Author: Rhys Gregory

Newport City Council is delighted to reveal that its bid for National Lottery funding for a scheme to refurbish and revitalise Market Arcade has been successful. Development funding for the Townscape Heritage project from the National Lottery (through the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF)) was awarded last year. Now HLF has confirmed that the full bid for more than £1.1 million has been awarded to restore Market Arcade to its former glory. Originally called Fennell’s Arcade, the arcade was created in 1869 as a key pedestrian route between the railway station and the then new provisions market. In recent years, it…

With only 50 days to go until the annual Nation Radio Cardiff 10k takes place on Sunday 2nd September, leading Welsh charity Kidney Wales is encouraging people to sign up while they still can. Places are filling up fast for the race, one of the top road races in the UK which is now in its 32nd year.  With 10,000 spaces up for grabs – one for every kidney disease patient across Wales – the run is open to runners of all standards and provides a great opportunity for people to have fun as they get fit and raise both…

Business activity at private sector firms in Wales continued to rise in June, according to the NatWest PMI®, thereby extending the current period of expansion to almost two years. That said, after having rebounded from April’s 21-month low in May, a renewed slowdown in the rate of growth was evident in June. The moderation was accompanied by a weaker rise in new business and a downturn in employment. Meanwhile, business confidence hit a ten-month low. On the price front, input cost inflation intensified, which fed through to a sharper rise in average charges. The headline Wales Business Activity Index –…

Postcode Local Trust, a grant-giving charity funded entirely by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, has funded a Keep Wales Tidy project at Griffithstown Primary School in Torfaen. The Griffithstown Primary Wildlife Project will create and manage wildlife habitats on the school grounds to improve biodiversity. Keep Wales Tidy work closely with pupils, teachers, parents and the wider community to plan and create several different habitat areas including a pond and a wildflower area. Improvements will be made to access the nearby woodland and canal which runs past the school. The project will not only help local wildlife, but also provide…

The president of the Culinary Association of Wales has been recognised by chefs around the globe for his work promoting the culinary arts and profession. Arwyn Watkins, OBE, managing director of award-winning training provider Cambrian Training Company based in Welshpool, was presented with the prestigious Presidents Medal at the Worldchefs Congress and Expo in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This medal, presented by Worldchefs president Thomas Gugler, recognises individuals who have undertaken activities within their own country to promote the advancement and profile of the culinary arts and profession. “I am really honoured to receive this medal which is a very pleasant…

A RISING Welsh whisky firm doing a roaring trade the world over is planning to open new sites in Llandudno and Swansea. Speaking at a conference for the acclaimed 20Twenty Business Growth Programme at Holt Lodge in Wrexham, Penderyn Distillery boss Stephen Davies revealed the company will be expanding into other areas of the country in the near future. Plans for Llandudno include a retail outlet, visitor centre and training hub for workshops, helping to spread the popular brand across the country, reaffirming its patriotic identity. “We have grown to the point where turnover is around £11m and we employ…

A FAST-GROWING North Wales travel firm has completed the next phase of a £1m store refurbishment programme. Bosses at Hays Travel North West, which has its head office in Wrexham, have finished a £200,000 transformation at three branches including the Mold store which was the first travel agency to be opened by Managing Director Don Bircham back in 2000. Don’s travel firm empire now has 30 branches spreading across the North West and North Wales, having just signed a lease on his latest acquisition at Church Square shopping centre in St Helens. The latest branches to receive a facelift alongside…

Cardiff-based Yolk Recruitment has strengthened its senior team with the appointment of recruitment specialist Jamie Wilkinson in the new role of operations director. Wilkinson joins the award-winning firm with 19 years’ experience in the sector, gained in multiple senior roles in international companies. Most recently he held the position of managing director of emerging brands at leading talent strategy business, Opus Talent Solutions. The appointment is a new role for Yolk, which offers recruitment solutions in a range of industries including legal, sales, healthcare, IT, accountancy and finance, marketing, business support and engineering. The role will see Wilkinson taking a…

ONE of the region’s top recruitment companies is taking on staff and expanding into NEW territory. Supertemps – based in Bangor and Colwyn Bay – will open a branch in north east Wales later this summer. The decision came as Managing Director Sarah Ellwood employed four new workers and revealed further growth will take place this year. It also follows the news that Letterbox Recruiting ceased trading and closed its Rhuddlan office last week after 17 years in business. One of the fresh faces at Supertemps is former Letterbox consultant Alex Russell, from Flint, who joins them as a Recruitment…

Exports are booming as Europe’s biggest trailer maker celebrates two important milestones – its 60th anniversary and the 750,000th trailer rolling off the production line. Overseas sales now account for more than 30 per cent of the business at Ifor Williams Trailers which has a worldwide network of distributors. The iconic Welsh brand was established in 1958 in Cynwyd, near Corwen, where it still has a factory. The firm also has manufacturing sites in Corwen, Ruthin and on Deeside Industrial Estate. Last year it opened a new £5 million production facility in Sandycroft, in Flintshire, to create extra capacity to…