Author: Rhys Gregory

A talented young footballer who received a traumatic brain injury from an unprovoked assault is running the Cardiff Half Marathon for Cardiff & Vale Health Charity to say thank you the staff at the University Hospital of Wales for saving his life. Kristian Speake was taken to the University Hospital of Wales following an assault in Haverfordwest in February 2018. Kristian tells us his story: “For 24 days I was in a coma on the Critical Care Unit at the Heath Hospital, and for a further 4/5 weeks I was placed on their Neurological ward. “From there, I was then transferred to…

Thousands of people heading to the capital for the 15thannual Cardiff Half Marathon are getting important travel advice from Cardiff Bus. The bus operator is alerting passengers to diversions and bus stop changes throughout Sunday October 7, as 25,000 runners are expected to flood the city’s streets. Wales’s largest road race, which raises over £2.4 million for charity, will start at 10am with road closures expected to be in place across the city centre from 4am to 1pm. For those travelling on Sunday, Cardiff Bus is alerting people to route alterations, including alternative bus stops for numerous services to accommodate…

A family from Cardiff have walked a total of 4 million steps for Diabetes UK Cymru to raise awareness of Type 1 diabetes. [aoa id=”1″] Laura Carter, 29, took on the 1 Million Steps challenge along with her partner Hannah O’Connor, parents Jenny and David, and sister Sarah. Each family member walked one million steps between 1 July and 30 September, raising vital funds to help the charity support other people living with diabetes in Wales. They needed to walk at least 10,000 steps a day to reach their target. [/aoa] Laura was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 2008,…

Debenhams Welsh stores are on the hunt for over 340 new members of staff this Christmas to help deliver the perfect shopping experience and encourage shoppers to ‘do a bit of Debenhams’. The seasonal jobs are available right across Wales, including Cardiff, Swansea, Newport, Llandudno, Llanelli, Merthyr Tydfil, Bangor Carmarthen and Wrexham Debenhams stores. [aoa id=”1″] The colleagues will work on the sales floor during the store’s busiest times including Black Friday, Christmas and the Boxing Day sales. Successful applicants will start mid-November and work until the beginning of January. Debenhams has a strong position in the gifting market with ranges…

The Cardiff office of Clarke Willmott LLP has appointed a new commercial property paralegal. The new team member is Hannah Ferris and her arrival has taken the number of people working in the Cardiff office, which is headed by Vicky Kells, to 17. Born and bred in Barry, Hannah graduated from the University of Reading in 2016 and worked for a local family law firm after her studies. She has now joined one of Cardiff’s fastest growing legal teams where she will support the property team while studying for her Legal Practice Course (LPC). With the level of new instructions…

UCAC education union has welcomed the conclusions and recommendations of a report into Welsh-medium provision in Initial Teacher Education, published on 28 September. Rebecca Williams, UCAC’s Policy Officer said: “This report confirms the point that UCAC has been raising for a number of years that the development of Welsh language skills within Initial Teacher Education programmes has been inconsistent, patchy and, frankly, inadequate. We are not producing the numbers of teachers with the required language skills to meet current demand from schools, let alone enough to support the level of growth necessary to achieve Welsh Government’s target of a million…

Friends of Monze, a Bridgend based charity that is linked to the Monze area in southern Zambia have just rebuilt a fourth school and started building a fifth school. [aoa id=”1″]Deana Owen a retired Health Visitor and School Nurse from the Bridgend area who manages the charity was approached by the local community and Department of Education to look at ways in which the community could work together with Friends of Monze to rebuild the schools.[/aoa] Deana said: “The five schools were in serious need of rebuilding. By working in partnership with an organisation called Zambia Women and Girls Foundation…

With wind speeds of 76mph and lashing rains, storm Bronagh wreaked havoc across the country last week [September 20-22], cancelling trains and causing long delays for commuters. [aoa id=”1″] But one rail specialist company rode to the rescue to ensure a swift solution to a landslip on a railway line near Tonypandy in South Wales that could have caused long-term delays and commuter chaos. Drainage and civil engineering specialists Scott Parnell arranged for a same-day delivery of essential materials required to repair the landslip and allow stock to get moving again. The delivery was made from Scott Parnell’s Hirwaun branch…

Aldi, the fifth largest UK supermarket is looking to recruit new graduates and those looking for a career in retail management into its Area Manager positions across North Wales. Aldi has more than 30,000 employees across the UK and has ambitious plans to open its 1,200th UK store and employ a further 20,000 colleagues by 2025. Offering all colleagues competitive salaries, market leading benefits and ample opportunities to progress and excel, it is no wonder Aldi have been recognised as one of the Times Top 100 Best Graduate Employers. Aldi is looking for ambitious graduates and those with an interest…

Billed as a blockbuster, the Dayinsure Wales Rally GB, which begins on Thursday and ends on Sunday, really has it all: a dramatic opening night under the floodlights, challenging new speed tests in the legendary Welsh forests and a stunning finale with cars racing through the closed streets of Llandudno. [aoa id=”1″]Then there’s the added excitement of thrilling three-way title fights for both Drivers’ and Manufacturers’ WRC Championships as well as a local Welshman – Elfyn Evans – gunning for back-to-back GB victories after his 2017 success. It all adds up to an absolutely unmissable sporting spectacle.[/aoa] More than 150…