to help drive Wales’ economic recovery. The funding will support more than 1,000 business, help to create 2,000 new jobs and safeguard a further 4,000 jobs. In a joint initiative between the Economy Minister and the Minister for Education…

Buying Bitcoin is one of the wisest investments you can make. This fast-growing cryptocurrency allows you to supplement your income and boost the health of your finances. Besides storing the cryptocurrency, you can also use it to make various purchases. But how exactly can this be done? In this article, we’ll show you how to spend Bitcoin in UK. How to Spend Bitcoin in UK: First Steps? Before you can spend Bitcoin, you’ll first need to buy or mine it. This requires you to get a cryptocurrency wallet. Although most providers offer digital solutions, they’re not ideal for long-term storage.…

If you want to get the most out of your fleet, there’s a lot you’ll have to change with the way you manage your vehicles. The most obvious solution to low profits is to get more cars on board, but that is not practical in all cases, and besides, your business might already be bleeding profits as is (given that you haven’t implemented a fleet tracking system). Rideshur have utilised sophisticated GPS tracking technology and innovated modern fleet management software to help lower the operational costs for businesses and thus drive up profits. Conserve Fuel Costs Fuel expenses are the…

Estyn has launched a survey to ask residents in Merthyr Tydfil for their views on how well education services provided by the council supports schools and youth services. The survey asks parents, carers, learners, and anyone working or involved in education to help inspectors judge the effectiveness of the education services. Claire Morgan, Chief Inspector, says, “Local views from those involved with schools and youth services are vital to give a picture of how well the council is performing. Inspectors will be considering how well the education services help pupils to achieve, support those who are vulnerable or have particular…

A pop up shop has opened to give independent businesses a spotlight this Christmas. LoveLiveLocal@Rhyl is now open and offers on the ground support to local businesses, organised by Denbighshire County Council and delivery partners Antur Cymru. The pop up shop which is based at Rhyl’s White Rose Shopping Centre, will act as a platform for start-up and small businesses wishing to trial a new venture on a low-risk basis. Participant producers will receive a fully-funded diverse range of support from our Business Wales advisory team.  Support offered will include Business & Marketing Planning, Digital agility, HR and tendering support,…