Author: Rhys Gregory

A TOP attraction has quadrupled visitor numbers and spent £1.6m revamping accommodation to support a rise in adventure and heritage tourism. [aoa id=”1″] The Slate Caverns in Blaenau Ffestiniog is also employing more staff than it has since the mid-1990s, following a 2011 restructure which changed the fortunes of the ailing company. JW Greaves has operated the mine for almost 200 years and oversaw its rise to become one of the most popular destinations in north west Wales. But a decline in fortunes at the turn of the century saw visitor numbers drop to 50,000 a year and the quarry…

Thousands of people flocking to the Pride Cymru Big Weekend are getting vital travel advice from Cardiff Bus. The operator is alerting attendees to road closures and route diversions ahead of the hugely successful event set to take place across Cardiff this weekend. From Friday until Sunday thousands of people are expected to fill the capital’s streets and celebrate LGBTQ+ communities across Wales. During the three days Cardiff Bus will have numerous road closures and diversions in place before, during, and after the event. On Friday roads around Cathays Park will be closed, with the Baycar diverting along Park Place,…

Due to a technical fault Newport City Council has had to suspend public access to the gondola crossings on the Transporter Bridge. Work on repairing the fault on the bridge, which is more than 112 years old, is estimated to take about three weeks. In the meantime visitors can still walk over the top of the iconic structure at a reduced rate of £1.50 for adults and £1 for children. [aoa id=”1″] Leader of Newport City Council Councillor Debbie Wilcox said the technical fault highlighted how necessary it was for the council to raise funds to keep the bridge running…

Cardiff Council in partnership with Vale of Glamorgan Council and Cadwyn Housing Association is appealing for donations of ladies shoes, sized ten and above. [aoa id=”1″] This unusual request comes in preparation for the ‘Walk a Mile in Her shoes’, an annual event which see’s men of all ages and backgrounds come together and walk a mile wearing women’s shoes in support of White Ribbon, the charity which campaigns to enddomestic abuse and sexual violence against women. Now in its fifth year, the event has grown from just 14 men walking to last year’s event attracting record numbers of almost…

Each year around 800,000 people across the world take their own lives, leading to a huge impact on family, the community and health professionals. [aoa id=”1″] Unfortunately it is not easy to identify those at risk of suicide. A large number of variables and complex interactions mean only a trained clinician can assess for immediate risk of suicide. However, the majority of people who take their own lives attend services other than mental health in their final year for apparently unrelated reasons. Now new research has looked at ways of using this health information to identify the most vulnerable. The…

Work on UWTSD’s new Construction Wales Innovation Centre at the University’s SA1 Swansea Waterfront development is nearing completion ready for an October opening. The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) and a consortium led by The University of Wales Trinity Saint David, are working in partnership to deliver (CWIC) state-of-the-art facilities and training for individuals and construction companies, with CITB investing £6.5m. The centre will see a minimum of 1100 students trained at the SA1 hub each year. [aoa id=”1″] [/aoa] CWIC has already engaged with over 2,000 welsh construction industry professionals, operatives and related staff and has delivered a total of…

DriiveMe has launched one-way car rentals from South Wales to London and Birmingham for just £1. Those looking for a bargain in Cardiff, Newport and Bridgend can now take advantage of car rentals cheaper than a supermarket meal deal thanks to DriiveMe, the £1 one-way car rental service. Having launched last April with four routes available, DriiveMe has expanded to 35 routes across the UK including rentals from Cardiff Airport to England’s two biggest cities: London and Birmingham. All routes on DriiveMe are available at just £1– all you need to pay are any tolls and the fuel you use…

An organisation that has helped support more than 300 businesses in Merthyr Tydfil has been praised by NatWest’s Chief Executive of Personal and Business Banking Les Matheson. [aoa id=”1″] The Merthyr Tydfil Enterprise Centre (MTEC), which opened in July 2015, supports start-ups and existing businesses looking to develop their companies or business ideas. The organisation includes the local council, Tydfil Training, Merthyr Tydfil College, Business Wales and the Welsh Government, and since its launch has helped businesses from various sectors including digital and retail. On a special visit to the Valleys to see NatWest Cymru’s work supporting the regeneration of…

The first home buyers of the flagship Prince’s Wharf housing development, in Swansea’s SA1, have been welcomed to their new homes with celebratory bottles of Shiraz and Bordeaux since the house types have all been named after famous grape varieties. Neath-based Developers, Hale Homes, were joined by JCP Solicitors, who acted for the house-builders throughout the development, in welcoming the first two sets of residents to their new homes – two of the 23 three and four bedroom town houses in the SA1 development. Jonathan Hale, from Hale Homes, said: “We are very proud of the Prince’s Wharf development, which…

A Swansea man who is on a mission to lose over 21 stone has taken on a challenge to swim 130km before the end of the month to raise money for dementia research. Chris Larkin, who weighs around 27 stone having been more than 36 stone two years ago, has taken on the swimming challenge to raise money for Alzheimer’s Research UK in honour of his parents who both died with vascular dementia. The 59-year-old is taking part in the charity’s Running Down Dementia campaign, which challenges people to run 100km during the summer. However, as the grandfather-of-three cannot run…