Author: Rhys Gregory

The Economy, Transport and North Wales Minister Ken Skates has today announced urgent measures to support public transport through the coronavirus pandemic. NHS staff will receive free travel on buses throughout Wales in return for hardship funding from the Welsh Government over the next three months, with free travel already available on Transport for Wales trains. Transport for Wales will receive additional funding support and a hardship fund has been set up to help bus companies as passenger numbers have fallen by up to 90% as passengers follow the stay-at-home rules in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The combined support…

Police in Cardiff are investigating the unexplained death of a 44 year-old man who was found dead at an address on Clare Road shortly before 9.00am on Wednesday 25th March. The man has been named as Paul O’Brien and detectives are appealing for information with regard to his movements in the days preceding March 25th. Detectives are keeping an open mind concerning the cause of Mr O’Brien’s death but are keen to hear from anyone who may have met or been with Mr O’Brien in the days before he died. Anyone with any information is asked to contact South Wales…

New powers to help reduce the spread of coronavirus, protect the NHS and save lives have now come into force in Wales.  The new laws around social distancing apply to all individuals, including when walking your dog. People are only permitted to leave their homes for the following reasons: Shopping for basic necessities and supplies, which should be as infrequently as possible; One form of exercise a day – for example, a run, walk or cycle – alone or with members of their household; Any medical need, to provide care or to help a vulnerable person; and Travelling to and…

The number of confirmed new Coronavirus cases have risen by 172 today in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 1,093. There has also been four further deaths of people who had tested positive for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). The total number of deaths in Wales is now 38. Latest government figures show there are now 17,089 confirmed cases and 1,019 deaths in the UK, up from 759. Dr Robin Howe, Incident Director for the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak response at Public Health Wales, said: “172 new cases have tested positive for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Wales, bringing the…

Many people including us are finding ourselves working from home for the foreseeable future. It means, we’ve had to create a mini office at home, which doubles as a classroom. These days everything is digital, we all use laptops in our house and our daughter has been using an iPad since she was two years old. We almost never have to print anything, unless it’s a legal document that needs signing or using a small portable photo printer on special occasions. However, working (and learning) from home has presented us with a challenge. We’re finding that we’re having to print off…

Childcare provision for Cardiff’s key workers doing essential work through the COVID-19 outbreak is changing to a hub-based system from Monday 30, March. To reduce the chances of COVID-19 spreading throughout the school community Cardiff Council will be keeping 12 schools open as childcare hubs while the rest will close. This will also enable the Council to concentrate on its cleaning, safe practice and social distancing protocols within the schools which remain open. In order to ensure the transmission of COVID-19 is slowed or halted, key workers and the families of vulnerable learners are being told that school provision is…

What Stores, along with a small number of other retailers have vowed to remain open during the Government lockdown. The store sells household items in addition to other home and outdoor products, and will remain open to provide customers with essential items. In a post on Facebook today, What Stores have said: “Like many local businesses in this difficult time, we have decided to remain open in line with government advisement to continue providing household essentials to the customers that need them. “Our staff have been fantastic and are working very hard to keep our shelves stocked and our customers…

Bus operator First Cymru will be implementing a revised timetable from Sunday 29 March in response to reduced demand and the government to advise against all but essential travel. The changes include frequency and route alterations, as well as service cancellations. Selected services calling at hospitals and medical staff accommodation have been revised to help key workers travel to and from their place of work. The service change is the second in as many weeks and comes after Government outlined strict new measures to tackle the spread of coronavirus, including a requirement for people to stay at home, except for…

The Royal Mint is mass manufacturing medical visors for the NHS next week– providing critical protection for frontline staff. The Royal Mint has announced that it will begin manufacturing medical visors for the NHS after developing a successful prototype to help protect frontline care workers. The first batch of visors are already in use at The Royal Glamorgan Hospital in South Wales. The Royal Mint, usually known for making coins, bullion and gifts, has a state of the art manufacturing facility in Llantrisant. Engineers at the site were keen to support NHS workers, and began searching for medical equipment which…

A huge amount of work has taken place to help the health board face the unprecedented challenges posed by the Coronavirus pandemic. The number of confirmed new cases rose by 180 today in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 921. There has also been six further deaths of people who had tested positive for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). The total number of deaths in Wales is now 34. There have been sweeping changes across hospitals, while staff have taken on extra duties, additional training and even different roles to ensure the best possible patient care is provided. Everyone…