Author: Rhys Gregory

Aiysha Hancock chats and plays with her young daughter just like any other mum. But when toddler Aurora flashes her a grin, she cannot smile back. The 20-year-old’s face is partially paralysed as the result of a rare condition brought on by a simple cold. The condition also temporarily robbed her of the ability to breathe and move, leaving her in intensive care. Aiysha’s determination and the skill of hospital staff saw her overcome those threats to her life. Yet despite this huge progress, her smile remains absent. It’s all the more distressing for Aiysha as it’s the second time…

A rundown former railway building on the walkway at  Meliden, Prestatyn, is undergoing a revamp, transforming it into a community hub with a café, heritage displays, bike hire facility, and business units.  [aoa id=”1″] And artists, photographers, craft makers, and food producers are being offered the chance to showcase their wares once the building – to be called Y Shed – opens. Inside Y Shed will be space for talented artists, producers and craftspeople to display and sell their products with project leaders, charitable housing association  Grŵp Cynefin and  Meliden  Residents Action Group, particularly keen to support local and upcoming contemporary talent. [/aoa] Mair Edwards, Grŵp Cynefin’s Community Initiatives Manager, said: “Y…

A bespoke catering company based in Cardiff is celebrating a successful first year in business. Set up 14 months ago by Zimbabwe-born Laura Graham, The Tidy Kitchen Co creates hand-made meals for corporate events, special occasions and private clients across the UK using mainly local, seasonal ingredients. To keep up with the growing demand for the company’s services, 31 year-old Laura recently launched an online ordering system to help clients find hassle-free, varied catering options quickly and easily. Clients already using the new ordering system range from local businesses in need of catering for events and meetings, to individuals who want convenience, quality…

A transport boss is flying the flag of Europe’s leading trailer firm on one of the world’s most remote inhabited islands. [aoa id=”1″] Business has been booming for Bruce Salt since he shipped his first Ifor Williams TT105 tipper trailer  to Saint Helena Island in the South Atlantic Ocean in 2008 after launching a transport business. His growing collection of sturdy Ifor Williams’ trailers, which include two TT105s and a TT3017, have seen demand for his services soar on the remote island – which is virtually impassable in some areas – and there are not many jobs he has not…

A police boss has unveiled plans for a 38p-a-week increase in the cost of policing in North Wales – less than the price of a packet of chewing gum. [aoa id=”1″] North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones says the 7.74 per cent rise is needed to recruit 34 extra officers and six more staff to focus on tackling emerging threats like serious and organised crime, child sexual exploitation, cyber-crime, modern day slavery, domestic abuse and drugs gangs who prey on children and young adults. Mr Jones is seeking the backing of the North Wales Police and Crime Panel…

Meet Scamp, the elite tobacco sniffer dog who is so successful that his owner claims smugglers have put a price on his head. During his five-year career, the springer spaniel has sniffed out £6 million worth of illegal tobacco, thanks to his powerful sense of smell and natural hunting instincts. Owner Stuart Phillips who runs B.W.Y Canine in Pembrokeshire, says Scamp’s success rate at sniffing out illegal tobacco hauls means he poses a big threat to the criminals who smuggle in and sell the goods. “We had to stop working in one part of the country last year, because there…

Ice will form on some surfaces overnight into Tuesday morning across much of the UK. A band of rain and hill snow will move southeastwards across the UK during Monday evening and overnight. A brief spell of wet snow is possible on high ground of southern Scotland, northern England and north Wales, with some small accumulations possible. Behind this surface temperatures will rapidly fall away with some ice forming on some surfaces. Once the rain has cleared, some hail, sleet and snow showers will follow from the northwest, with 1-3 cm above 200 metres and some small accumulations expected at…

The Football Association of Wales has announced that the Men’s National Team will play an international friendly against Belarus on Tuesday, 10 September. This will be Wales’ second home match in September, as they face Azerbaijan in a EURO 2020 qualifying match 4 days earlier on Friday, 6 September. Wales have played against Belarus on 4 previous occasions, the first in 1998 where former manager Chris Coleman and his assistant, Kit Symons, scored in a 3-2 victory at the Ninian Park in Cardiff. Wales’ current manager, Ryan Giggs also scored against Belarus during the same European qualifying campaign, in a…

A former UWTSD Swansea College of Art student, Ryan Morgan, has been making waves in the filmmaking industry. [aoa id=”1″] Ryan, formerly of Coleg Gwent, Crosskeys, has had a successful career since graduating in 2011 with a BA in Computer Animation.  After gaining his degree from UWTSD’s Swansea College of Art, Ryan began to work for the Moving Picture Company as a Modelling and Texturing Technical Director in London.  He then moved to Method Studios in Vancouver where he worked as a Senior Modeller.  Recently, he’s been appointed as a Build Technical Director by Double Negative, one of the world’s…

Households across Wales are being encouraged to take steps to reduce their energy usage and save money on their fuel bills as part of a nationwide campaign. Big Energy Saving Week (21st – 27th January), organised each year by Citizens Advice, aims to raise awareness of the simple steps we can all take to lower our energy bills through being more energy efficient. OFTEC, which represents the oil heating industry, and the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers (FPS), the trade association for oil distributers, are official partners of Big Energy Saving Week and are encouraging the 114,000 oil households in Wales…