Author: Rhys Gregory

A North Wales construction company has won a £4.0m contract to build a much-needed new primary school in Cricieth. Bodelwyddan-headquartered Wynne Construction is to deliver the new Ysgol Treferthyr on a greenfield site on the western approach to the Gwynedd town, around 500m from its current location. The project is being funded by the Welsh Government under the 21st Century Schools programme alongside Gwynedd Council. Ysgol Treferthyr is currently using a school built in the 19th century with a 1970s-built prefabricated extension in the centre of town with capacity for 119 pupils plus pre-schoolers, offering Welsh medium education for ages…

The Royal Mint Experience, based in Llantrisant, South Wales, has launched a 360˚ virtual tour in conjunction with Mr. Men Little Miss, letting people explore behind the scenes of The Royal Mint from the comfort of their own home. Whilst the visitor attraction remains temporarily closed, visitors can go behind the scenes of The Royal Mint virtually (and free of charge). The launch of the virtual tours coincides with The Royal Mint’s launch of a commemorative coin collection celebrating 50 years of fun with the Mr. Men Little Miss characters. Special guest Little Miss Inventor has taken on the responsibility…

A series of workshops are being delivered via Zoom next month (April) as part of the Art for the Park project led by University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD) graduate NylahMAK and supported by the University and Swansea City of Sanctuary. The project will culminate in a community art installation that celebrates the 10th anniversary of Swansea as a City of Sanctuary. The workshops will run once a week starting Monday April 26. Each participant will make a decorative fabric bird house to be exhibited as part of the public installation, which will be shown in a Swansea park…

An Aberystwyth bar has been issued a £1,000 Fixed Penalty Notice and served a Premises Closure Notice after an underground drinking den was discovered on the night of the France v Wales Six Nations rugby match. Officers from Ceredigion’s Public Protection Team were carrying out routine patrols in the county when they discovered a makeshift room set up in the cellar of Bar 46 on the evening of 20 March 2021. The cellar was being used by some of the bar’s workers and their friends. Officers entered the cellar using their powers under the Coronavirus restrictions regulations and found the…

Business confidence in Wales rose 14 points during March to 9%, the first net positive reading since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020, according to the latest Business Barometer from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking. The data has been released just a week after the one-year anniversary of the first COVID-19 lockdown. Companies reported higher confidence in their own business prospects month-on-month, up six points at 15%.  When taken alongside their optimism in the economy, up 23 points to 4%, this gives a headline confidence reading of 9%. The Business Barometer questions 1,200 businesses monthly and provides early…

Astutis, an industry-leader in workplace health, safe­ty and environmental training, is celebrating its 10-year anniversary. The Welsh company has reached the impressive milestone of partnering with more than 100,000 customers across 3,000 organisations in 180 countries. All from its Cardiff HQ and in the name of helping to make the world of work safer, happier and more eco-conscious. Improving the world of work The environment and our health and safety are fundamental to our very existence. Both require increased awareness, understanding and continuous improvement. The risk of injury, or even death, at work remains ever-present while global pressures for increasing sustainability in business continues to rise. Which…

Cardiff Bus customers are being advised of timetable changes over the Easter bank holiday period. On Good Friday and Saturday 3rd April, the bus operator will be running Saturday timetables across all of its services. While on both Sunday 4th April and Monday 5th April, Sunday timetables will be running across all of its routes. Customers planning to travel over the bank holiday are urged to check details of their routes in advance in order to avoid disruption to their journeys. Cardiff Bus commercial manager Gareth Stevens said: “We would like to advise customers that our services will be running…

A specialist Newport hospital has considerably increased its capacity with an additional 12 beds, thanks to a significant investment. St Peter’s Hospital in Langstone, which is owned and run by specialist healthcare provider, Ludlow Street Healthcare, is a person-centred assessment, treatment and care centre for men and women with degenerative neuropsychiatric conditions and Acquired Brain Injuries (ABI). The hospital now offers 51 beds across single-gender units, which provide specialist treatment and nursing care that focuses on delivering positive outcomes for patients and their families. The bespoke design of St Peter’s incorporates many dementia and ABI friendly features, and the hospital…

Weatherman Derek Brockway is lacing up his boots and is back out on the Wales Coast Path for a brand new series of Weatherman Walking: The Welsh Coast. From Fairbourne to Fishguard and from Llandudno to Llantwit Major, Derek will be exploring spectacular stretches of the 870-mile path and will be joined by a host of co-presenters who show off what each walk has to offer. Speaking in the programme, Derek said; “The Welsh coastline is spectacular stretching for nearly 900 miles and there’s a coast path the entire length of it. Around each bay and each bend is a…

Preparations are underway for the start of work on a new £6.4m scheme that will defend Porthcawl from flooding and any potential future rise in sea levels. With the first phase of the scheme set to focus on the iconic Western Breakwater, construction specialists Knights Brown are in the process of setting up a compound on land at Salt Lake in readiness for the work to begin next month. Built in the 1820s and extended in the 1860s, the Western Breakwater has become world-famous in recent years thanks to dramatic photographs of the huge waves which crash over it during…