Author: Rhys Gregory

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is reminding Self Assessment customers that on Sunday 24 October, they have one week left to submit paper tax returns and 100 days to go for online tax returns. The Self Assessment tax return deadlines for 2020/21 tax year are 31 October 2021 for paper returns and 31 January 2022 if customers complete their tax return online. More than 10.7 million customers completed a tax return by 31 January 2021, of those 96% submitted it online. Completing it online is the quickest method and with around 100 days to go, customers have plenty of time…

A centre named after one of Britain’s best-loved celebrities has helped Swansea Bay maintain a vital service during the pandemic. The specialist Stammering Service provides support to all age ranges, from pre-school children right the way through to adults. It involves assessment and, when appropriate, therapy, based on a variety of award-winning intervention packages. Before the pandemic, this was all completed face-to-face, with adults seen in a clinic in Singleton Hospital and youngsters in the Hafan Y Mor children’s Centre, which is part of the Singleton site. But as Covid-19 spread to the UK, the service continued to meet their…

A £1.7 billion project creating thousands of well-paid jobs and placing Wales at the forefront of renewable energy innovation has been announced by an international consortium. The ground-breaking project proposed for Swansea’s waterfront will include a newly-designed tidal lagoon, featuring state-of-the-art underwater turbines generating 320 megawatts of renewable energy from the 9.5km structure. The lagoon is part of the larger proposed Blue Eden project that’s being led by Bridgend-based DST Innovations and a number of business partners, with support from Swansea Council and Associated British Ports. Made possible by funding from the private sector, the innovative and economy-boosting Blue Eden…

Plans for the new business park in north Powys will shortly come to fruition, with work beginning on site from next week, Powys County Council have confirmed. Local Powys company, SWG Construction, have been appointed to develop the units at the new Abermule Business Park, with construction due to start from 25 October 2021. Once complete, the new business park will provide flexible options for start-up businesses and local companies, with an excellent opportunity to boost economic development in the area and improve local employment prospects. “Seeing the plans for the Abermule Business Park come to life is excellent. As…

A footpath on Castle Drive, Cimla – which suffered a major road collapse due to torrential rainfall earlier this month – has been restored for pedestrian use. However, the roadway itself is likely to remain closed to through traffic for several months due to the complex and serious nature of the collapse. It happened on October 4th this year when emergency services across South West Wales were “inundated” with calls for help due to widespread flooding. During the day of very heavy rain, a culvert in Castle Drive became blocked causing rain water to overtop the road and wash away…

Bridgend County Borough Council has issued a series of compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) to safeguard the future delivery of the next phases in Porthcawl’s ongoing regeneration. The CPOs follow efforts made earlier in the year to identify and confirm ownership details on several small parcels of land located in and around Sandy Bay and Coney Beach. Full details on the locations of the land the council is purchasing has been made available and can be accessed online at the council website and also in hardcopy at Porthcawl Library in Church Place, Porthcawl (CF36 3AG). The hard copies at Porthcawl Library…

With over 30 different sports available, there’s plenty in store to keep children and young people active and entertained over half term at this year’s Monmouthshire Games. The week-long event runs from Monday 25th October to Friday 29th October and is hosted across the county’s leisure centres in Caldicot, Chepstow and Monmouth as well as Deri View Primary School in Abergavenny while the town’s leisure centre undergoes refurbishment. Aimed at children between the ages of five and 11, the Monmouthshire Games offer activities to suit a range of different interests and hobbies. The programme is based on learning new skills,…

On Thursday, 21st of October, a new Deputy Youth Mayor Elect for Merthyr Tydfil was elected. Katy Richards, who attends Bishop Hedley High School was selected at the Merthyr Tydfil Borough Wide Youth Forum Youth Cabinet hosted at the Red House and will take on the role of Youth Mayor in 2023. In October every year young people across Merthyr have a democratic vote to choose the next Youth Mayor. This year there were six candidates in the running and Merthyr secondary school and College students used their voice to vote for their candidate. The current Youth Mayor Andrew Millar said: “that the…

With winter just around the corner, Caerphilly County Borough Council would like to assure residents that they are ready for winter. The Council has 13 gritters available to use, all of which can be fitted with a snow plough if needed and around 9,000 tonnes of grit in stock ready to treat roads during the frosty nights. Trained staff monitor weather forecasts plus information from 5 weather stations based at Rhymney, Markham, Hafodyrynys, Caerphilly, and Ystrad Mynach. The decision to grit is based on a number of factors including road temperature, air temperature, rainfall and the possibility of snow and…

Rhondda Cynon Taf Council has streamed its first live committee meeting, allowing the public to watch the democratic proceedings live from their chosen location. Viewers were able to see decisions being made by Cabinet as they happened, as well as being able to follow the agenda items, marking a further advancement with public participation. Among the agenda items discussed by Cabinet was RCT Theatres Christmas Offer Screenings; Living Landscapes Project; the Council’s Approach To Tackling Empty Homes, as set out in the Empty Homes Strategy; The Council’s Draft Corporate Performance Report; and Engagement On The Council’s Budget 2022/23. Councillor Maureen Webber, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member with responsibility for Council…