Author: Rhys Gregory

Transport for Wales is on a mission to get more people walking, cycling and wheeling within Wales and has launched a promotional toolkit to help. Recent statistics reveal that 58% of adults walked ten minutes and 6% cycled once a week or more to get somewhere in Wales. 78% of primary school children would prefer to travel actively to get to school – however 51% usually travelled by car. To help boost these figures and encourage more to travel sustainably when they can, TfW has launched a promotional toolkit for local authorities, co-created with them. Providing access to new promotional…

Twenty new 3G pitches are being proposed by Cardiff Council as part of a new long-term strategy in partnership with the Football Association Wales (FAW), Cymru Football Foundation (CFF), and local leagues. The ‘Going for Goal’ strategy is aimed at reducing the number of weather-related fixture cancellations, attracting investment into grass pitches, and increasing participation in football. If approved by Cabinet at a meeting due to take place on Thursday 18th July 2024, and subject to stakeholder consultation, the new strategy could also see a rationalisation of grass pitches into a smaller number of highly maintained hub sites across the…

Cardiff Council has revealed it is facing a predicted budget shortfall in 2025/26 of almost £50m. The council is now working on a budget plan for next year – which could see some services reduced or stopped completely – to bridge the gap. The shortfall is caused when the money the council receives from Government, added to the money it expects to raise from charges like council tax, isn’t enough to pay for the 700-plus services the council delivers to residents. A report to Cardiff Council’s Cabinet, on Thursday, July 18, details the financial pressures the council is currently experiencing…

The partnership between Pembrokeshire County Council and a community energy charity has recently helped two sites reduce costs and carbon emissions with solar panels. During community energy fortnight, running until July 14th, the Green Pembrokeshire team highlighted the second phase of work with Egni Co-op, a community energy organisation that installs rooftop Solar PV systems. Egni cover the cost of installation and then sell the generated electricity to the building owner at a discount, with all profits generated used to fund further projects and environmental educational programmes. In early 2023 Egni was awarded the contract to install systems on around…

The major scheme to repair Berw Road bridge in Pontypridd has entered its final stages. Upcoming activity to install signs, railings and street lighting, along with nearby resurfacing work, will enable the bridge to fully re-open. The Listed structure, known as White Bridge, was severely damaged by Storm Dennis – and the Council has worked very closely with Cadw on the development and delivery of a complex restoration scheme. It has included several hundred individual concrete and structural steelwork repairs, bridge deck waterproofing and repairs, and replacing the highway drainage system. This latest update confirms that the bridge is currently…

Fly-tipping in Blaenau Gwent has dropped by over 40% in the last three years, initial figures have shown. There were 1,661 incidents of fly tipping recorded in the area during 2020/21 but by 2023/24 this figure has nearly halved, falling to 950 incidents. The reduction in fly tipping has corresponded with a significant increase in enforcement action, with 243 £400 fixed penalty notices issued, to a total value of over £97,000, for fly tipping offences since 2021. In addition, the prosecution of individuals and businesses for a total of 43 different waste offences since 2022 has seen the courts hand…

The River Severn Partnership Advanced Wireless Innovation Region (RSPAWIR) has awarded £1m to projects to maximise the use of existing and developing digital innovations. Three universities – Harper Adams, Hartpury University and Cranfield University – are being supported in projects that will demonstrate how modern technology can be used to enhance and improve environmental and business outcomes in the agricultural sector, as well as for the public. The universities will work with farmers and landowners in the River Severn Partnership area to show how advanced wireless technologies can be adapted to monitor crops, maintain security and regulate energy usage and…

Jeremy Miles, Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Energy and the Welsh Language will set out the Welsh Government’s long-term plans for a greener, more sustainable energy supply alongside a decarbonisation strategy today. The headline will be the launch of Trydan Gwyrdd Cymru – set up to accelerate the development of renewable energy projects, particularly onshore wind, on the wider Welsh public estate and maximise their value for the people of Wales. The Welsh Government will also publish its Heat Strategy, the first of its kind in the UK – which will outline a plan for decarbonising the heating of homes, commercial…

Fifty-five budding medics got a taste of a career in medicine and life as a medical student at a medical residential this week. The Year 12 Seren Academy learners from across Wales spent three days as medical undergrads at Cardiff University’s state-of-the-art medical facilities, attending practical clinical sessions and interactive lectures. Living on campus like a real undergraduate and learning clinical and communication skills from practising doctors and experts During the three days the potential medics got hands on experience as a doctor during the ‘Hope Hospital’ workshop. With volunteers playing the part of patients the students, supported by clinicians,…

Thousands of visitors gathered in Cardiff for Tafwyl, a festival celebrating Welsh music and culture. This year’s Tafwyl was officially opened by the Welsh Government’s Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Energy, and Welsh Language, Jeremy Miles, and the Minister for the Creative Industries, Sarah Murphy. With another packed schedule, around 2,500 visitors stayed in Cardiff, and local spending was expected to be in excess of £410,000. The cultural and economic benefits of Tafwyl, organised by Menter Caerdydd, were significant. That year’s free-to-enter festival, held in Bute Park on the 13th and 14th of July, was supported by £100,000 from the…