Author: Rhys Gregory

Following their appointment as joint administrators to Gwent Nursing Homes Limited, Chris Newell, Graham Randall and Paul Zalkin of business advisory firm Quantuma have secured the sale of the business. Located in the heart of the village of Caerleon, Newport, the nursing home is registered for 54 clients. The company, which trades as Caerleon House Nursing Home, entered administration in August 2019 following a period of financial instability. It operated successfully under Quantuma’s instruction, despite the Covid19 pandemic, with the firm overseeing the running of the home and its return to profitability. Having received strong interest from a number of…

A project run by Swansea Council’s Dylan Thomas Service has won a UK national award. The service’s Literature and Trauma initiative won a prize in the Museums Association’s Museums Change Lives awards. A big hit with its target audience – refugees and asylum seekers living in Swansea – the creative writing scheme was named the best small museum project that delivers social impact. Robert Francis-Davies, the council’s cabinet member for investment, regeneration and tourism, said: “Our arts and culture team develop projects on a number of themes for visitors and residents throughout the year. “They’re enjoyed inside and outside of…

A popular Cardiff-based female empowerment group has raised over £5,000 through crowdfunding to support the expansion of its events and online offering. Warrior Women Collective, which supports, empowers and celebrates women through events, content and its community, raised £5,308 through 129 supporters during the 28-day campaign. Co-founders of Warrior Women Collective, Charlie Morgan and Amy Holland, teamed up with a number of female-run businesses to offer rewards in return for financial support during the Natwest Back Her Business crowdfunding programme. Having surpassed their £5,000 target, the duo will now use the funding to scale up Warrior Women’s event and online…

The renowned artisan Angel Bakery in Abergavenny is to open a new large shop on Wednesday 25th November which will support local producers at this difficult time for small local businesses.   Head bakers Sophie Kumar and Polly Hunter say: “It was always our long term plan to open a larger shop but the decision has been accelerated by Covid-19.” Since reopening the original small shop after the first lockdown, restrictions on space have meant that they can only serve one person or household at a time which has meant that customers haven’t been able to browse. The new shop…

The Christmas Visit is bringing the magic of Christmas direct to the doors of families across south Wales. Using professionally trained actors, The Christmas Visit brings Snowflake the elf and Father Christmas to the homes of families through an enchanting theatrical experience full of rich story-telling and magical wonderment. Each visit will be personalised to the children, who will also receive a gift and Good List certificate. Now taking bookings from 1st – 24th December throughout Cardiff, the Vale of Glamorgan and Bridgend, with more locations likely to be added in the coming weeks. Following strict COVID19 safety measures, The…

With theatres closed, gatherings off limits and coronavirus restrictions likely to continue into winter, it’s undeniable Christmas will look a little different this year. But that doesn’t mean there’s no festive fun to be had. To ensure no one misses out on the nation’s most beloved festive traditions, from 9thDecember until 13th December The Parking Lot Social is heading to Sully Sports Club to deliver a Christmas-themed drive-in extravaganza and some much-needed cheer! The team have put together a truly magical line-up of events, headlined by a brand new, 2020 drive-in version of panto classic Cinderella. Featuring all the traditional…

The NHS COVID-19 app for contact tracing will now be compatible with similar apps in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Jersey and Gibraltar from this week. All the apps will be interoperable with one another, meaning a user of any of the apps will be notified if they have been a ‘close contact’ of someone who has tested positive for coronavirus and is using any of the Protect Scotland, StopCovid NI, Jersey COVID alert, Beat COVID Gibraltar or Wales and England’s NHS COVID-19 apps. This new interoperability will give people greater protection as they cross borders and national restrictions change and vary…

A Wales based partnership is importing coffee which is helping Ugandan farmers cope with the impact of climate change thanks to funding from the Welsh Government’s Wales and Africa Programme. The Coffee 2020 project is a partnership between Fair Dos Fair Trade shop in Cardiff, Ferrari’s Coffee Roasters of Pontyclun, the Wales Co-op Centre and a Ugandan Coffee Co-operative MEACCE. Together they have launched Jenipher’s Coffi – named after one of the Ugandan farmers who has visited Wales in recent years. The launch builds on the strong link between Wales and the Mbale region of Uganda. Thousands of people from…

Finance Minister Rebecca Evans has today welcomed the extension of the furlough scheme to March next year, but warns that the UK Government’s last minute U-turn has already caused irreparable damage to people’s lives. The Minister also urged the Chancellor to take action to backdate support for Welsh businesses and workers for the entirety of the 17 day firebreak so they were not disadvantaged. Finance Minister, Rebecca Evans said: “I am pleased that businesses and workers now have some much needed certainty, but it is unacceptable that the UK Government waited until a nationwide England lockdown before acting.  For many…

The Welsh Government has given the green light and a further £10m to a major new programme that will transform social housing across Wales, boost the economy and open the door to a new Welsh industry. Backed with almost £20m, the Optimised Retrofit Programme (ORP) is a key part of the Welsh Government’s plans for a green recovery – as set out in the recently-published Covid Reconstruction: Challenges and Priorities report. In the first year of the programme, ORP will bring together Housing Associations and councils on projects that will help upgrade at least 1,000 existing social homes through a…