Author: Rhys Gregory

THE Welsh Ambulance Service has recognised the quick-thinking actions of three South Wales Police officers after they came to the aid of a man who suffered a heart attack at work. PCs Darren Westall from the Roads Policing Unit at Gwaelod Y Garth, Heledd Roberts and Catherine Frost, both based in Barry, were awarded a Chief Executive’s Commendation by Jason Killens, Chief Executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service, accompanied by South Wales Police Chief Inspector Tony Williams. The trio of PCs were on duty on 03 April this year when a 51-year-old local bus driver pulled his vehicle over on…

Naturalist Iolo Williams will present the new series of BBC Autumnwatch from Mid Wales from tonight (Tuesday 27 October). The programme will be broadcast from four different UK locations, including with Iolo at the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) in Machynlleth.  “I’m so excited to be returning to CAT in the beautiful UNESCO Dyfi Biosphere to present this year’s Autumnwatch. There is such an abundance of wildlife in Mid Wales and it’s great to see it flourishing at a site that was once an industrial slate quarry. “Welsh wildlife we’re hoping to see include pine martens, hawfinches, Greenland white-fronted geese,…

Medtech firm Bond Digital Health has doubled its team in lockdown by recruiting half a dozen new members of staff remotely. The Cardiff-based company hired six new employees in the space of three months to bolster its development team and help it complete and deliver a major client project on time. The entire recruitment and onboarding process was done remotely and the new employees have not yet met each other in person – or the rest of the Bond team. Phil Groom, Bond’s commercial director, said: “We’ve built a new development team from the ground up in the space of…

A patient at University Hospital Llandough has become the first in Wales to receive a transfusion of monoclonal antibodies to treat COVID-19. Melanie James, from the Pontprennau area of Cardiff, received the transfusion as part of the RECOVERY (Randomised Evaluation of COVid-19 thERapY) clinical trial, after being admitted to University Hospital Llandough with COVID-19. The transfusion of monoclonal antibodies is the latest treatment to be added to the RECOVERY trial, which is the world’s largest randomised controlled clinical trial for COVID-19. The new arm of the trial aims to determine the effectiveness of monoclonal antibodies in preventing COVID-19 from entering…

John Connolly has been named as Hodge’s new Head of Customer Experience. John will lead the new Customer Experience function at Hodge and will be instrumental in driving the business forward from a customer perspective. John will work in the new Retail Banking division which encompasses the lending, savings and customer service functions at Hodge and will report into Matt Burton, Hodge’s Group Retail Director. John has been working with Hodge since 2018 in a number of roles, including supporting the transformation of our Operations function and supporting with the development and delivery of our People strategy. More recently, John…

The new owners of an award-winning vineyard, located on Shropshire’s border with Wales, are celebrating their first harvest. Husband and wife Russell and Janet Cooke are delighted to have brought in their first harvest, after purchasing the Kerry Vale Vineyard, near Churchstoke, earlier this year. “’The last few months have been incredibly busy, but also very exciting,” said Russel. “Taking on a vineyard and cafe, especially during these difficult economic times, has been a challenge. “However, being able to bring in the harvest to make our own wine, makes it all worthwhile. Harvest has been successful and our café is…

Blake Morgan’s Cardiff office is celebrating another strong showing in the 2021 edition of the Chambers & Partners Guide, which recognises and recommends the best performing lawyers and legal firms across the UK. This year, 42 Blake Morgan UK-wide practice areas were ranked as either Band 1 or 2, with a further six ranked as Band 3. The firm’s Cardiff office had a particularly strong year, with 12 practice areas ranked, including Employment, Public Law, Corporate/M&A, Real Estate, Intellectual Property, and Social Housing. One of the firm’s Cardiff clients noted that ‘the firm is excellent and provides the best service.’…

Cardiff and Vale College has been crowned as the best college in the country for its focus on digital skills and its contribution to the local community. The awards celebrate the best of the best in FE and CAVC won in two categories – Outstanding Use of Technology in Teaching, Learning and Assessment and Contribution to the Local Community. While judges thought the standard of across the board for use of technology was extremely high, CAVC’s stood out as the outstanding entry. They noted that the College has a mission to empower learners to be the innovators of the future…

A new animated video has been developed by Swansea University to raise awareness of lymphoedema and help patients understand more about how their condition will be treated. It is estimated that more than 200,000 men, women and children are living with lymphoedema, also known as chronic oedema, in the UK. Lymphoedema affects around 2 in 10 people with breast cancer, and 5 in 10 people with vulval cancer. The lymphatic system is the body’s disposal system, carrying lymph around the body, fighting infection, and getting rid of waste products produced by cells. If the lymphatic system stops working, this can…

Two specialist dementia nursing homes have appointed their first family liaison officer, as a dedicated link person between residents and their families. And Laura Haynes says that she will work especially closely with families when their loved one first arrives at a Meddyg Care Group home in Porthmadog or Criccieth. Laura, 32, came into the care sector accidentally, when seeking work after leaving university, before discovering it was her vocation.  She worked her way up from home carer to office manager within the private domiciliary care sector, and said: “I was very close to my late grandfather and used to…