Author: Rhys Gregory

South Wales Police has charged a 52-year-old man with murder following the death of Luke Williams, aged 26, in Aberaman last month. Mr Williams was pronounced deceased on Thursday, December 19th at Prince Charles Hospital following an incident in Commerce Place at approximately 8.50pm on Monday, December 16th. Andrew John Davies, from Aberaman, was initially arrested and charged with causing Grievous Bodily Harm and was remanded into custody at Merthyr Magistrates Court. Davies has now been charged with the murder of Mr Williams and will appear at Cardiff Crown Court this morning.

A £2bn transport vision designed to transform Cardiff and South East Wales’ transport network has been unveiled by Cardiff Council. Cardiff Council’s Transport White Paper, which lays out an ambitious 10-year plan to tackle the climate emergency, reduce congestion and improve air quality in the Welsh capital, was launched this week following consultation with thousands of city residents, health and transport experts. The White Paper lists a series of projects which could revolutionise public transport options in Cardiff and the region, including: Expanding current Metro plans to deliver more new tram/train routes and stations in Cardiff and the region Introducing…

A record number of victims of modern-day slavery and human trafficking are coming to light in North Wales – including pensioners in their 60s and 70s. According to North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones, 2019 saw a 60 per cent increase in cases, from 63 to around 100, with the majority of cases involving children and young people being coerced into selling drugs by vicious County Lines gangmasters. But older people are also being targeted by the organised crime gangs because they are vulnerable for a variety of reasons, including their age, loneliness or disability. The news came during…

Indie rockers the Kaiser Chiefs will headline a Saturday night set at Cardiff Castle this summer.  Formed in Leeds back in 2000, Kaiser Chiefs released their debut album ‘Employment’ in 2005, and it immediately cemented the band as a standout on the British indie music scene. They have been storming the charts ever since, with successes including ‘Ruby’ and ‘I Predict a Riot’. In 2006 they won three Brit Awards for Best British Group, Best British Live Act, and Best British Live Act. On Saturday 11th July, they will play the Welsh capital as part of Cardiff’s one day, family-friendly music…

A woman who overcame a series of traumas including being diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer has become a mental health champion at the housing association where she works. Along with 13 other colleagues, Ceri Twist, 46, has been named as a mental health Champion at Cartrefi Conwy where she is the Independent Living Manager. Ceri was speaking at a special ceremony where the organisation’s Chief Executive, Andrew Bowden, signed Time to Change Wales Pledge aimed at ending the stigma and discrimination around mental health issues. The Time to Change Wales campaign is a joint partnership with two leading mental health…

Farmers’ Union of Wales’ (FUW) staff have expressed major concerns regarding the implications for members, who are National Trust tenants, given the Trust’s plans to plant large numbers of trees on their land.  The concerns were expressed during a meeting of the Union’s County Executive Officers who represent members in Wales’ twelve FUW county regions, some of which include large areas of land owned by the trust. On Thursday (January 9) the General Director of the Trust revealed plans to grow 20 million trees over the next 10 years by planting saplings or removing livestock to allow self-seeding and dozens…

Eight people in Llandysul are celebrating today after winning £1,000 each thanks to their lucky postcode. The  neighbours netted the windfall when SA44 4SU was announced as a Daily Prize winner with People’s Postcode Lottery on Wednesday 15th January 2020. People’s Postcode Lottery ambassador Judie McCourt sent her well-wishes to the winners. She said: “What a great surprise to start the day! Congratulations to all our winners.” A minimum of 32% of ticket sales goes directly to charities and players of People’s Postcode Lottery have raised over £500 million to date for thousands of good causes in Britain and beyond.…

Brand-new, bilingual, eco-friendly focused Nestlings Nursery, has recently opened on Cardiff’s St Andrew’s Crescent. Delivering the very best in nursery care to children from three months to 12 years old, all year round, Nestlings Nursery is hoping to fill the need for quality, healthy and Welsh-speaking childcare in the capital. Nestlings Nursery is founded and managed by Misty Ardouin, who has been working in Cardiff’s childcare sector for over 10 years. Raised in Llandovery, Ardouin studied education and childcare at Bath Spa University and moved to Cardiff in 2008. Since living in the capital, she has built up a solid…

GlobalWelsh, Wales’ independent, not-for-profit diaspora organisation has launched a new City Hub in Beijing. GlobalWelsh Beijing is the third City Hub to be launched in the past 12 months and is headed up by Cardiff-raised Ling Lai. As Wales faces the continuing uncertainty of Brexit, it’s more important than ever that it boosts its international links and makes its own opportunities, a role which City Hubs have been working to fulfil since they were first launched last year. The aim of the City Hubs is to provide a forum for GlobalWelsh community members to connect with like-minded members and uncover…

The outlook for the Welsh housing market has improved following the General Election result, according to the December 2019 RICS Residential Market Survey, with price and sales expectations for the three months ahead increasing sharply. A net balance of +48 percent of respondents in Wales now expects prices to rise over the next three months and a net balance of +39 percent expects sales activity to increase in the same timeframe. Indeed, the sales expectations balance is now at its highest level since January 2018. Meanwhile the price expectations balance in Wales is the highest in the UK. This increase…