Author: Rhys Gregory

A young entrepreneur from Llantrisant has opened a design house making bespoke bridal, prom, and evening gowns by hand. Leigh Panes, 27, studied Fashion Design at the University of South Wales before starting her business, Leigh Alexandra. Her first occasion collection was unveiled in September 2019 and Leigh is now launching a bridal collection and working on another occasion wear collection for later in the year. Leigh Alexandra is just one of thousands of businesses in Wales that has been affected in some way by the coronavirus pandemic. Leigh has been unable to do fittings with new or existing customers,…

Gareth Evans, 44, is celebrating the one-year anniversary of his liver transplant, following years of alcoholism. The successful media professional became hooked on alcohol beyond his greatest fears in 2012 after self-medicating to shield mental health issues, which led to a life-threatening addiction. He said: “I was drinking a lot. Before it was too late, I was on at least 2 litres of spirits a day; drinking for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I remember one evening, a colleague and I went out after work – I was living in Manchester at the time, and I had consumed so much alcohol…

Aspiring artists, school children, retired people and creative folk of all ages in Wales are being given a chance to have their names etched in history. Design ideas are being invited to appear on the stone centre-piece obelisks of new COVID-19 memorial gardens which are being created at Llanelli, Aberystwyth and Langstone Vale crematoria. The crematoria are run by Westerleigh Group, the UK’s largest independent owner of crematoria and cemeteries, who are building memorials in tranquil gardens at over 30 sites across the UK with members of the public invited to contribute to their design. The memorial gardens will be…

Cardiff’s award-winning Sherman Theatre has announced its autumn season which includes the new audio series Heart of Cardiff, inspired by the people and communities of the city.   The season also includes an audio version of a popular new comedy drama and two series of podcasts. The Sherman will also continue a programme to support freelance theatre makers and connect and develop young people. All of the audio and online experiences will be offered to audiences and artists for free. Following a search across Cardiff for writers with stories to tell about their community, neighbourhood, and heritage – resulting in…

WHEN disaster struck for a family in South Wales, an ‘angel’ from the North was on hand to give life-saving advice. Debra Thomas was at her mother Terry Thomas’ house in Efail Isaf, Pontypridd, on the evening of August 21 when Terry, 87, who has been battling pancreatic cancer since late 2018, slipped into a diabetic coma. After phoning an ambulance to assist them, a new system put in place by the Welsh Ambulance Service kicked in and an experienced clinician picked up the call. Hefin Jones, from Anglesey, a paramedic of 29 years’ experience, is currently seconded on the…

A team tasked with listening to patients in Swansea Bay and sharing their stories is becoming something to talk about itself. Swansea Bay University Health Board’s (SBUHB) Digital Stories Team, which aims to improve the patient experience through sharing good practice as well as highlighting lessons that need to be learned, has been shortlisted for the Patient Experience Network National (PENNA) Awards. Digital stories are voice recordings put together with images to create a short video, told in the first person, directed by the teller and under 3 minutes long. Stories can be from patients, relatives or staff about their…

After temporarily pausing tax investigations as COVID-19 business support measures rolled out earlier this year, HMRC has restarted probes into businesses and individuals’ tax affairs. The Revenue has also started to direct its attention towards the misuse of coronavirus support schemes, such as the furlough scheme and the self-employed income support scheme. An amendment to the Finance Bill 2020, if passed will allow HMRC to recover grants that claimants were not entitled to receive. To identify furlough fraud, HMRC checks whether staff appeared on real-time information reports before 19 March 2020. Meanwhile, self-employed workers who claimed support may be asked…

Principality Building Society has donated its unused maintenance vehicles to support the services of two charities and a community project in south Wales. The charities benefitting from the donation are Welsh-based homelessness charities Llamau and The Wallich, and community-based project Free Bikes 4 Kids. The vehicles will be used by Llamau and The Wallich to support their mobile outreach services, which include delivering hot food and providing accommodation support to people experiencing homelessness and rough sleeping in Wales. Mike Jones, founder of Free Bikes 4 Kids will use the van as a delivery vehicle, to transport the bikes he restores…

While the symptoms may vary, most children with autism show signs of difficulty in communicating verbally and non-verbally, a lack of social skills, and the inability to relate to the world around them. Detecting autism early is necessary to help the child receive the intensive care and intervention they need in order to mitigate the effects of autism and help your child to develop.  This article will look at the difficulty of diagnosing autism and how to spot it in children of different ages. The Difficult with Early Diagnosis Diagnosing autism is not easy since there is no medical test…

Adventure Coachlines launches a series of day trips to restore confidence in coach travel while providing travellers with a low cost and convenient way to sightsee across the UK.