Author: Rhys Gregory

Football, or soccer as our American friends call it, is the world’s most popular sport. We all love to kick the ball around with those we love as a way to socialize and get some much-needed exercise. But, if your love for the game is strong and you want to be the best player you can be, you need to focus on your strength and conditioning. Football is a sport; to excel at it you need to be physically fit and healthy. You can find great benefits in being physically fit, whether you play the game with professional aspirations or…

Transport for Wales (TfW) plans to provide hundreds of new cycle storage spaces at stations in Wales and England. The impact of the current COVID-19 crisis has accelerated the need for more active travel facilities to encourage walking and cycling for key workers on core routes. As part of their Station Improvement Vision, TfW will be creating hundreds of cycle storage spaces at 247 stations, over the next few years. TfW will be working closely with partners including Sustrans Cymru and local authorities throughout Wales to deliver these improvements.  Active Travel is a fundamental part of TfW’s plans to create…

Wales’ vineyards are refusing to be beaten down by the challenges in 2020, as producers across the country diversify, revise their sales strategies and release the highest quality Welsh wine ever produced thanks to 2018’s bumper harvest.   As lockdown measures hit the UK on the 23rd March due to the coronavirus crisis, Welsh vineyards became one of the industries instantly affected with a loss of all tourist and visitor revenue, with many relying on ‘cellar door’ income through tours, events and tastings. An unusually hot April produced early bud burst and vine development, but Welsh vineyards face many challenges…

A Virtual Transition Project which helps children who are leaving primary school prepare for starting secondary school in September, is underway in Cardiff. Developed by The Cardiff Commitment, in partnership with the Council’s E-Learning Team, the scheme provides Year 6 pupils with the opportunity to learn about their new secondary school, which they will be transitioning to after the summer break. It enables them to access a secure web page and google classroom and hosts a variety of activities established by the secondary school to encourage pupils and staff to communicate and get to know one another better. It also…

The UK Department for Education (DfE) and the Home Office has announced £7.6m funding to support national charities which support vulnerable children and young people who are experiencing or at risk of domestic violence, sexual exploitation and abuse. Following the announcement, the Deputy Minister and Chief Whip, Jane Hutt, and Deputy Minister for Health and Social Services, Julie Morgan have issued a joint letter to the Home Office and are calling for funding to reach charities in Wales. Jane Hutt said: “This funding is aimed at larger charities who are in financial distress due to Covid-19. I welcome funding which…

Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales Ken Skates has announced over £16 million in transport grants – nearly £5 million of which will be spent on repairing the damage caused by storms at the start of this year. All local authorities were invited to submit applications for funding and 21 applications were received from 13 local authorities. The Resilient Roads Fund of £16.9 million will support 18 schemes across 13 local authorities, and will be spent on schemes to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change, including addressing disruptions caused on the highway network by the severe…

Aberystwyth University staff have won a prestigious global award for the first phase of their fundraising appeal to redevelop the Old College. The relatively new Development and Alumni Relations team at the University have succeeded in raising £12.3 million towards the costs of redeveloping the iconic seaside building in the town as a major cultural and creative centre for students, the community and visitors.  That fundraising helped to trigger a further £7 million from the Welsh Government and EU funding. The fundraising efforts have now received world-wide recognition from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) with a…

A company that specialises in facilities management has warned of the potential dangers that companies face when reopening workplaces that have been unused for many months because of COVID-19 and lockdown. DRS Facilities Management, a Swansea-based provider of specialist engineering solutions to the facilities management sector, has stressed that unused buildings and work premises can host a number of dangers in addition to COVID-19 including Legionnaires’ disease developing in the water or air conditioning, gas-powered boilers malfunctioning, fire alarms and emergency lighting failing. In response to this challenge, DRS has launched a specialist audit service designed to both check and…

Morrisons is to extend the 10% discount that NHS heroes receive on their grocery shop until the end of September. The discount was first introduced in April and aims to support the 1.5 million NHS staff through the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. It is a thank you from Morrisons. NHS staff are continuing to put themselves at risk and face numerous challenges during the Coronavirus emergency. Morrisons is therefore to extend the discount until September 30th when it will be reviewed. For the first time, NHS workers will also be able to gain the discount if they are ordering a home…

THE BSc Computer Science degree at the University of South Wales (USW) has been approved by a leading Government body. The course has received a prestigious certification by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC),  which is the UK’s lead technical authority on cyber security and a part of GCHQ. The process of certification requires rigorous assessment criteria to be met to ensure the course is of a high standard and is valuable to students and their prospective employers. This includes the NCSC assessing the subject areas that are taught, how students will be examined, and the academic team delivering the…