Author: Rhys Gregory

On 8 May, Brynawel House marked a significant milestone in its mission to provide comprehensive addiction recovery services with the official opening of Meadow Lodge, a purpose-built detox unit on its grounds in Llanharan. Meadow Lodge is a four-bedroom unit designed to provide a calm, supportive environment for individuals at the critical first stage of their recovery journey – detoxification. With scenic views across rolling green fields and access to tranquil outdoor spaces, the lodge offers a safe, clinically supervised setting where guests can begin to heal. Meadow House was officially opened by Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing, Sarah…

The FAW McDonald’s Free Fun Football Festivals are back for 2025 and they are bigger than ever. Aimed at children aged 5-11, Fun Football Festivals are the ultimate family-friendly events, featuring giant inflatables, coaching sessions, fun games, activity books, face painting, prizes and more all for free. Whether you’re a seasoned football fanatic or just starting out, FAW McDonald’s Free Fun Football Festivals have something for everyone. Three festivals will take place across Cymru this summer, starting at the Swansea.com Stadium on Saturday, 8 June before heading to Caernarfon on Saturday, 5 July. The final festival will take place at Mold…

A man from Swansea has been jailed after he deliberately set fire to another man’s car. 34-year-old Jamie Paton, from Penlan, committed the arson on November 11, 2024. He later made threats to “petrol bomb” a rival’s address. Despite efforts to avoid arrest, Paton was found by police in December. He then damaged a police vehicle during his arrest and was convicted of a homophobic public order offence against the arresting officer. He has been sentenced to 25 months in prison. PC Lisa Stokes said: “Jamie Paton is clearly a hot-headed and immature individual who was unwilling to accept the…

Searches for 16-year-old Athrun, who was reported missing in Llandudno on Saturday afternoon continue today. Officers from North Wales Police – including search and drone team officers, along with the Northwest Joint Underwater Search Unit and the Coastguard – have resumed their search in and around the West Shore area where Athrun was last seen at approximately 2pm on Saturday. Athrun is from South Gloucestershire and was on holiday in Llandudno. He is described as having short dark hair and is approximately 6ft tall and of slim build. He was last seen wearing blue and white patterned swim shorts and…

Seventy percent of all Transport for Wales services will be operated on new trains following timetable changes this May. Brand new Class 756 tri-mode trains will also be introduced onto the Coryton and Penarth lines later this summer, further increasing the number of new trains providing services on the Wales and Borders network. Rail customers across Wales and the Borders are being urged to check their journey details prior to travel with a new rail timetable coming into effect on Sunday 18 May. Regular travellers who are used to catching their service at the same time each day should ensure…

COUNCILLOR Wayne Carpenter has been sworn in as the new Mayor of Neath Port Talbot for 2025/26. Melin born Cllr Carpenter (Neath East), is the son of a Metal Box worker father and a mother who helped provide school meals in Neath for a large part of her life. For many years Cllr Carpenter administered youth arts and music for the former West Glamorgan County Council and was the administrator for the annual Margam Festival. A committed Christian, he later became a professional singer, recording four albums and touring the UK, Southern Ireland, the Channel Islands, South Africa and Romania.…

Haverfordwest Youth Club had the pleasure of welcoming 20 young people and their teachers from Oberkirch, Germany, as part of a return visit last month. Oberkirch has been twinned with Haverfordwest since 1989, fostering a long-standing partnership between the two communities. The visit on April 7th followed a successful exchange in August 2024, when 20 members of Haverfordwest Youth Club, and their youth workers, travelled to Oberkirch. Both trips were funded through the Taith programme – an initiative supporting international learning exchanges in Wales, funded by the Welsh Government. The five-day visit to Pembrokeshire offered young people a valuable opportunity…

Following a detailed pre-construction process, works are now underway on the new, £38 million Caerphilly Leisure and Wellbeing Hub. The new facility will be conveniently located close to the town’s public transport hub, providing improved accessibility for residents across the whole county borough. The development is transforming an area of dis-used scrub land into a vibrant community hub that will support and encourage healthy, active lives. Alliance Leisure has been appointed by Caerphilly County Borough Council to deliver the project and will work alongside Morgan Sindall (Contractor), Architect Watson Batty with Hadron Consulting overseeing project management through the UK Leisure Framework, owned and managed by Denbighshire Leisure Limited (DLL). “The…

From this week, individuals and businesses in Wales will benefit from an almost six-fold increase in the amount of subsidy available for accredited training opportunities. With the Welsh Government increasing its investment in the Flexible Skills Programme from £1.3m a year to over £7.5m, support will be in place for employees to take advantage of thousands of individual places on upskilling or re-skilling training courses. The expansion aligns with the First Minister’s commitment to create a future Wales driven by jobs and green growth and follows increasing demand from Welsh employers for support to develop employees’ skills in response to…

Thursday May 1st saw the sixth annual Welsh Fitness Awards take place. 2025’s Welsh Fitness Awards were the most closely contested in its history. The awards were held at the iconic Hilton Hotel in Cardiff and hosted by one of the UK’s leading MMA and boxing MC’s – Jonathan “Voice of the Vale” Millard. The evening was also an opportunity to thank the 2025 sponsors, University of Wales – Trinity Saint David and DNA Definitive. The Welsh Fitness Awards is delighted to announce the winners for the 2025 Welsh Fitness Awards as follows: Female Athlete of the Year Zoe Hodgkinson…