Ysgol Preseli also represented Pembrokeshire among five finalists at an all-Wales green skills competition

A TEAM of Haverfordwest pupils has earned national recognition after developing a range of environmentally friendly cleaning products aimed at hotels and tourism businesses.

The Sustainables, from Haverfordwest High VC School, presented their idea to business leaders, Welsh Government representatives and sustainability experts at the Tomorrow’s Changemakers Hackathon 2026.

The pupils gave a live demonstration of their product and explained how it could be priced and marketed to businesses across the hospitality sector.

Their combination of environmental thinking and commercial awareness impressed the judging panel, which awarded the team a Highly Commended prize.

Pupils from Ysgol Preseli also reached the final, meaning Pembrokeshire was represented by two of the five teams selected from across south and west Wales.

The competition, held at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David in Carmarthen, challenged Year 8 pupils to find practical solutions to environmental problems affecting tourism, hospitality and the built environment.

The overall winners were the Green Guardians from Llangatwg Community School in Neath Port Talbot.

Their design for a more sustainable school included an outdoor learning centre which could also operate as a pupil-run garden café.

The hackathon marked the end of a year-long programme in which pupils worked alongside teachers, employers and community organisations to research problems, develop ideas and present their solutions.

More than 1,000 Pembrokeshire pupils have taken part in the Tomorrow’s Changemakers programme since it was introduced in the county in 2023.

The Port of Milford Haven is the programme’s main partner in Pembrokeshire.

Anna Mullarkey, the Port’s stakeholder engagement and communications manager, said: “The creativity and innovation shown by these learners is truly inspiring.

“They transformed their ideas into practical solutions that could help build a more sustainable future.

“We’re proud to support young people in reaching their full potential and delighted to see schools across Pembrokeshire creating environments where ideas and talent can flourish.”

The programme has now worked with more than 3,000 young people across Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire and Neath Port Talbot.

It is due to expand further from September, with Ysgol Harri Tudor and Ysgol Caer Elen joining the Pembrokeshire programme alongside schools in Swansea, Powys and Bridgend.

Cymbrogi Futures founder and chief executive Liza Lort-Phillips said Pembrokeshire remained at the heart of the initiative.

She said: “The county has extraordinary young people with bold ideas about the future of their communities.

“Our job is to give them the space, the tools and the confidence to act on those ideas.”

James McKenna admits carrying out a planned knife attack on Joanne Sidaway but denies intending to kill her

THE JURY has retired to consider its verdict in the trial of a Carmarthen man accused of attempting to murder his former partner during a knife attack in Carmarthen Park.

James John McKenna, aged 57, of Bro Hedydd, Carmarthen, admits attacking Joanne Sidaway with a kitchen knife on January 29 this year.

He has pleaded guilty to wounding Ms Sidaway with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and possessing a bladed article in a public place, but denies attempted murder.

The central question for the jury is not whether McKenna carried out the attack, which he accepts, but whether he intended to kill Ms Sidaway or intended to cause her really serious injury and no more.

The case has been heard at Swansea Crown Court before Judge Paul Thomas KC. James Wilson prosecuted, while Caroline Rees KC represented McKenna.

The relationship

The jury heard that McKenna and Ms Sidaway first met online through a photography group in 2022 and began a relationship in September 2024.

McKenna said the relationship initially went well but ended in September 2025. The pair continued to see each other intermittently until Ms Sidaway brought the relationship to a final end in November.

Giving evidence in his defence, McKenna said he struggled to accept the relationship was over and described himself as distressed, sad and angry.

He claimed his mental health had deteriorated following the break-up, although the prosecution pointed out that no medical evidence had been presented to the court in support of that account.

McKenna said he saw Ms Sidaway about a week and a half before the attack, but she showed little interest in speaking to him. He told the jury that he lost his composure and became upset and angry.

Looking for Ms Sidaway

On January 29, McKenna placed a large kitchen knife inside a rucksack and went to places where he believed Ms Sidaway might be found.

He admitted visiting Carmarthen Park in the morning because he knew she regularly walked her dog there.

Asked by Judge Thomas why he had gone to the park, McKenna replied: “I was looking for her, your honour.”

He was carrying the concealed knife at the time and admitted that he had taken it because he wanted to cause Ms Sidaway really serious harm.

McKenna said no attack took place that morning because other people were present.

He later travelled to the museum in Abergwili, believing Ms Sidaway might be there, before returning to Carmarthen town centre and visiting Time Coffee Bar, which was close to a shop where she volunteered.

The prosecution said these movements demonstrated that McKenna had deliberately spent the day looking for his former partner.

CCTV evidence shown to the jury traced McKenna’s movements around Carmarthen and showed him returning to the park during the afternoon.

The court heard that he spent time close to the Picton Terrace entrance before seeing Ms Sidaway approaching with her dog.

The attack

McKenna admitted checking that the park was quiet and hiding in a hedge near the entrance.

He told the court that he crouched down to conceal himself and could hear Ms Sidaway speaking to her dog as she approached.

McKenna then emerged from the hedge and attacked her with the knife.

He estimated that the incident lasted between ten and 15 seconds and said he delivered around six or seven blows.

