Author: Rhys Gregory

Wrexham Council (WCBC) has approved plans for a wholesale regeneration of a former British Steelworks site at Brymbo, near Wrexham. Brymbo Developments Ltd, a subsidiary of private development company, Parkhill Estates, has brought forward plans for a mixed-use development comprising up to 300 new homes and key community facilities. In addition to the new homes, which are vital to meeting WCBC’s housing targets, the development will deliver a new primary school, catering for 425 pupils and providing much-needed local capacity. Other key benefits include provision for a new custom-built surgery, ancillary care facilities, a pub restaurant, retail units, children’s play…

INEOS Grenadiers produced an unstoppable ride to win the AJ Bell Tour of Britain’s Carmarthenshire team time trial stage on Tuesday, a result that moves Londoner Ethan Hayter into the race lead after three days. The British squad finished 17.5 seconds faster than runners up Deceuninck – Quick-Step for the 18.2-kilometre course from Llandeilo to the National Botanic Garden of Wales. Today (Wednesday), the 210-kilometre fourth stage begins in Aberaeron at 10.30am and heads north to Great Orme above Llandudno via Aberystwyth 11.15am, Borth 11.30am, Machynlleth 12 noon, Dolgellau 12.30pm and Harlech 12.55pm. Ceredigion County Council, in collaboration with the…

A Swansea University initiative dedicated to creating the next generation of Welsh medical professionals has been given a major boost by Welsh Government. It released £700,000 to create a new medical education hub in Aberystwyth, adjacent to one of the town’s GP surgeries. The facility will be used by Graduate Entry Medicine and Physician Associate students from Swansea University’s Medical School, giving them an opportunity to learn away from a hospital setting. It is hoped the hub’s location will help increase recruitment of medical students from rural areas leading to an increase not only in the number of rurally trained…

Owners and staff at Tyn Dwr Hall say they are ‘thrilled’ to have been awarded the Best Wedding Venue of the Year in the North Wales Wedding Awards 2021. General Manager Tracey Owen said the win was a ‘great confidence boost’ after a difficult 18 months with COVID restrictions and weddings being cancelled. She said: “We were thrilled to receive the news that Tyn Dwr Hall have been awarded Best Wedding Venue at the North Wales Wedding Awards. We’re so proud of the team here at the hall and this award is testament to the hard work they constantly put…

Young people across Wales are in with the chance of winning a zero-waste shopping voucher, for taking over Keep Wales Tidy’s social media channels, with the weirdest or oldest items of litter they can find this September. This new competition called ‘Tidy Takeover’ is open until Friday 17 September in a bid to promote a litter free Wales and celebrate the growing number of litter picking hubs re-opening across the country. With many communities coming together to clean up their areas on a weekly basis, Keep Wales Tidy are encouraging younger people, under the age of 25, to head out…

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is today urging young people to check if they have a hidden pot of gold – in the shape of a Child Trust Fund (CTF).   It is now one year since the first account holders started turning 18 and around 55,000 CTFs mature every month. This means their owners can withdraw funds or transfer savings into an adult ISA. Hundreds of thousands of accounts have been claimed so far, but many have not.   CTFs were set up for all children born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011 with a live Child Benefit claim. Parents or guardians set up these accounts with Child Trust Fund Providers – usually banks, building societies or…

Responding to a 1.25% increase in National Insurance Contributions (NICs) for employers, employees and sole traders alongside a 1.25% increase in dividend taxation, Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) National Chair Mike Cherry said: “These hikes will have business owners and sole traders feeling demoralised at the point when they’re trying to recover from the most difficult 18 months of their professional lives. For those thinking about starting up, they send completely the wrong message. “Business owners who have done all they can to retain and support their staff during the pandemic are now being punished for that loyalty with an…

A social care leader is warning that a number of care homes in Wales will close unless an extra £250 million in funding is used to fix the “broken” system and tackle low pay in the sector. Mr Mario Kreft MBE, the chair of Care Forum Wales, was speaking after the announcement by Prime Minister Boris Johnson that he is raising national insurance by 1.25 per cent to end the “catastrophic costs” of social care. The hike will also help fund a major drive in England to clear the massive backlog in operations and treatment caused by Covid-19. As national insurance…

A top-performing learner from Caerphilly has received a prestigious award for achieving high A-level grades during the coronavirus pandemic. Leah Morgan, 18, achieved four A* grades in mathematics, biology, chemistry and physics at Coleg y Cymoedd, and has now received the Worshipful Livery Company of Wales Award in recognition of her excellent examination results during a very difficult period. The award is designed to reward talented students and encourage them to continue developing their skills in higher education and employment. Previous winners include gold Olympic medallist and joint flag bearer for Team GB at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Hannah Mills,…

A fintech is trebling the size of its tech, product and development team as it responds to growing demand in the UK and internationally for its pioneering Lending as a Service (LaaS) offering. The hiring spree will see Sonovate’s tech team grow from 20 to 60 people by early 2022, by which time it will account for around half of the total workforce at the Cardiff and London-based company. It comes as Sonovate, which provides tech-driven finance to businesses that use contractors and freelancers, accelerates its growth in the emerging LaaS space and cements its position as a challenger to…