Author: Rhys Gregory

The gorgeous scenery that Wales has to offer has long been a favourite for wedding-goers globally, and so its little surprise that Wales Online highlights the downturn in Welsh weddings as a huge, multi-million pound hit to the economy. Both for those looking to tie the knot and for organisers, there is some benefit to be gained. The downturn in activity means more time for all-crucial planning. Extra planning It’s so often the case these days that an engagement and wedding is rushed through without too much care for the smaller stuff. The extra time you can take to plan means that…

Hundreds of companies have begun viewing remote working as a viable option due to the COVID pandemic. It’s safe to say that remote working will continue far after the pandemic, as well. And while many remote workers enjoy not having to get dressed and deal with the morning commute every day, there are a few downsides to working from home, including the lack of security. Today, let’s go over the dangers looming over remote workers and how remote workers can protect themselves. 3 Risks Facing Remote Workers 1. Phishing Scams A large subset of cybercriminals does what they do for…

NHS and council leaders have written to every householder in the Swansea Bay area to highlight action being taken to vaccinate the most vulnerable in our communities. Tens of thousands of residents across the area are due to be vaccinated in the coming weeks to help protect them and their loved-ones from Covid-19. Thousands of frontline social care and health board staff have been getting the vaccine since before Christmas and elderly people living in care homes across the area are next in line. Similar letters are being sent to every household in Wales over the next couple of weeks…

Neath Port Talbot Council has appointed a contractor to start work on the creation of a new Active Travel route between Neath and Tonna. The route will take users alongside the towpath from Bridge Street in Neath to a point next to the Calor Gas centre in Tonna. Work on the new Active Travel route by contractors Jones Brothers (Henllan) Ltd, begins today, Monday January 18th . The route will be closed temporarily while the Welsh Government funded work goes ahead. By upgrading and creating new walking and cycling routes, the council plans to make Active Travel the “normal” way…

An important milestone has been reached in the building of a new home for a thriving Welsh medium primary school in Swansea. The steel frame for the £9.9m development for Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Tan-y-lan has been completed. Contractor Kier has made great progress on the school since moving on site last summer while working within strict coronavirus safety measures. Usually pupils are invited to a ‘topping-out’ ceremony to mark such an occasion but due to the current restrictions this has not been possible. The development is being jointly funded by Swansea Council and the Welsh Government under the 21st Century…

An overgrown and neglected bridleway in a Swansea community is being given a new lease of life in a bid to encourage more use by walkers and cyclists. Swansea Council has secured more than £1.8 million of Welsh Government Active Travel funding to create a series of cycling links in the Sketty and Mayals communities. Part of the funding is being invested in a 2.5km cycle lane which will follow the path of the existing bridleway, across an old landfill site in Clyne Valley. The new route will include a safer and more accessible surface, enabling wheelchair users and families…

Neath-based construction company J.G. Hale Construction has commenced the demolition of five existing two-storeyresidential blocks in Newport, to make way for a development of more energy efficient homes. The existing site at Longmeadow Court will be demolished and replaced by a development of 35 dwellings for Newport City Homes. The scheme will comprise of 24 one-bedroom apartments, 9 two-bedroom houses and 2 four-bedroom homes. The homes provided by the £5.2m project will be built to EPC A standard – the highest grade on the ‘energy efficiency’ scale, which as well as reducing energy costs for the residents, also reduces the…

The highly anticipated details for the regeneration of a brownfield site in Cardiff have been unveiled by developer Vastint UK as a public consultation launches today. Members of the public have been invited to share their views on the masterplan proposals for a transformative, mixed-use project which aims to strengthen connections between Cardiff City Centre and the bay along the banks of the River Taff. The Embankment at Dumballs Road will deliver the sustainable redevelopment of a key strategic, 40-acre site, creating up to 2,500 new homes alongside 54,000 square metres of business space as well as opportunities for leisure,…

Local High School, Mary Immaculate have been going the extra mile once again. This time the school has managed to raise £760.91 to donate to the Know Your Lemons Foundation in honour of Mrs Dawn Wilson. Know Your Lemons is a foundation that is dedicated to spreading the awareness of breast cancer symptoms, their important mission is to help women find breast cancer as early as possible. As of 2020, they reached 1 billion people online because of their #knowyourlemons campaign, helping to educate women all around the world. After Dawn was diagnosed with breast cancer, she discovered that there…

Wales has seen a significant drop in the value and number of fraud cases taken to the Courts, with only ten cases totalling £4.1 million being taken to court in 2020 compared to 17 cases totalling £17 million in 2019. The average value (between £250k-£1m) of each case was also lower in 2020 than compared to 2019. The perpetrators of 90% of the frauds in 2020 have been men, most of whom were career criminals. The typical victims were members of the general public and government organisations. Damian Byrne, Forensic lead for KPMG in Wales, commented: “Since March 2020, as…