1. Taking a Writing Chance with Michael Sheen
If Michael Sheen asks you to apply for a writing programme for people from lower-income and working-class backgrounds and you fit the brief… you do it. We’ve been working with creative writing development organisation New Writing North to promote applications to its second stint of A Writing Chance; a programme to help new voices and writers from lower-income or working-class backgrounds break into the industry through a creative social media campaign. A programme founded by Michael Sheen himself and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, we worked with Michael to put together a social media message to inspire the next cohort of A Writing Chance.
2. International coverage for cross-continental road trip
The Turner twins are well into the European leg of their 7-month journey to Shanghai in the electric MG Cyberster. Checking off their thirteenth country, brothers Hugo and Ross Turner made it to Spain, seeing the sights of Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona. With the twins and their fully electric sports car catching the eyes of Spanish locals, we caught up with national Spanish newspaper, La Razón who covered the twins’ journey so far, their best bits and what they are looking forward to most. You can read the article, here.
3. Skills shortages preventing growth and investment for Wales
A shortage of skills in the labour market is putting the brakes on investment and growth in Wales, says a new economic report by our client, the CIPD in Wales. The joint report, published by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) and the CIPD in Wales, found that addressing skills shortages among small-to-medium enterprises was vital for overall productivity and economic growth. With almost 80% of small firms struggling to recruit in the past 12 months, the report calls for urgent investment and commitment to skills by the Welsh Government with a real focus on SMEs. You can read more about the report’s findings in Western Mail’s business pages, Business News Wales, Wales 247, News from Wales, Business Live, and Nation.Cymru.
4. Buoyant Welsh life sciences sector given wings with export focus
As part of our ongoing and successful export focused campaign with Business Wales, we worked in collaboration with Minster for the Economy, Vaughan Gething, and his ministerial comms team to develop and deliver an op-ed for business-live focusing on the rise and rise of Wales’ life science sector on the global stage. The article outlines how Wales’ life science sector is not only thriving at home, but also performing an outsize function all around the world, due to the fact that 75% of the life sciences market is export-focused. Check it out here.
5. Supporting after-school-entrepreneurs with Big Ideas Wales
This week we were left feeling truly inspired by 17-year-old Gwilym Hughes who, alongside studying for his A levels, has been running a popular stationary side-hustle for the past two years with the support of our client, Big Ideas Wales. We sat down in Cardiff Central library to speak to the teen entrepreneur who, since being awarded Eisteddfod yr Urdd’s Welsh Learner’s Award, has launched the world’s first Welsh language worry diary. Why? Well why should Welsh speakers have to explore their mental health through the English medium? Read more of Gwilym’s story on News From Wales and Golwg.
