Author: Rhys Gregory

Bridgend County Borough Council has taken action to make a dilapidated former shop building safe. Following concerns raised about the safety of the vacant property at 23 Commercial Street, Maesteg, Shared Regulatory Services served an enforcement notice requiring the owner of the premises to take steps to board over the shopfront windows. The owner failed to comply with the requirements of the notice so council officers arranged for the work to be carried out. This property has been vacant for over 20 years and has been the subject of complaints due to its deteriorating condition. After concerns were raised about…

Ask most teenagers what they’re doing in their spare time during lockdown and you’re likely to hear a mixed bag of interests. Many like to spend their free time with family, going shopping, reading, spending time outside safely with their friends or they could mention Netflix marathons and practising Tik Tok trends (so we’re told…) However, two local teenagers are spending their free time doing good in their local communities by tackling the litter problem. 14-year-old Arjen Bhal and 13-year-old Jaden Manns from Lisvane and Grangetown in Cardiff tell us why they’re volunteering with Keep Grangetown Tidy: What made you…

Wales’ reigning Flat Trainer Of The Year, David Evans could be travelling to Royal Ascot with a live challenger on his hands, after Rohaan won the Pavilion Stakes. Having enjoyed a solid campaign last year, saddling 50 winners in total, Evans is well on-course to surpass that total in 2021. Evans has just 70 horses housed in his Ty-Derlwyn Farm stables near Abergavenny, but they’ve already amassed 31 winners between them during the first few months of the new season. The stand-out horse in Evan’s ranks is undoubtedly Rohaan – a speedy son of Mayson, who was picked up by…

With hotels, restaurants and cafés closed to the public for months, many commercial kitchens have been left idle and unused and so too have the properties’ drainage systems. As venues begin to reopen, business owners will need to ensure their premises continue to meet all regulations and hygiene requirements which includes maintaining clear drains. For pubs, restaurants and all other businesses with commercial kitchens there are strict regulations in place for how waste products must be disposed of, in particular fats, oils and grease (FOG). This is to prevent them from reaching water systems and contributing to the increasing fatberg…

Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Tonyrefail in Rhondda Cynon Taf has won new STEM equipment and the chance to announce the Census 2021 results. The Porth school received the top prize for Wales in the Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) ‘Let’s Count’ competition, which saw young people from more than 250 primary schools counting things in a 20-minute walk around their school and developing school-centred maps and displays. Ceri Hughes and Aled Hughes, class teachers who undertook the project at Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Tonyrefail, said: “We are very proud of our pupils and delighted to have won both the best Welsh and…

Business confidence in Wales has grown to its highest level since 2014, a new report from chartered accountancy body ICAEW has found. The Business Confidence MonitorTM (BCM) report for Wales found that confidence had climbed to its highest level since the third quarter of 2014. This was likely due to the successful rollout of coronavirus vaccines, which led Welsh businesses to expect a strong economic recovery with hopes of large increases in domestic sales following falls over the past year. Businesses reported that domestic sales had fallen slightly, while exports suffered the biggest fall seen since the BCM began in…

A dentist in Swansea has been able to take ownership of his first dental surgery with the support of a six-figure loan from Lloyds Bank. Imtiaz Khan used the funding to purchase Russell Street Dental, a three-surgery practice, situated in the heart of Swansea since the 1960s, with more than 5,000 patients on role. The loan has also been used to refurbish the building, with new furniture and décor throughout. The renovation forms part of Imtiaz’s future growth ambitions for the practice. He has already started rolling out a wider range of services to patients, including facial aesthetics, Invisaline teeth…

New research from Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water has discovered that despite being a nation that’s happy to try eco-friendly ways of tackling weeds, people in Wales still don’t know enough about the potential impact of weedkillers on our environment. In a survey of 2,000 people across Wales, the research from the not-for-profit water company found that half of respondents are happy to try alternatives to pesticides that won’t harm the environment. However, over a third (35%) admit they only understand a little about the impact pesticides, like weedkillers and slug pellets, entering our watercourses can have. Almost a third of…

One of Wales’s fastest growing companies is aiming to have created 200 jobs in the Valleys by 2024 after landing two major new contracts. The new contracts will double the turnover of Dragon Recycling Solutions, and the company has impressive plans for the next three years. With support from Tata Steel subsidiary UKSE, and a network of investors in Wales, the Tredegar firm has hit its stated target of creating 110 jobs by 2021, and twenty-five more posts will be created by the end of this year.  The jobs are based on long-term contracts to provide reverse logistics, asset management, refurbishment…

A THIRD of people in North Wales now visit the NHS website rather than call 999 for urgent medical assistance with ailments such as back pain, falls and breathing problems. A new study by YouGov revealed the way patients with non-life-threatening conditions utilise hospital services in the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) area has changed since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The report also found that up to 60% of those surveyed in the region are confident enough to check for symptoms and find out information on the NHS 111 Wales website, rather than seeking advice over the…