Author: Rhys Gregory

Angela May from Thornhill in Cardiff has been voted the best swimming teacher in Cardiff winning the first round of a national UK competition. Angela is 69 years old and has been teaching for over 30 years at Llanishen Better Leisure Centre. She was nominated by a combination of pupils, parents and work colleagues all of whom were impressed by her dedication, enthusiasm and commitment to her job. More than 700 nominations were made nationwide and Angela will now go through to a regional semi-final.  If she is successful she will then go forward to a national judging day to…

Cardiff’s Kyle Woodward has just returned from competing in the WorldSkills 2019 ‘Vocational Olympics’ held in Kazan in Russia as a member of the 30-strong Team UK. [aoa id=”1″] Kyle is a member of the South Wales Cyber Security Cluster and a student at the National Cyber Security Academy at the University of South Wales. He was competing in the Cyber Security events at WorldSkills, after qualifying by winning the UK National round of the global cyber competition. The WorldSkills competition is run every two years and hosted by different nations each time, bringing together more than 1,600 young professionals…

Leading Welsh law firm, Berry Smith, is celebrating the success of a double nomination at the Wales Dealmakers Awards 2019 this Summer. [aoa id=”1″] The awards, which are set to be held on September 26 at the Mercure Holland House hotel in Cardiff, will recognise the top acquisitions, funding deals and buyouts in Wales, bringing together the businesses and individuals who made them happen. Amongst those recognised is Berry Smith, seeing its team shortlisted for Deal of the Year for its work in respect of the sale of Reid Lifting Holdings Limited; and also, Legal Team of the Year, celebrating the…

According to the latest NatWest Wales PMI® data, private sector firms signalled a marginal upturn in business activity in August. The rate of growth eased to a three-month low, but was still faster than the UK average. That said, new business was broadly unchanged, as client demand weakened notably from July. Subsequently, backlogs fell at a faster pace and employment was reduced at the sharpest pace since late-2011. Business confidence dipped to a five-month low as Brexit uncertainty weighed on expectations. At the same time, inflationary pressures softened. The headline Wales Business Activity Index – a seasonally adjusted index that…

The announcement that Scottish farmers will benefit from £160 million as a top up payment from the UK Government, as well as a £51.4m boost in convergence funding, has been slammed as political game playing by the Farmers’ Union of Wales. [aoa id=”1″] FUW President Glyn Roberts responded saying: “There can be absolutely no doubt that direct support, which underpins safe, top-quality food production, must be maintained to avoid causing irreparable damage to Wales and of course the UK as a whole. “As such, we welcomed the decision to set up a review of allocations based on environmental, agricultural and…

Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway celebrated two milestones at its annual Steam Gala from August 30 to September 1. [aoa id=”1″] The event saw the entry into service of the oldest locomotive to run on the Mid Wales line, following an unprecedented effort by the railway’s mechanical engineering department. In addition, a ceremony on August 30 marked the opening of ‘Llanfair Connections’, the first phase of the railway’s visitor centre project at Llanfair Caereinion station. The 0-6-2T locomotive ‘Zillertal’ arrived on the W&LLR on August 13, at the start of a two-year hire agreed with its owners the Zillertalbahn in…

With the Rugby World Cup fast approaching, S4C series CIC (Kick) returns with a brand new series for all young rugby fans. [aoa id=”1″] The series returns on the first day of the 2019 Rugby World Cup on Friday 20 September at 5.40pm and continues every Friday on S4C’s Stwnsh service for children and young people. RGC (Rygbi Gogledd Cymru 1404) player Billy McBryde joins presenter Heledd Anna to host the series, CIC. Among the Wales stars to appear in the series are Gareth Davies, Liam Williams, Josh Adams, Carys Phillips, Elinor Snowsill, Jonathan Davies, Dan Biggar, Owen Watkin, Hadleigh…

Police are appealing for information to find a 15 year-old female from Penlan, Swansea who has been reported missing. South Wales Police said Sophie Estepanian was last seen at Penlan Library at 1543 hours on Friday, 6th September 2019. A police spokesman said: “Her family and officers are concerned for her welfare”. Sophie is described as a white female, 4ft 11, large build, red hair, pierced nose. She was last seen wearing black jeans, black boots, black top and carrying a black handbag. Sophie has previously been located in the Swansea area but may be visiting the Cardiff area. Anyone with…

Slow-moving heavy showers and thunderstorms could cause travel disruption in a few places on Monday between 10am and 8pm this evening. An area of heavy rain will turn more showery later this morning, with a risk of thunderstorms developing, which may be slow-moving in some places. Heavy showers and thunderstorms clearing away southwards early evening. 15-20 mm of rain could fall within an hour and 30-40 mm within 3-4 hours in a few places. Lightning and hail are also possible. What to expect Some flooding of a few homes and businesses likely, leading to some damage to buildings or structures…

Whether you call it twenty-one, pontoon or blackjack, this simple card game has long been a favourite in casinos across the globe. Indeed, you’re just as likely to see blackjack glamorised in films like James Bond as you are poker. That’s because, as simple as this game appears, it also comes with a big dose of excitement and strategy, which has cemented it as one of the most popular games in casino history. You might think the big draw of blackjack is to be there in that casino, facing off against your dealer. But online casinos have made huge advances…