Barry man dies after tourist boat capsizes
A man from Barry, in South Wales, has died, and several other tourists injured after a boat capsized in South Africa on Saturday.
Banks' 'refusal' to lend affects Welsh business
An owner of a hot sauce company in Barry says he wants to expand his business and go global but he cannot secure a loan from the bank.
Barry named leading Welsh 'digital champion'
The town of Barry has been named Wales' leading 'digital champion' after its online presence grew by more than 22 percent since last year.
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Police investigate robbery of Barry widow
Police are investigating a burglary in which a widow's video diary of her husbands last days was stolen from her home.
Her engagement and wedding rings were also taken from her home on Coldbrook Road East in Barry, along with some technical goods.
Police say the incident took place sometime overnight between Friday 8th March and the following morning.
– Detective Constable David Rich of Barry CIDThe victim of this crime has recently been widowed and a number of the stolen items are very sentimental to her.
This has been an extremely distressing incident for the victim and the theft of her engagement and wedding rings as well as the camcorder which contained a video diary of the victim’s late husband’s last few days are of particular concern to her.
If you have any information concerning this crime please contact Detective Constable David Rich at Barry CID on 01446 731606 or 101, quoting reference 62130071813.
Funding boost set to revamp former Butlins site in Barry
It defined many a family holiday for generations - now a £700,000 grant is set to breathe new life into the old Butlins site in Barry as part of a £3.3m regeneration project for the town.
Closed shops will be revamped and the Butlins site made into an events arena and car park until an investor can be found.
The investment comes during Wales Tourism Week, as those in the industry call for more effort to be put into raising Wales' holiday profile abroad.
The tourism sector currently employs more than 10% of the Welsh workforce - as our Business Correspondent Carole Green reports.
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Huw Lewis AM: 'New life' for Barry as tourism hotspot
The Minister for Regeneration says 'new life' could be breathed into Barry Island as a tourist destination.
Huw Lewis AM said: "The way people spend their time and money is different from the 1960s and 70s, but people are still looking for a quality day out. Barry has a fine beach... we need to make sure the facilities are here to match the natural environment."
The first tranch of a £3.3m investment from the Welsh Government has been announced, focusing on Barry Island.
The money will be used to regenerate the eastern half of the seafront and the old Butlins site.
Tourism chiefs lobby for more recognition
The announcement of funding to help regenerate Barry Island comes in Tourism Week, with the industry campaigning to highlight the impact they have on Welsh economy. Nearly 10% of all jobs in Wales are in the tourism sector and it's worth an estimated £6.18 billion.
– Adrian Greason-Walker, Wales Tourism AllianceWith a new tourism strategy for Wales being developed by the Welsh Government this year, it's important that the industry's voice is heard loud and clear. We have a superb tourism product here in Wales, but we need to make politicians and the public aware of just how important the industry is to the nation's long term future.
Barry Island's regeneration will start straight away
The Welsh government is announcing funding of £692,000 to start the regeneration of Barry Island. At the former Butlins site a space will be created to host local events and a temporary car park will be built. Some money will also be used for designing further improvements to the holiday resort.
Council takes to the roads filling potholes
Andrew Loosemore, from the Vale of Glamorgan Council, talks to ITV News about tackling potholes in the region.
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Relaxing childcare regulations
For many families, one of the larger monthly costs is child care. And now one nursery owner from Cardiff is calling for a change in regulations to make the care more affordable. But would fewer regulations also mean lower standards? Nicola Hendy reports
Counting the cost of childcare
A Barry nursery owner is calling for childcare staffing regulations to be relaxed.
Abeer Bafiqih runs the Daisy Day Nursery in Barry and Cardiff looking after children up five years old. She believes regulations around staffing levels could be relaxed.
She said: "We face the same costs as all other business such as rates; our salaries are probably higher because we are so labour intensive, because of the legislation around ratios.
"If we had maybe more children per adult maybe in the older age ranges, that would lower our salaries costs and that in turn would impact on the fees we charge."
Strict guidelines govern the way a childcare business is run and the number of staff needed. For children under 2 there has to be 1 adult to 3 children, youngsters between 2 and 3 need 1 adult to 4 children and children aged 3 to 8 need one adult to every 8 children.
The Children's Commission is currently looking at relaxing the restrictions on the ratio of staff to children in England, but the Welsh Government say they have no plans for change.
Gill Rutter, of the Daycare Trust said: "We think that changing the ratios risks compromising safety. It also may not save parents any money in the long term. Why should nurseries, why should child minders pass on those savings to parents if they change the ratios."
Parents struggling with childcare costs
For many parents bringing their children to nursery is all part of the daily routine, but child care doesn't come cheap. Nicola Hendy reports
Government needs to reform childcare costs
Gill Rutter from the Daycare Trust says in the long term the government needs to look at reforming childcare regulations to lower the costs and ensure it is not a barrier to parents going to work.
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