Author: Rhys Gregory

WELLNESS GARDENS with saunas and hot tubs, a dunes park with a restaurant and bar enjoying spectacular sea views and the addition of colourful beach huts. Along with the expansion of food options and provision of extra parking and changing facilities, these are just some of the suggestions contained in an Aberafan Seafront Masterplan which was approved by members of Neath Port Talbot Council’s Cabinet on Wednesday, February 5th, 2025. It was designed by experienced consultants Roberts Limbrick and Chris Jones Regeneration, who were commissioned by Neath Port Talbot Council to create a cohesive strategy and ‘conceptual plan’ for the…

Pembrokeshire County Council is seeking public feedback on how it manages flood risk across the County. The Flood and Water Management Act 2010 requires Local Authorities to publish their local flood risk management strategy and flood risk management plans and request feedback from local residents. A public consultation will help identify local knowledge about flood-prone areas, historical flooding events, and community-specific vulnerabilities. Local residents and stakeholders can often possess unique insights about their areas that can contribute to the development of an effective flood strategy. The consultation will allow the public to understand the rationale behind proposed measures, the potential…

RCT Council, alongside its partner Welsh Government, has achieved a major milestone towards delivering a new primary school and community hub for Glyn-coch – with planning permission now secured for the development. Providing a new school for the community is a long-established goal for the Council, and the project has developed in recent years. Cabinet progressed the proposals in 2022 following a public consultation, and in March 2023 the project was announced as one of only three successful proposals in Wales to receive 100% grant funding (up to £15 million) from Welsh Government’s Sustainable Schools Challenge. The Sustainable Schools Challenge…

Three men who carried out inadequate and dangerous building work that cost victims thousands of pounds have been sentenced at Newport Crown Court. Victims lost a combined total of at least £56,500 to Trade Price Paving Ltd between 2018 and 2020. One victim paid £15,000 for an extension that the perpetrators left unfinished as a half-built shell, open to the elements, possibly structurally unsound. The retaining wall was built with inadequate foundations and the boundary wall was built poorly, requiring significant remedial work. Another victim agreed to pay the firm once the building job was completed but was pressured into…

Music lovers can now find every Welsh language gig happening across Wales in one place, thanks to an innovative new online platform: Awni. Just in time to celebrate 10 years of Dydd Miwsig Cymru (Welsh Language Music Day), Awni brings together all Welsh language music events on an easy-to-use website with an interactive map. Whether you’re looking for intimate gigs or big festivals, you can find them all at the click of a button. Created by brother and sister team Jona and Martha Owen, Awni (which means “we will go” in Welsh) helps ensure music fans never miss out on…

Work is already underway across Wales to fix potholes and other defects in our roads and this will be given a boost by the extra £25m announced earlier this week. The funding announced on Monday, which is in the draft budget, will see an extra 100km of the strategic road network resurfaced in the new financial year. Roads that are most in need of repairs will be renewed, with thousands of potholes fixed. The Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales, Ken Skates, visited the A494 near Mold this week to see some of the work which is currently taking…

More than 450 community spaces across Wales have been saved, improved, or newly created with support from a £63m Welsh Government investment – keeping vital local venues open while helping communities create new hubs where people can come together. From village halls, sports clubs and churches, the Communities Facilities Programme has breathed new life into spaces that bring people together, offering opportunities to connect, learn new skills, and access essential services. Since 2015, the programme has helped hundreds of local groups across Wales to protect and develop the places at the heart of their communities. In Bethesda, Partneriaeth Ogwen has…

Health Secretary Jeremy Miles has confirmed almost £28m to repair the damaged Princess of Wales Hospital roof and re-open wards at the hospital. Services, theatres and wards at the Bridgend hospital were relocated elsewhere in the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board in October when the 40-year-old roof failed. Urgent investigations revealed the roof needed to be replaced. The Welsh Government funding will replace around 10,000 square meters of the roof – equivalent to re-roofing 166 terraced houses. Repairs are underway, allowing essential services to return to the hospital, starting with maternity and neonatal care. Electrical upgrades and fire safety…

The vital role that apprenticeships play in developing a world class workforce to deliver future economic growth for Wales will be the focus of a spring conference organised by the body that represents the country’s work-based learning providers. The National Training Federation for Wales (NTFW) annual conference, themed ‘Apprenticeships: Fuelling economic growth and future innovation’, will be held at Cardiff City Stadium on March 6. Headline conference sponsor is Agored Cymru, the awarding body for education and training providers in Wales. City & Guilds is an associate sponsor and other sponsorship packages are available. “Agored Cymru is delighted to be…

A CAMPAIGNING cohort from Coleg Cambria visited Welsh Government to show their support for a decision that will lower costs and widen access to education for thousands of young people. A group of student representatives from the college – based in Wrexham, Deeside, Northop and Llysfasi – were invited to the Senedd in Cardiff by Vicki Howells MS, Minister for Further and Higher Education. There, they joined NUS Wales members to hear the Minister announce the household income threshold for the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) was to be uplifted, a boost to families across the country. The EMA is a…