Funding will help volunteers purchase distinctive uniforms for patrols at Tenby South Beach

TENBY Freemasons have donated £750 to Tenby Surf Lifesaving Club to support its volunteer beach patrols and lifesaving work.

Members of Tenby Lodge presented the donation to the club, also known as Surflink, following a training session last week.

The club is introducing volunteer lifesaving patrols at Tenby South Beach on busy days when lifeguards are not on duty, helping to complement the work of the RNLI.

Volunteers require distinctive patrol uniforms so they can be easily recognised by members of the public on the beach.

Senior lodge member Tony Upham put forward a proposal to Tenby Lodge’s committee, which quickly agreed to provide the money needed to purchase the uniforms.

Surf club leader Tai Jackson said: “Lifeguard services have reduced in recent times, so we were keen to offer our skills.

“We are grateful once again for the assistance from the Freemasons in purchasing the essential kit required.”

Tenby Lodge charity steward Steve Thurgood said: “We are committed to supporting local good causes, so we are delighted to make these funds available to Surflink.

“The club provides an excellent voluntary service to the community, particularly to young people.”

Tenby Surf Lifesaving Club has taught the multi-disciplined sport of lifesaving since 1993, educating participants aged eight and above in surf safety, open-water skills and swimming confidence.

Weekly summer training sessions are held at the club’s facility at South Beach Car Park in Tenby. During the winter, the club runs weekly pool sessions at Tenby Leisure Centre, helping members develop the core swimming skills needed for beach training.

Through its links with the RNLI, the club also provides training and assessments for those hoping to become beach lifeguards, first aiders or sports coaches.

Its volunteers provide lifesaving cover for a number of major local events, including Ironman Wales, Long Course Weekend, the Saundersfoot New Year’s Day Swim and Tenby North Beach Boxing Day Swim.

The club’s stated aim is to save lives and prevent drowning through surf lifesaving education and training within the local community.

Anyone interested in joining Tenby Surf Lifesaving Club can email [email protected].

Pictured: Tenby Lodge Master Damian Brown presents the £750 donation to Tai Jackson. Also pictured at the rear are Steve Thurgood, left, and Tony Upham, right, with young members of Tenby Surf Lifesaving Club.

Welsh insolvency specialist says rising costs, shrinking margins and unpaid bills are continuing to place businesses under severe pressure

BUSINESSES across Wales are continuing to face a difficult trading climate as rising costs, falling profits and cashflow pressures take their toll, an insolvency specialist has warned.

Government figures released on Friday (July 17) show there were 1,845 corporate insolvencies in June 2026.

That was four fewer than the 1,849 recorded in May and 10 per cent lower than the 2,048 reported in June last year.

However, Andy McGill, restructuring and insolvency partner at business advisory firm Azets, said the figures remained a cause for concern, with many directors struggling to keep their companies afloat.

Mr McGill, who covers Wales from Azets’ offices in Cardiff, Swansea and St Asaph, said Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidations continued to dominate the figures.

He said: “While 50 fewer took place compared with last month, CVL numbers remain higher than they were before the pandemic, as directors lack the confidence and cash to keep their firms open in a trading climate dominated by rising costs, shrinking margins and political and economic uncertainty.”

Compulsory liquidations also remain higher than they were at the beginning of the year, with creditors increasingly using the courts to recover unpaid debts.

Mr McGill said the patience shown by creditors during the pandemic had largely disappeared, with businesses and public bodies now watching payment deadlines more closely and chasing overdue invoices.

“Everyone is short of money, everyone is watching their payment deadlines and chasing unpaid invoices, and it is likely this will continue in the second half of the year,” he said.

“Times are tough for Britain’s businesses. It costs more to hire staff, profits are falling and cashflow levels are under pressure.

“Firms have been fighting financial fires in one form or another since 2020.”

He said increases in rents, business rates, materials, wages, products and energy had steadily reduced profit margins over the past six years.

Energy bills remained a particular concern for businesses that were unable to pass increased costs on to their customers.

Retailers and hospitality businesses were among those facing the greatest pressure, with some reducing recruitment as they attempted to control costs.

Mr McGill said that although sales volumes may be increasing in some sectors, this did not necessarily mean businesses were making more money.

“Many businesses are having to work harder simply to stand still,” he said.

“Where they can, they avoid passing their costs on to customers, but many simply are not able to do this anymore.”

The construction industry was also being affected by delayed project starts, planning difficulties, late payments, tight margins and rising material costs.

Mr McGill said improved summer weather could help increase construction output, although it remained unclear whether this would be enough to significantly improve conditions within the sector.

He urged company directors worried about their finances to seek professional advice at the earliest opportunity.

“It is a hard call to make and an incredibly tough conversation to start,” he said.

“But doing so while your worries are still new gives you more options and more time to decide your next step than if you wait until the problem becomes more severe.

“It usually gives you a better chance of turning the situation around.”

Specialist detection dog also found an SD card containing hundreds of indecent images of children

A CONVICTED sex offender hid an unregistered laptop beneath a kitchen counter while continuing to access indecent images of children in breach of a court order.

Joey Morgan, 53, of Ithon Road, Llandrindod Wells, pleaded guilty to two counts of making indecent images of children, two breaches of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and one count of theft when he appeared before Cardiff Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, July 11.

Morgan has been subject to indefinite notification requirements and a Sexual Harm Prevention Order since he was convicted of making indecent images of children in 2019.

He was convicted again in 2021 of possessing indecent images and breaching court-imposed restrictions while living in the Gwent area.

On Monday, July 6, plain-clothes officers saw Morgan using a black Acer laptop in a public area of a hotel in Llandrindod Wells.

The device had not been registered with police.

Under the terms of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order, Morgan was prohibited from owning a device capable of accessing the internet or storing data unless he notified police within three days of obtaining it.

When the laptop remained unregistered on Thursday, July 9, Morgan was arrested in Llandrindod Wells on suspicion of breaching the order.

Following his arrest, search officers and detectives attended his home with a specialist digital detection dog from South Wales Police.

The dog located the Acer laptop hidden beneath the kitchen counter behind a removable wooden plinth.

Officers also discovered an SD card concealed beneath the hallway carpet and a handheld games console hidden at the back of a mailbox in the communal area of the property.

None of the devices had been registered with police.

Digital forensic examinations revealed that the SD card contained hundreds of indecent images of children, including material classified as Category B and Category C.

Morgan also admitted during a police interview that he had stolen the games console.

He was subsequently charged with two breaches of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order, two counts of making indecent images of children and one count of theft. He admitted all five offences.

Morgan was remanded in custody and is due to appear before Merthyr Tydfil Magistrates’ Court on Friday, August 7, for sentencing.

Detective Inspector Anthea Ponting, of Dyfed-Powys Police’s Offender Management Unit, said: “There is no doubt that Joey Morgan is a dangerous individual who does not abide by the orders issued by the court and the requirements placed on him.

“I am grateful to the team of specialist units that worked together to bring Morgan back before the courts to sentence him for his offending. We await the result.”