Ms Sidaway suffered injuries to her chest, upper arm and hands. The jury was shown photographs of four wounds around the chest area and cuts to her hands which forensic physician Professor Jason James-Payne described as consistent with defensive injuries.

Professor James-Payne said a single stab wound could be fatal if it penetrated the chest cavity or damaged the heart or lungs. He said whether such an injury proved fatal could be a matter of chance.

The jury also heard that Ms Sidaway’s coat contained marks consistent with nine stabbing actions and two slashes.

A woman walking her dog nearby heard screaming and saw a man running away from the bushes before finding Ms Sidaway bleeding.

During a 999 call, Ms Sidaway identified McKenna as her attacker and repeatedly asked for an ambulance. She said the attack had happened so quickly that she had been unable to use a whistle she was carrying.

Knife recovered from allotment shed

After the attack, McKenna ran from the park towards the Five Fields Allotments.

Police later recovered his rucksack from an open allotment shed. Inside was a bloodstained kitchen knife wrapped in a calendar.

The court heard that Ms Sidaway’s blood was found on the knife and McKenna’s fingerprint was found on its handle.

A photograph of McKenna and Ms Sidaway was also found inside the rucksack.

McKenna did not contact the emergency services or check on Ms Sidaway following the attack.

He remained in the Bronwydd area for several days before travelling by taxi and bus to Aberystwyth.

He was arrested on February 2 after attending Bronglais Hospital suffering from frostbite. McKenna said he knew he would be arrested when he entered the hospital and regretted not handing himself in sooner.

The prosecution case

In his closing speech, Mr Wilson told the jury that McKenna’s actions had been “planned, calculated and deliberate”.

The prosecution argued that McKenna’s anger about the end of the relationship had been building for some time and that he had chosen a large, sharp knife before deliberately searching for Ms Sidaway.

Mr Wilson said McKenna knew her routine, checked that the park was quiet, concealed himself in a hedge and waited until she was close before ambushing her.

He asked jurors to consider the number of blows, the parts of the body targeted and the potentially fatal consequences of repeatedly using a kitchen knife against an unarmed woman.

The prosecution argued that if McKenna had only intended to injure Ms Sidaway, there were numerous ways he could have done so without repeatedly stabbing towards her upper body.

Mr Wilson also highlighted McKenna’s decision to run away without seeking help, arguing that Ms Sidaway could have been left bleeding to death in the park.

He told the jury that the only reason she had survived was “pure luck”.

The defence case

Ms Rees accepted on McKenna’s behalf that the attack had been planned and that he had intended to cause Ms Sidaway really serious harm.

However, she argued that planning an attack did not necessarily prove that McKenna had planned to kill.

McKenna told the jury that he had been in a rage and had aimed generally towards Ms Sidaway’s upper body without looking directly at where the knife was landing.

He denied aiming for her heart, lungs, throat or other vital organs and said he had never wanted her to die.

The defence said there had been no previous threat by McKenna to kill Ms Sidaway and argued that he had the opportunity to kill her but did not do so.

Ms Rees also asked jurors to consider that the blows were delivered through Ms Sidaway’s clothing and that the medical evidence described the force used as at least moderate, rather than the highest level of force.

She said McKenna had admitted behaving in an appalling and seriously criminal way, but warned that this did not automatically make him guilty of attempted murder.

The defence argued that the evidence was at least equally consistent with an intention to cause grievous bodily harm, the offence to which McKenna has already pleaded guilty.

Ms Rees said the prosecution had to make the jury sure that McKenna intended to kill and that, if they were not sure, their verdict on attempted murder must be not guilty.

The issue for the jury

Summing up the case, Judge Thomas reminded jurors that the prosecution carries the burden of proving guilt and that McKenna does not have to prove anything.

He said it was accepted that McKenna took a large kitchen knife to Carmarthen Park and repeatedly used it against his former partner.

The issue was why he had done so.

The jury must decide whether McKenna intended to cause really serious harm but no more, or whether he intended to kill Ms Sidaway.

The jury has now retired to consider its verdict.

THE GERMAN cruise ship AIDAsol returned to Fishguard today, bringing hundreds of passengers to north Pembrokeshire.

The large vessel was clearly visible from homes overlooking Fishguard Bay after arriving for what is understood to be her second visit to the town.

Passengers were expected to travel ashore by tender before exploring Fishguard, Goodwick and tourist destinations across Pembrokeshire.

Cruise ship visits provide a welcome boost for local shops, cafés, transport providers and visitor attractions, with organised excursions often taking passengers to locations including St Davids and the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park.

AIDAsol is operated by German cruise company AIDA Cruises and is instantly recognisable because of the distinctive eye and red lips painted across her bow.

The ship measures more than 250 metres in length and can accommodate more than 2,000 passengers, as well as hundreds of crew members.

Her arrival attracted attention from residents, with the impressive vessel photographed from several vantage points around Fishguard and Goodwick.

The visit comes during the busy summer tourism season and offers businesses another opportunity to showcase the area to overseas visitors.

AIDAsol was due to remain off the coast while passengers enjoyed their time in Pembrokeshire before continuing to the next destination on her itinerary.

Impressive arrival: AIDAsol pictured in Fishguard Bay today (Pic: Herald reader)