Author: Rhys Gregory

An additional £16m has been announced to tackle issues that threaten Wales’ water quality. The announcement was made by the Deputy First Minister with responsibility for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies during a recent visit to the Uwch Conwy catchment project in north Wales – one of the projects which has benefited from £40m funding through the Water Quality Capital Programme. The additional funding will allow Natural Resources Wales and the Mining Remediation Authority to tackle some of the key issues that threaten our water environment. These include rivers that have been modified from their natural state, pollution…

Welsh Government backing has been given to what will become the largest consented tidal energy project in Europe. Owned and managed by Ynys Môn social enterprise Menter Môn, the Morlais tidal scheme is the first of its kind anywhere in the world and will be operational from 2026. The Welsh Government has taken an £8m equity stake in the project to ensure progress. The Anglesey site has the potential to generate enough energy for up to 180,000 typical Welsh households, offering a unique ‘plug and play’ model for developers of tidal energy devices. This will help reduce costs as they…

Children from Cardiff babyballet class will be showcasing their dancing skills from 3rd til 9th February with a ‘Danceathon’ fundraiser for the pregnancy and baby charity, Tommy’s. Dancers from 6 months to 6 years old will be sponsored to complete dancing challenges in a specially themed ‘When I Grow Up’ event in Cardiff. Inspired by what they want to be when they’re older, children will be dressing up for the class too! Together with 30,000 babyballet® dancers from across the UK, the Cardiff event aims to raise £350,000 for Tommy’s. They have already raised over £200,00 before the week has…

AN AWARD-WINNING organic farm estate continues to raise the bar for sustainable practices in retail and agriculture. Rhug Estate, near Corwen in Denbighshire, unveiled a series of innovative schemes and initiatives in the last 12 months, as it targets net-zero emissions. Having introduced green energy projects ranging from 4KW to 5MW – including wind, solar, hydro and heat pumps – the 12,500-acre site invested in new technology to further lower its carbon footprint, notably an electric forklift. Recent developments included the transition from standard cardboard and polystyrene mail order packaging to FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified cardboard boxes, and wool thermal…

SCIENCE-LOVING students proved to be a real force in a national physics tournament. Learners from Coleg Cambria achieved staggering results at The British Physics Olympiad (BPhO), a series of competitions overseen by renowned lectures from Oxford and Cambridge universities. A seven-strong team representing Yale Sixth in Wrexham received two commendations, three bronze medals, one silver and one gold, which was secured by Lois Jones, from Gwersyllt. The students sat two challenging exam papers to test their knowledge of the subject and were up against more than 3,700 learners from 550 schools across the UK. Lecturer Rob Jones said he was…

 Event organisers Run 4 Wales are once again gifting 100 free spaces in the ABP Newport Marathon Festival for 2025 – with half marathon and 10K spaces up for grabs. The 100 Club initiative aims to support people in the local community who may be able to use the event to improve their health and wellbeing, with groups including the Gwent Drug & Alcohol Service, Slimming World, Newport Live and If You Go I Go involved this year. The race returns to the city on Sunday 13th April with record numbers of runners signed up to run the marathon, half…

The community-owned pub has made it to the finals of pub of the year category for Wales, in what are popularly known as the ‘Rural Oscars’. The awards are the Countryside Alliance’s annual celebration of British food & farming, enterprise, heritage and business. Now in their eighteenth year, they are set apart from other awards because they are driven by public nomination, offering customers the chance to elevate their favourite businesses to national acclaim. The historic pub rose to prominence a few years ago when a community-led initiative, backed by Hollywood superstar Matthew Rhys, managed to raise over £250,000 to…

Just before 7pm on Friday night, January 31, a man attended Talbot Green Police Station and started damaging police vehicles. Officers challenged the man and during a violent struggle three officers were injured. Two officers were taken to hospital and received treatment for their injuries. Both officers have since been discharged. 27-year-old Alexander Stephen Dighton from Llantrisant has been charged with seven offences. He will appear at Merthyr Magistrates Court tomorrow morning, Monday February 03 at 10am. Offences are: • Attempt murder • Assault of emergency worker • Assault • Arson • Criminal damage • Possession of offensive weapon •…

A 34-year-old Wrexham woman has been jailed for assault and harassment. Naomi Maybury, of Wheatsheaf Lane, Gwersyllt, admitted three charges including of stalking without fear and assaulting a witness and a police officer. She began harassing the victim in June last year after an altercation between the pair. She reported Maybury to the police the following month after she threatened to assault her and had shouted several unpleasant remarks at the victim’s child. But Maybury continued harassing the victim having followed and approached her at numerous locations. In August, Maybury passed the victim at a shop, where she once again…

A new wetland area is taking shape on heights of the Clwydian Range to help support local nature World Wetlands Day which took place on Sunday (February 2) continues supporting the regeneration of these important areas to help encourage more wildlife to return and prosper. An additional wetland creation is now under way at the Moel y Plas nature reserve site, near Llanarmon yn Iâl. The Clwydian Range & Dee Valley National Landscape team, in conjunction with Denbighshire County Council, are developing an area at the hillside for both the benefit of local nature and communities. Nearly 18,000 native broadleaved…