Author: Rhys Gregory

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…

Food service business Compass Group completed a notable hat-trick at the annual Apprenticeship, Employment and Skills Awards organised by one of Wales’ top training companies. The company and its employees celebrated three awards at the event which recognised employers and learners who have excelled in apprenticeship, skills and employment training programmes delivered by Cambrian Training Company. Compass Group won the Macro Employer of the Year award while catering manager Stewart Wooles and chef Alastair Jones, both employees of Compass Group (ESS) at RRC Crickhowell, won the Apprentice of the Year and Foundation Apprentice of the Year awards respectively. Flint-based IT and…

Wales-headquartered trade credit insurer Atradius has launched a new hybrid-working policy giving staff flexibility to work from home over the long term. The new way of working will offer Atradius staff the opportunity to spend up to 40% of the time working remotely. The ‘hybrid working philosophy’ was developed by Atradius, which has its UK headquarters in Cardiff Bay, in consultation with staff, with a clear preference identified for maintaining an element of remote working. The opportunity to work remotely will be voluntary, giving staff a choice of where they work. Anne Middleton, Head of HR for Atradius UK and…

Wales has secured its place as the place to train, work and live in the UK after receiving nine shortlisted nominations at the 2021 Student Nursing Times Awards. The annual awards, which is now in its 10th year, celebrates the achievements of student nurses across the UK and all those individuals and organisations who support them. Those shortlisted in Wales are: Most inspirational student nurse Melissa Louise Chard,Bangor University Chloe Scott,Bangor University Simon James,Swansea University Student nurse of the year – adult Simon James,Swansea University Stuart Michael John Denman,Swansea University Student placement of the year – hospital  Betsi Cadwaladr University…

Pupils from a North Wales school are today joining celebrations to mark charity Mary’s Meals reaching more than two million children with life-changing meals every school day. Thanks to its incredible supporters and volunteers in the UK and around the world, the global school feeding charity is providing a daily nutritious meal to 2,058,099 children living in some of the world’s poorest countries. St Richard Gwyn High School in Flint, North Wales, is among supporters from around the world, who are today celebrating the landmark achievement. Mary’s Meals provides food in a place of education to help even the most…