Author: Rhys Gregory

A range of building projects have been taking place at schools across Bridgend County Borough with additional classrooms and learning spaces being created. Funded by a £500,000 Welsh Government Schools Capital Maintenance Grant, work took place during the school summer holidays with further projects planned in the coming months. At Bryntirion Comprehensive School, adaptations to the library over the summer holidays have helped create smaller spaces for group work to take place. A new foldaway partition wall provides the option of one open space or two smaller rooms with the school using the area as a breakout environment for ten…

A series of front doors installed by Foster Wales highlight those who have opened their homes to foster children in Wales as it aims to significantly increase the number and diversity of Local Authority foster carers. Several life-size front doors have been unveiled outside the Senedd as the new network of 22 Local Authority fostering services across the country, Foster Wales, invites the public to consider opening their homes to help accommodate the numbers of children in Wales who need care and support. Foster Wales is working towards increasing the number of foster carers in Local Authorities in Wales to help keep children in their local area, when that is right for them, which contributes to the national impact on the futures of…

Work is now complete on the first council homes to be built in the Caerphilly county borough in 19 years. The homes were officially ‘handed over’ to Caerphilly County Borough Council recently by developer Llanmoor Homes at Bedwellty Field, Aberbargoed.  There are 6 social rent homes on the 55-property development which will be owned and managed by the council, as well as 2 low cost home ownership properties, which will offer opportunities for first time buyers to purchase their own home. Cllr Philippa Marsden, Leader of Caerphilly Council, said “This is an incredibly significant moment, as we begin to deliver…

Tyler Higgins, 20, has been jailed after admitting two counts of rape committed during the early hours of July 15, 2021. The victim has described experiencing ‘constant visions’ and suffering nightmares as a result of his actions. Higgins, from Cathays, Cardiff, came across the woman while she was lost walking from Cathays back to a hotel in the city centre. He offered to show her the way but instead led her into Bute Park where he carried out the violent attack. Higgins was identified as a result of a media appeal for information and arrested within 48 hours of the…

A Welsh landlord refused a Rent Smart Wales licence to carry out letting and management activities has been found guilty of managing his properties illegally. Derrick Morgan, of Crossways, Parc Newydd, Briton Ferry, continued to issue tenancy agreements and collect rent from tenants living in his properties in Neath Port Talbot, despite having been refused a licence by Rent Smart Wales in 2019. All landlords and agents in Wales who undertake letting and management work at rental properties are legally required to have a Rent Smart Wales licence. At Cardiff Magistrates Court, Mr Morgan pleaded guilty to failing to comply…

Will Renwick has been running across every single mountain in the country – 500 miles South to North, solo and unsupported. It is a brutal challenge that’s never been attempted before – 189 mountains, in just 3 weeks, all the while carrying his camping gear on his back.  His ankles are aching, he has holes in his feet and his one lighter has broken, meaning his- ‘boil in a bag’ meals are now eaten cold. The generosity of strangers donating to his chosen charity, Mind Over Mountains, is what is keeping him going.  Mind Over Mountains are a mental health charity, bringing together the healing power of nature, mindfulness and unpressured…

Over two hundred people took part in The Sparkle Walk on September 18, raising thousands of pounds to support the work of City Hospice, Cardiff’s local hospice. Participants donned glitter and glowsticks for the 10k night-time walk, with many also carrying photographs of their loved ones to keep them and their memory close during the event. The evening began with a fun warm up by personal trainer Katherine Warren of KatsPlan before setting off on the route which started and finished within the grounds of Insole Court. The starlit walk through Llandaff and Whitchurch included a stop at City Hospice…

Chepstow based IQ Endoscopes has completed a Series A equity funding round exceeding £4 million. The round has been led by the Development Bank of Wales and Creo Medical PLC . The investment will allow IQ Endoscopes to achieve regulatory approval for its single use flexible gastroscope, as well as accelerating the development of its single use flexible colonoscope. IQ Endoscopes also welcomes participation in this round from Nepcoe Capital Partners and Australian Unity’s Future of Health Care Fund. Both co-investors will bring substantial added value to the company’s mission of improving the access of flexible endoscopy on a global…

St. David’s Dewi Sant Cardiff introduces its new Student Festival, where students are invited to play to win prizes and access amazing offers.  St. David’s will be hosting its new ‘Play to Win’ Student Festival on Wednesday 6th & Thursday 7th October from 4pm to 8pm, with registrations open now. Freshers, undergraduates, post-graduates, and school and college students can register to win exclusive prizes and shop the biggest and best student discounts from St. David’s stellar line-up of retailers and eateries. Expect discounts and deals at AllSaints, Size?, Slim Chickens, Shake Shack, Morphe and loads more! The event will feature…

A budding fashion designer from Cardiff who launched her own sustainable swimwear business during lockdown is already making waves with Instagram influencers and reality TV stars. 24-year-old Lydia Hitchings’ business, Rosy Cheeks, produces hand-made, made-to-order bikinis in a bid to reduce waste and challenge fast fashion. Putting her Cardiff Metropolitan degree in Textiles to good use, Lydia designs all the on-trend prints for her bespoke bikinis from her bedroom, between a part-time receptionist job and training with the Wales National Netball team. Lydia started her business with the help of Big Ideas Wales, part of the Welsh Government’s Business Wales…