Author: Rhys Gregory

A new scheme has been launched in Rhyl to help give local workers a closer-to-home option and to support organisations and businesses in offering staff a flexible working solution. In collaboration with the Welsh Government, TownSq is offering private companies or public sector organisations the chance to work from the newly refurbished Costigan’s coworking hub – for free. People typically commute further in North Wales than any other part of the country, with the 2011 Census data showing that, on average, workers in all local authorities had longer distances to travel to work than the Wales average, except in Wrexham.…

New education minister Jeremy Miles should build on the successes in Wales’ schools rather than look to other countries for inspiration, according to a world-renowned educationalist. John Hattie, a professor of education and the former director of the Melbourne Education Research Institute at the University of Melbourne, Australia, said excellence was already apparent throughout Wales’ education system. Speaking on the EdChat Wales podcast, professor Hattie was asked what advice he would give Jeremy Miles, who was appointed as Welsh Government education minister last month following the Senedd election. He said: “Don’t go to Finland, Shanghai or Singapore. Have you the…

Calls to a helpline run by a Swansea Bay service have fallen dramatically as patients can now find out what they need to know for themselves. The Swansea Bay Patient Portal is a secure online record that allows people to view their blood test results and clinical documents, as well as being able to tap into a library of information and resources. They can do this via their mobile phone, tablet, or other devices. They can also update their health data and sync with wearable tech like Fitbits. As family members and carers have an important role, the system allows…

SUPERMARKET workers who came to the aid of a customer in cardiac arrest have been praised for their quick-thinking actions. Staff at Tesco in Port Talbot gave CPR to a man who had collapsed in the car park and delivered two shocks using the store’s defibrillator before the arrival of an ambulance. Colleagues also made a makeshift helipad to allow for the safe landing of the air ambulance. Today, the Welsh Ambulance Service’s Chief Executive Jason Killens visited the store to extend a thank you for their efforts. Jason said: “Every second counts in a cardiac arrest, and the way…

Bee1, a Welsh beekeeping business educating on the importance of bees to our ecosystem, has today announced a change to its board. Bee1 has now officially welcomed Booie Sall into the business. Mr Sall, who boasts decades of experience heading up businesses and assuming strategic corporate roles, is joining the business during an exciting time of expansion, coming on board as the business’ Director. Mark Douglas, Founder of Bee1, comments: “We are thrilled to welcome Booie into the business as a Director. He has been involved in various Bee1 initiatives over the past year and his input has been invaluable.…

A team of leading property professionals is to help Swansea Council create a community hub in an existing city centre building. They are experts in design, architecture, engineering, project and cost management. The team will help the council transform the former BHS and What! building, in Oxford Street, into a multi-purpose venue offering a range of key public services. This will secure jobs in the city centre, increase footfall for nearby businesses and give long-term use to a prominent building. It will help the city tackle the economic shock of the pandemic. Led by project and cost management specialists Coreus…

An independent development trust and social enterprise which delivers sustainable community projects to benefit Newtown has the potential to make the town the circular economy capital of the UK. That’s the opinion of Montgomeryshire MP Craig Williams who met officers Stuart Owen and Adam Kennerley from Open Newtown to hear about the company’s current and incubating projects. Open Newtown, which manages 140 acres of green space in Newtown, delivers sustainable community projects with the aim making the town a viable and vibrant place to live, work and visit. With Newtown Town Council, the company has developed a new destination play…

Owain Sparnon, a Fine Art student graduating at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David has won the Josef Herman Foundation Art Award 2021. The annual award from the Josef Herman Foundation is given in memory of Carolyn Davies, who died in 2018. Carolyn was Chair and a Trustee of the Herman Foundation, and promoted the arts in the Swansea area. The arts were important to her, and she was always helpful in supporting graduates, and ensuring creative opportunities for them.  Carolyn was an inspirational person, and promoted the arts whenever she had the opportunity to do so. Her key…

Swansea University ecotourism expert Carl Cater is taking part in global event to mark United Nations World Oceans Day on Tuesday, June 8. Dr Cater, associate professor of tourism at the School of Management, will join a panel discussion during the day-long virtual conference which is expected to reach more than 60 million people via social media. The theme for this year’s event is The Ocean: Life and Livelihoods and its programme of keynote speeches, panels, and presentations will be kicked off by the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and President of the UN General Assembly Volkan Bozkir. Dr Cater…

Calls are being made to ensure those renting accommodation in Wales shouldn’t be unfairly denied the chance to own pets. RSPCA Cymru has urged the Welsh Government to act as it responds to a consultation on new draft regulations linked to the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016. The Welsh Government is currently considering new draft model written statements. These will provide landlords access to consistent, uniform statements of contracts for their tenants, which they can use if they choose. However, the RSPCA is disappointed that the model written statements proposed include no reference to pets or animals. The animal welfare…