Author: Rhys Gregory

Morgan’s Army was set up in 2023 to support South Wales families affected by childhood cancer, in memory of Morgan Ridler who sadly passed away after a rare form of adrenal cancer. The charity has grown considerably since its inception, which has meant that the spare bedroom Natalie Ridler – charity founder and Morgan’s mother – was using as the charity office was no longer suitable. “I knew we needed a bigger space to work from and a more professional premises to meet sponsors and families,” said Natalie. “But after doing some research, we discovered how expensive a company office…

Construction workloads in Wales rose in Q3 for the third consecutive quarter, according to the latest Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Construction Monitor, with public housing workloads rising fastest out of all subsectors. A net balance of 13% of surveyors in Wales reported that workloads rose with all subsectors seeing growth apart from private housing activity which was reported to have declined (a net balance of -10%), and other public works which fell flat. A net balance of 26% saw a rise in public housing activity, 6% in private industrial, 10% in infrastructure and 9% in private commercial. Surveyors…

Electric Vehicle (EV) charge point operator Believ has opened a new office in Cardiff, Wales, to support Welsh local authorities, businesses and landowners seeking tailored and fully funded EV charge point solutions.  The opening follows Believ’s acquisition of SMS’ public EV Charging business and will significantly boost the company’s regional presence and operational efficiency.   With three offices strategically located in London, Leeds, and now Cardiff, Guy Bartlett, Believ CEO says Believ is prepared for further expansion to support its growing network and customer base: “We are pleased to open our Cardiff office, adding to our network of regional offices across…

Abigail Kavanagh, 25, of Ely, Cardiff, was sentenced at Newport Crown Court on October 22 for her role in trafficking controlled drugs on behalf of an organised crime group. Kavanagh was arrested during an operation run by Tarian, the Regional Organised Crime Unit for southern Wales. Operation Gemstone was an investigation into the import of wholesale quantities of Class A drugs, namely MDMA, more commonly known as Ecstasy. On March 8, 2024, Border Force officers at East Midlands Airport intercepted a package sent from Austria and destined for Kavanagh’s home address. The package contained 10 kilograms of MDMA, disguised as…

Military personnel and veterans can travel for free on Transport for Wales rail services to attend Remembrance Day events this Sunday (10 November). As part of an industry-wide initiative, the offer of free travel is open to serving military personnel and veterans. Free travel is allowed for current serving Armed Forces personnel in uniform or serving military personnel and veterans on production of the following: • a current MOD90 Ministry of Defence-issued identity card. • a Veterans Railcard, Veterans Oyster card, Ministry of Defence-issued Veterans ID or other form of identification showing the customer is a veteran (e.g. proof of…

Rhyl Library has won the All Stories national competition, which grants a fully funded writing workshop, aiming to encourage and support aspiring writers from underrepresented backgrounds. The workshop, taking place on Thursday 14 November 2024 at 2pm, will introduce participants to the basics of writing for children and inspire them to develop their creativity. Intended as a true introduction, the workshop requires no awareness of publishing, writing as a career or previous written work. The workshop will welcome people from underrepresented backgrounds of any kind. To continue supporting local writers, a writing group will also be established at Rhyl Library,…

The National Remembrance Sunday ceremony in Wales, jointly hosted by Cardiff Council and the Welsh Government in collaboration with The Royal British Legion, is scheduled to take place in Cardiff on Sunday, 10th November 2024. Detachments from the Royal Navy, the Army, the Royal Air Force, Merchant Navy, Cadet Forces will march past City Hall and along King Edward VII Avenue to the Welsh National War Memorial in Alexandra Gardens, Cathays Park, Cardiff where they will arrive by 10:40am and form up around the memorial. Those detachments will be joined by columns of ex-Servicemen and women, organised by the Royal…

Plans to sell the Cwm Ifor Solar Farm project have been agreed by cabinet to generate a capital receipt that will support the Council’s wider Place Shaping Programme. The solar farm which will be built as part of the farm at Cwm Ifor, Penyrheol has an exciting new future as we seek to find a new buyer for the site. Savills have been appointed to manage the sale on behalf of Caerphilly County Borough Council. The 20-megawatt farm was approved by cabinet in October 2022 with Welsh Government granting planning permission for the project on Wednesday 29th May 2024. There…

Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council has successfully secured Welsh Government funding of nearly £4 million from the ‘Early Years and Childcare Capital Programme’ to develop 4 new childcare provisions. The facilities will be developed in areas where gaps in childcare provision was identified, with a strong focus on increasing the availability of Welsh medium childcare. The development of new Welsh medium early years provision aims to increase the number of children able to speak Welsh and support the Welsh Governments ambition of 1 million Welsh speakers across Wales by 2050. It is proposed that over time, all 4 childcare facilities…

Care & Repair is a Wales-wide charity working to ensure that older people have homes that suit their needs.   The charity helps older people in Wales to repair, adapt and maintain their homes, allowing them to live more independently while reducing hospital admissions. The Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government, Jayne Bryant, recently visited the home of Gillian Arnold, a Care & Repair client in Pontypool. Gillian was admitted to hospital at the beginning of this year and as a result, her home needed to be adapted. Care & Repair fitted rails throughout Gillian’s home, ensuring that she could…