Author: Rhys Gregory

A Swansea mum who was homeless for eight months has set up a thriving arts and community hub in Swansea city centre, which is helping people with mental health issues. Stacey Hancock set up Driftwood, in Princess Way, at the end of 2020, where she supports creative people to develop skills in everything from tattooing and beauty, to media design. Her story has been highlighted as part of the Big Heart of Swansea’s True Heart social media campaign, which shares the stories of the people behind some of Swansea City Centre’s favourite businesses. The social media account, which is powered…

Scottish Book Trust today announces the 11 recipients of the New Writers Awards 2021, which provide a selection of talented writers who have not yet published a full-length book or collection with professional guidance to help them move towards publication, as well as financial support. Funded by Creative Scotland and run by Scottish Book Trust, the national charity transforming lives through reading and writing, the awards have supported over 100 creative individuals since 2009. The prestigious judging panel included Scots Makar Jackie Kay, Niall Campbell and Colin Waters for poetry; Tendai Huchu, Janice Galloway, Denise Mina and Alan Bett judging…

Another global trial of a COVID-19 vaccine, which included participants from north Wales, has published very promising interim results showing more than 89% effectiveness against the virus. The second of three COVID-19 vaccines trialled in Wales, this study has been delivered through a collaboration between Public Health Wales, Health and Care Research Wales and Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. The UK target reached over 15,000 volunteers with nearly 500 people recruited from a 30-mile radius of Wrexham. These are preliminary results and the study team will continue to collect more data before submitting to regulators for final review in the…

The additional funding, being announced at the start of Children’s Mental Health Week, recognises the effect being away from school and regular support networks has had on young people during the pandemic. The Welsh Government has already demonstrated that it is committed to addressing the issue of mental health across society and spends more on this than any other aspect of the NHS – with a protected minimum spend of £783m for 2021-22. This represents an extra £42m additional funding into mental health support, as it is not just young people who are struggling with this issue during the pandemic.…

Colleagues have paid tribute to Neath Port Talbot Hospital worker who died after testing positive for coronavirus. Helen Mills, who lived in Port Talbot, started her healthcare career working for Homecare. She joined NHS Wales in 2005 as a health care support worker at Groeswen, then worked at Cimla and Neath Port Talbot Hospitals as a physiotherapy assistant. In 2008, she joined the Minor Injury Unit team at Neath Port Talbot Hospital as a health care support worker. Her colleagues at the Minor Injury Unit described Helen, aged 56, as very caring, kind and a well-respected member of the MIU…

Detectives investigating a murder in Penylan, Cardiff have named the victim as 23-year-old Tomasz Waga. His body was discovered by a member of the public at approximately 11.30pm on Thursday (Jan 28) in Westville Road. His family have paid the following tribute to him: “Tomasz was loved by many and was taken from us too soon. “We are devastated by his sudden loss and we ask anyone with information to come forward. “He will forever live in our hearts and will be remembered as the personable son, brother, father and partner that he was.” An incident room has been set…

Dragon Taxis, South Wales’ largest taxi and private hire vehicle operator, has extended its offer of free rides to help roll out the COVID-19 vaccine to elderly and vulnerable patients until February 14. GP practices across South Wales are taking their first steps in the process to tackle the pandemic by vaccinating the elderly and vulnerable in the local community. Dragon Taxis are working with participating GP practices in Bridgend, Cardiff, Newport and Torfaen to offer rides only to those eligible persons who have been invited to make a vaccination appointment, if they have no other means of transport. The…

Half of those most at risk of dying from Covid in Swansea and Neath Port Talbot have received their first dose of the vaccine. This is an immense achievement which has seen 44,480 people vaccinated so far, the vast majority of them either by their GP surgery or in one of our three Mass Vaccination Centres. It means we are on course to hit the milestone of reaching everyone in priority groups one to four – over 70s, care home residents, frontline health and social care workers and those deemed clinically extremely vulnerable/shielding – by mid February. Dr Keith Reid,…

A new cycle and walking route in the north of Swansea is expected to be completed in the coming weeks. The 1.4 kilometre shared use path stretching between Kingsbridge and Gowerton has been developed using Welsh Government Active Travel funding. Swansea Council is putting the finishing touches to the route which will eventually include a link directly to the train station in Gowerton. The latest off-road cycle and walking route is part of the Council’s overall plans to link up all communities across Swansea with dedicated cycle infrastructure, meaning residents all around Swansea will be no more than 500m away…

In property development, ecological consultants are an essential part of the planning permission process. Their role is an important one, and without them, the world of construction becomes a far darker place. Of course, some consultants will be better than others, and their instrumental role is incumbent upon how well they perform and what values they hold dear. So, what should you look for in a quality ecological consultancy firm? After the jump you will find a brief overview on what role top tier ecological consultants play. An Ethical Role Unlike many other entities out there today, ecological consultancy companies…