Author: Rhys Gregory

From April 2025, Care Inspectorate Wales (CIW) is introducing a new ratings system for care services across Wales. This important development aims to improve transparency in the care sector and help people make more informed choices about care services. What are the ratings? Care services will be rated across four key themes: Well-being Care and Support Leadership and Management Environment (for accommodation-based services only) Each theme will receive one of four ratings: Excellent Good Requires improvement Requires significant improvement Which services will be rated? From 1 April 2025 all care homes and domiciliary support services inspected in Wales will receive…

Caerphilly County Borough Council has unveiled ambitious plans to “nurture future success” and guide local economic growth to 2035. The new Economic and Regeneration Strategy, which was endorsed by full Council on 8thApril, aims to build on the previous strategy which provided the “Foundation for Success”. Among the key themes in the strategy are increasing employment, delivering more action to improve our town centres and closer working with the business community. Cllr. Jamie Pritchard, the Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Prosperity, Regeneration and Climate Change, said “This new strategy represents a significant step forward in our commitment to…

Welsh icons Ruth Jones and Steve Speirs team up for a standalone special as part of collection of programmes to shine a light on the Welsh town To coincide with the bicentenary of Cyfarthfa Castle, BBC Cymru Wales has commissioned a collection of programmes and content celebrating the history, the culture, and the people of Merthyr. Across a fortnight in June, the season will spotlight Merthyr’s rich past, exploring how it developed as the first industrial town in the world and the legacy of this important chapter in Wales’ history. The collection will also celebrate the town as it is today,…

The Welsh Government has announced an additional £1.3m to expand affordable credit options, helping thousands more people across Wales access fair financial services. This new funding for credit unions builds on the successful loan expansion scheme established in 2022, bringing the total investment to £2.9m. The scheme has already helped over 4,000 people access affordable credit who might otherwise have been turned away by mainstream lenders. The funding is boosting credit union growth, alongside initiatives like Celtic Credit Union’s new mobile branch service. Originally established in Neath, Celtic Credit Union has expanded its reach in recent years and the mobile…

Hospices will receive additional funding to help them continue to provide vital palliative and end-of-life care. The £5.5m cash injection, which is in addition to the £3m uplift in recurrent funding announced in the 2025-26 budget, will help Wales’ 12 NHS-commissioned hospices, which include the two children’s hospices, meet financial pressures and ensure staff receive a fair salary. Welsh hospices play a vital role in supporting patients, families and carers at the end of their lives, and are committed to ensuring that everyone can continue to receive dignified and personalised hospice support, outside of hospital Wales’ 12 NHS-commissioned hospices will…

City Hospice’s popular Forever Flowers campaign is returning to Cardiff Castle for a fifth consecutive year this August. The charity’s Forever Flower this year is the daffodil, Wales’ national flower, which for many symbolises hope, resilience and new beginnings. The unique and lasting tributes have been expertly crafted by the British Ironwork Centre and will feature in a striking display within the grounds of Cardiff Castle from Saturday 2 to Sunday 10 August. Supporters are invited to purchase a limited edition daffodil, which are on sale for £25 from today, to remember and celebrate the lives of loved ones including…

Street Food Circus is returning with The Big Banquet at Caldicot Castle from 23-26 May 2025. The event, part of the Street Food Circus 10th Anniversary programme brings together some of Wales’ best known street food traders along with high-wire circus entertainment, and a range of activities for the whole family. The Big Banquet brings feast-style long communal dining tables to the Medieval castle – with plenty of space for families to spread out around the grounds. Entertainment includes a free circus school for children, aerial performances, a bubble disco and a fire show. Evening sessions include music from DJs…

Specialist business property adviser Christie & Co, has been instructed to market Baker Street Cinema in Abergavenny, Monmouthshire. Ideally located in the heart of Abergavenny, a popular town known as the ‘gateway to Wales’, Baker Street Cinema is surrounded by an array of restaurants, shops and hotels, and is popular for it’s showing of mainstream and indie films. With the town being just six miles from the English border, the cinema benefits from tourist trade in addition to its local repeat customers. The business occupies a charming period property, which was originally built as a drill hall in 1896, and…

Eight charities across Wales have received a funding boost as part of Benefact Group’s Movement for Good Awards to support their vital work.  Friends of Animals Wales in Pentre has been awarded a grant of £5,000, while Many Tears Animal Rescue in Llanelli, Headway Cardiff and South East Wales in Penarth, The City of Cardiff Brass Band in Cardiff, Forgotten Felines Cat Rescue in Port Talbert and Cancer Research Wales in Cardiff are some of the charities to have each received donations of £1,000. With a vision to unite Wales against cancer through world-class research, Cancer Research Wales is dedicated to…

Hakan Barac, a 29-year-old man from the Newport area of Gwent, this week (Monday, April 7th) appeared at Bristol Crown court, where he was sentenced following an investigation led by Counter Terrorism Policing Wales. Borac, who pleaded guilty to five offences relating to dissemination of terrorist publications and one offence relating to supporting a proscribed organisation was given a 3-year, 9-month sentence. Detective Chief Inspector Leanne Williams, from Counter Terrorism Policing Wales, said: “I welcome the outcome at court today. Without any doubt, Hakan Barac is a dangerous individual and this sentence concludes what has been a lengthy and complex…