Author: Rhys Gregory

An RSPCA appeal has been launched after a kitten was shot with an air rifle in Barry. The pellet shot poor eight-month-old Cosmo in the side – on 15 December – just days away from Christmas. The attack would have taken place in the Pencoedtre Road area of the town. Cosmo was taken to a veterinary practice – Vale Veterinary Centre – by his owner Devina Hawkins where he was immediately operated on to remove the pellet. Devina said: “He is very lucky. The pellet was inside and had travelled through his body and had got stuck in the skin…

More than 150,000 miles of travel to hospital has been avoided in Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan following the introduction of video consultations. The number of journeys to Cardiff and Vale University Health Board hospitals has decreased considerably since the introduction of the NHS Wales Video Consultation service in April. The popular service enables patients to attend their hospital appointment via video from the comfort of their own home or without having to leave work. Around 15,000 virtual appointments have already been conducted through the service, giving thousands of patients greater flexibility with how they see their clinician. The…

Marston’s today announces that contracts have been exchanged with Brains to operate its portfolio of 156 pubs in Wales, on a combination of leased and management contract arrangements. Established in Cardiff in 1882, Brains is an iconic family business, synonymous with pubs and brewing in Wales with which Marston’s has had a longstanding relationship.  Brains owns a portfolio of 156 pubs, principally located in South and West Wales, as well as the heritage beer brand of Wales of the same name.   The pub business comprises a freehold estate of 86 managed and 55 tenanted pubs, together with a leasehold estate…

The Mid Wales Growth Deal reached a significant milestone this week [Tuesday, 22 December] with the signing of the Heads of Terms by the Welsh Government, UK Government and the region’s local authorities The signing demonstrates a commitment by both governments and the local authorities to work together to deliver a deal to support the economy of the region. It also commits both the Welsh and UK Governments to back the growth deal with a £55m investment each. The growth deal has been developed from the Vision for Growing Mid Wales which was published earlier this year and set out…

The Welsh Government’s unique Economic Resilience Fund (ERF) has helped protect 257 jobs at a Pontypool car parts manufacturer. ZF Automotive UK Limited, which is an important employer in the area and supplies parts to leading car brands across the world, has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. To support the company and its workers through these incredibly difficult times, the Welsh Government has provided £267,000 to help with cashflow and protect the livelihoods of staff. The ERF, which is part of Welsh Government’s £2 billion plus support package for businesses, is providing thousands of companies across Wales with…

The joint venture delivering the Caernarfon and Bontnewydd bypass has reached a major milestone as steel erection gets underway on the bridge decks of the two viaducts which are a key part of the scheme The site team from Balfour Beatty and Jones Bros have continued throughout the COVID-19 pandemic with strict control measures in place to protect the workforce. The Welsh Government is investing £135m in the scheme which is one of the largest infrastructure projects currently underway in North Wales.   The 9.8km bypass will run from the Goat roundabout on the A499/A487 junction to the Plas Menai roundabout…

Councils in Wales will receive £6.3 billion in capital and revenue funding from the Welsh Government next year, Housing and Local Government Minister Julie James has announced. Overall core unhypothecated revenue funding for councils will increase by 3.8% on a like-for-like basis compared to this year, to more than £4.6bn. The like-for-like settlement increase of £172m and increases in specific grants reflects the priority the Welsh Government is giving to local government within its overall budget. Local authorities will continue to share £198 million in General Capital Funding (GCF) for 2021-22, which is funding to spend on their priorities and…

THE Welsh Ambulance Service has re-enlisted the support of the military as it contends with a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. More than 90 soldiers will once again assist the Trust’s Covid-19 effort by driving ambulance vehicles from tomorrow (Wednesday). Among them will be soldiers from 9 Regiment Royal Logistics Corps. On Sunday, Chief Executive Jason Killens visited their headquarters in Chippenham, where soldiers were undergoing training ahead of deployment. Jason said: “The extreme pressure on our ambulance service in the last couple of weeks has been well documented, and it’s why we’ve taken the decision to re-enlist the military,…

BT has announced it will continue its support and investment into club rugby after agreeing a new three-year sponsorship deal with the four Welsh regions – Cardiff Blues, Scarlets, Dragons and Ospreys. BT signed a ground-breaking three-year sponsorship deal with the Welsh regions in 2014. The sponsorship was extended in 2017. The new deal will run until 2023, at the end of which BT will have sponsored the four regions for nine consecutive seasons. BT also announced last year that it had signed an agreement with FA Wales to become the exclusive lead partner of Welsh national football until 2024.…

A new project set up to study the best way to care for patients with long-standing eye conditions in the community has secured a major research grant. Dr Pippa Anderson and Dr Mari Jones, of Swansea University’s Centre for Health Economics (SCHE), are part of a multidisciplinary team which has just been awarded a substantial Research for Patient and Public Benefit (RfPPB) grant from Health and Care Research Wales (HCRW). The cross-professional collaboration is investigating how chronic sight-threatening conditions could be managed and monitored in a community setting. Dr Anderson, the SCHE’s head, said: “In recent years the workload on…