Author: Rhys Gregory

Teachers, pupils and governors at Ysgol Dolafon are celebrating a significant milestone following a positive monitoring visit from Estyn, His Majesty’s Inspectorate for Education and Training in Wales. The school has officially been removed from Estyn’s list of schools requiring significant improvement, after inspectors judged that it has made sufficient progress in addressing the recommendations from its most recent core inspection. The decision, welcomed by Powys County Council, follows a period of focused improvement work, strengthened leadership and close collaboration between the school, governors and the council. During the monitoring visit in March 2026, Estyn recognised clear improvements across the…

A man from Swansea has been jailed after he deliberately set a fire in his supported accommodation, risking the lives of others in the process. 40-year-old Matthew Draper, from the city centre, used an accelerant to set a locker alight inside a The Wallich hostel for people with complex needs, before staying at the scene to watch the fire take hold. Draper pleaded guilty to arson and arson with recklessness as to whether life was endangered. He has been sentenced to 27 months in prison. PC Gareth Bennett said: “Idiotic behaviour like that shown by Matthew Draper could have resulted…

Carrog Railway Station will celebrate the 30th anniversary of its reopening on Saturday, 2 May 2026, with a special community event marking three decades at the heart of the Llangollen and Corwen Railway. The station was formally opened by the late Gerald Grosvenor, 6th Duke of Westminster and the late Bill Shakespeare, former President of the Railway on 2 May 1996. The celebration will take place at 11am at Carrog Railway Station, when pupils from Ysgol Carrog will perform in a ceremony bringing together local residents, railway volunteers, and visitors to honour the station’s past and present. Children from Ysgol…

St John Ambulance Cymru has unveiled a range of new courses to help transform the nation’s wellbeing and create a ‘mentally healthy Wales,’ to combat a crisis that currently costs the UK economy millions of lost workdays. The first aid charity for Wales, which trains hundreds of people in Mental Health First Aid each year, is calling on businesses to integrate it into the core of their operations, treating it with the same lifesaving urgency as physical first aid. In a recent interview for the St John Ambulance Cymru podcast, Just in Case: Stories from St John, the charity’s Lead Trainer,…

Swansea University researchers have been awarded £102,949 by the charity BRACE Dementia Research, to investigate a stomach hormone’s role in a potential new dementia treatment. The funding has been awarded to Prof Jeff Davies and will be used to support a PhD student who will work alongside Prof Davies to conduct laboratory research into ghrelin, a stomach hormone best known for regulating appetite. The hormone also plays a role in the brain’s immune system. The team will pursue the positive benefits of ghrelin in the hope of developing a dementia treatment. Why is the stomach hormone important? Ghrelin exists in…

Valleys to Coast Group has announced the launch of its new commercially driven development company, alongside its largest and most significant house-building project to date. Sylfaen, a fully owned subsidiary of the Valleys to Coast Group, is set to transform the housing landscape across South Wales. It will kick-start by purchasing a phase of 200 homes in North East Cardiff, with a potential for 300 additional homes in future years, a strategic development that will offer homes for private sale, rent, and shared ownership alongside traditional affordable social housing. Sylfaen is designed to drive the Valleys to Coast Group’s ambitious…

Cardiff-based HR consultancy EffectiveHRM has entered a new phase of growth after joining forces with Impact HR Consulting Limited, a move that will expand the support available to local SMEs in South Wales. Established in 2011 by employment lawyer Emma del Torto, EffectiveHRM has built a strong reputation supporting more than 150 businesses across sectors including care, professional services, manufacturing, hospitality and construction. The partnership will see EffectiveHRM join the Impact HR group of companies but continue to operate under its existing brand, with its Cardiff team remaining at the heart of delivery. The partnership will also provide additional resource,…

Mid Wales Opera (MWO) celebrated a resounding success with its OpenStages 2026 project, culminating in performances in Brecon and Hay-on-Wye earlier this month. Two fully staged performances of Dido and Aeneas at Brecon Cathedral alongside a special Musical Soirée at Hay Castle sold out in record time. Demand for the cathedral performances was so high that two additional release of tickets had to be created, with a waiting list introduced at Theatr Brycheiniog. At the heart of this success was the OpenStages project itself, an intensive and inspirational week of music-making that brought together professional artists, students and amateur musicians…

Staff and volunteers at the UK’s leading end of life charity are coming together to take part in a 40-hour bikeathon to celebrate the charity’s flagship fundraiser. Marie Curie’s Great Daffodil Appeal, which takes place annually from February to March, marked its 40th anniversary this year, and the charity’s team in Wales is continuing to mark the milestone this month. From 7pm on April 22 to 11am on April 24, staff, volunteers and supporters will be riding non-stop in 30 minute stints over 40 hours on static bikes at the Wellbeing and Support Hub at the Marie Curie Hospice, Cardiff…

Less than three weeks into Brian Schwartz’s tenure as chief executive officer, HIG Capital announced the sale of Celerion Holdings, a contract research organization it has owned since late 2022. The buyer is THL Partners. No purchase price was disclosed. Schwartz was named CEO on April 7, succeeding co-founder Sami Mnaymneh, who moved to executive chairman alongside fellow co-founder Tony Tamer. The Celerion transaction, announced April 22, marks one of the first portfolio exits under his watch — though the deal was almost certainly in process before the leadership change took effect. What Celerion Does and Why HIG Capital Bought…