KIND-HEARTED shoppers at Tesco Cardigan Superstore have donated more than 350 toys to help local children enjoy Christmas.

Customers responded to the store’s Christmas Toy Donation campaign by leaving 360 brand-new toys at an in-store collection point in the weeks leading up to the festive period. The gifts were donated to Home-Start Ceredigion, which distributed them to families across the area so children had presents to open on Christmas Day.

The campaign was aimed at supporting families who may otherwise struggle to provide gifts during what can be a difficult time of year.

Store manager Ceri Gough said the response from the community had been “fantastic”, adding that the store takes pride in supporting local causes through Tesco’s Stronger Starts and Community Food Connection programmes.

“This year’s toy donation campaign gave customers a great opportunity to support local families and ensure children in our community had something to open on Christmas Day,” she said. “We are extremely grateful to everyone who donated and helped bring some festive joy to local families.”

She added that Tesco Cardigan had worked with Home-Start previously and hoped the partnership would continue to grow.

Claire De Silva, Tesco’s Head of Communities, also thanked shoppers for their generosity.

“Our stores support children and communities throughout the year, and local people never fail to get behind these efforts,” she said. “Once again, the people of Cardigan have shown the magic of Christmas is alive and well, helping to make a lot of children very happy.”

The Toy Donation campaign ran in Tesco stores across the UK in November and December, with almost 75,000 gifts donated nationally by customers.

NATIONAL GRID Electricity Distribution has urged customers across West Wales to prepare for potential power cuts as Storm Goretti is forecast to bring snow, heavy rain and strong winds to the region.

The company said the electricity network is designed to be resilient, but extreme weather can still cause disruption. High winds can damage equipment, while freezing conditions can lead to ice building up on overhead power lines, increasing the risk of faults.

Extra engineering and customer support teams have been placed on standby to respond quickly should the storm impact power supplies.

Roisin Quinn, Field Operations Director at National Grid Electricity Distribution, said the organisation had been preparing for severe weather throughout the year.

She said: “Our electricity network is built to be resilient, and we prepare year-round to ensure our teams are ready to respond quickly to any damage caused by Storm Goretti.

“We understand how worrying severe weather can be. That’s why our engineers, contact centre staff and welfare teams are ready to support customers, whatever the storm brings.

“Our control centre will be operating 24/7 to manage supplies and coordinate a rapid response if power lines are affected. We’ve increased staffing across our engineering and customer

NEW guidance has been published to help water companies cut pollution incidents and improve the health of rivers and waterways across Wales.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) has issued the guidance jointly with the Environment Agency in England, setting out how companies must meet new legal duties under the Water (Special Measures) Act 2025.

From April 1, 2026, all water companies operating in Wales and England will be legally required to publish Pollution Incident Reduction Plans. These plans must explain how companies will reduce pollution from their assets and protect the water environment.

The plans will need to identify all potential pollution sources within a company’s network, assess environmental risks, and set clear, measurable targets for reducing incidents. Companies will be required to follow the new guidance, which details the mandatory elements each plan must include.

From 2027, water companies will also have to publish annual Implementation Reports. These will assess how far they have succeeded — or failed — in delivering the measures set out in their plans.

Both the plans and the annual reports will be reviewed every year by Natural Resources Wales, and by the Environment Agency for companies operating in England, to monitor progress and compliance.

The joint guidance has been published on the Welsh Government website.

Becky Favager, Head of Regulation and Permitting at Natural Resources Wales, said the new requirements would strengthen oversight of the water sector.

She said: “As Wales’s regulator, we welcome the introduction of these new legal requirements, which require water companies to develop robust plans to reduce pollution incidents.

“Pollution Incident Reduction Plans and Implementation Reports require companies to identify the root causes of pollution, outline clear actions and report on progress year-on-year.

“They provide us with another tool to hold the sector to account and increase transparency, while accelerating action to reduce sewage spills and improve the health of our waters in Wales.”

The Deputy First Minister with responsibility for climate change, Huw Irranca-Davies, said the plans were designed to improve accountability and environmental outcomes.

He said: “These Pollution Incident Reduction Plans are about transparency and accountability. This is an important step forward in holding water companies to account and ensuring they take clear, consistent and evidence-based action to prevent water pollution.

“The health of our rivers and waterways is vital to Wales’s environment, communities and wildlife. We expect water companies to identify the causes of pollution, take action, and report annually on their progress. Our rivers and waterways deserve nothing less.”

NRW said the introduction of the plans and annual reports supports its wider work to regulate and improve the performance of the water sector in Wales. The regulator confirmed it will continue to take enforcement action where pollution incidents occur or where companies fail to meet their legal obligations.