South Wales Echo

A Double Date Leaves This Daddy Reeling in Operation Clean-Up ; Paternity Test by Dave Owens the Trials and Tribulations of an Exhausted Father

I LOVE it when we have visitors, but there's nothing like a play date to ensure the house is absolutely spotless. Our pristine vision of loveliness had the air of a show home on the weekend when two of Elinor's little friends came calling.

'She Wants to Stay with Us Until She Is 102' ; After Many Years Working As a Nanny and Childminder, Becoming a Foster Carer Was a Natural Step for Joanna Beese

Foster caring was always something mum Joanna Beese had thought about doing. But seeing a friend having such a positive experience fostering spurred her and husband Mike, from Pontypridd, into action.

Straight On for a Really Good Time! ; Local Authority Worker Huw Parsons, 40, From Hirwaun, Took His 10- Year-Old Daughter Isabelle and Son Isaac, Eight, On One of the New Geocaching Trails at Dare Valley Country

Q How long did it take you to get there and was it easy to find? A We live in Hirwaun so the park, which is in Aberdare, is only a 15 minute drive away. Q Tell us what you did during your visit? A We headed to Dare Valley Country Park to try out geocaching for the first time. It involves using a GPS device to find hidden 'treasure', known as caches.

Great Buys

Safe, sound and snug This travel cot accessory is ideal for holidays where you have to share the room with your child. It is a lightweight, easy-to-use black out blind that also acts as a mosquito net. It also has a SPF of 50+. It is pounds 69.99 and available from www.snoozeshade.co.uk Stylish bath time Supermarket chain Asda has a baby and toddler event running at the moment. This summer infant deluxe baby bather comes in two different colours - this is the Circle Daisy one.

School Meals Hoping to Be a Class Act ; Thanks to High Profile Campaigns to Improve School Dinners, Turkey Twizzlers Are Off the Menu for Good. Cathy Owen Went Along to One Cardiff School to Find Out How Things Have Changed and What the Plans for the Future Are

ard ravioli parcels with meat - at least I think it was meat! - that tasted like sandpaper, dry jam sponge with lumpy custard, and cold chips served up on old plastic plates like you get on aeroplanes - my memories of school dinners are not what you would call happy. So, when I saw that Cardiff Council were looking for parents' views on school dinners I thought it would be a good chance to find out what's on the menu in 2012 - not least because my seven-year- old can never remember what passe...

Being a Single Married Mother of One for a Month Is a Bit of a Sham

I'm half-way through a month of married single motherhood. But you knew that already because not only do I tell everyone, including strangers, at the first available opportunity, I also wear a sandwich board with the words "do not look at me funny - I'm on the edge because the father of my child is away for four weeks".

Workers' Hero - or a Hypocrite?

He died 90 years ago this week, a man mourned as no other by the miners of South Wales. For he was their hero, their champion, born into appalling poverty but a force of nature who fought his way up from pit to Parliament, MP for Rhondda, no less, at a time when politics was still the prerogative of the privileged. Here was a union man who faced down the mighty coal owners, fighting without fear or favour for the men he had left behind in the grim valley mines. He was the ultimate working cla...

Man Admits to Child Cruelty ; News in Brief

A MAN has been remanded in custody after admitting child cruelty. Dean Richard Williams, 30, of Fernhill, Mountain Ash, appeared at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court yesterday for trial after denying the offences. But at the 11th hour, before a jury was sworn in, he changed his pleas to guilty.

Search Is On for Gavin ; News in Brief

POLICE in Cardiff are appealing for information about the whereabouts of Gavin Wilkinson, 39, missing for almost two weeks. Mr Wilkinson was last seen in Danescourt at about 1pm on April 29. He was believed to be wearing blue jeans, a black T-shirt, a dark or black bomber-style jacket, dark trainers and was carrying a small black Gola bag which has silver and black writing. He is white, of medium build, with short thinning blond hair.

Raise Local Issues at Pact Meetings ; News in Brief

Stars Will Wait On You at Charity Ball ; News in Brief

Opponents Find 'Flaw' in Incinerator Plans ; Protesters Want Scheme Revoked Over Consultation Concerns

OPPONENTS of a controversial waste incinerator project in Cardiff will today ask AMs to support their bid to have planning permission revoked. The Cardiff Against the Incinerator Committee (CATI) argues that an ombudsman's ruling that the planning consultation process organised by Cardiff council was flawed should be sufficient grounds to stop the Splott project from going ahead.

Town Attack Sparks Police Witness Appeal

SOUTH Wales Police is appealing for information following a serious assault. The attack took place at 8.15am on The Square, Pencoed, Bridgend, on Sunday.

Uni Hopes for Training Centre

SKILLED professionals of the future are to be trained at a special university centre which will mock up the working environment. It is hoped the University of Glamorgan's Centre for Financial and Professional Services will boost the professional service industry in South Wales, with many large employers already having a base here.

Museum Is in for a Musical Treat

A MUSEUM dedicated to telling the story of Cardiff has teamed up with two of the city's musical institutions to provide a night of free music in its galleries. The Cardiff Story Museum has teamed up with Clwb Ifor Bach and Spillers Records to curate The Cardiff Sessions.

Doreen Was a Champion of the Deaf Community

A WOMAN so dedicated to helping others she was awarded an MBE for voluntary services to deaf people has died aged 75. Doreen Gunning died after a short illness at the Princess of Wales Hospital, Bridgend, on April 4 and is survived by her stepdaughters Patricia and Yvonne.

Walking to Raise Pounds 1m

FUNDRAISERS will be walking around Wales with the aim of raising pounds 1m for four charities. Jamie Pritchard and Louise Kirton, who set up Stamtram - Speak To a Million, To Raise a Million - are travelling through Wales collecting a pound from as many people as they meet to raise the money, which will be split between Ty Hafan, Autism Cymru, Four Paws Animal Rescue and Prince's Trust.

Morgan Denial ; Sport in Brief

WOLVES owner Steve Morgan insists he has not taken a gamble in making Norwegian Stale Solbakken the club's first foreign manager. Solbakken's only previous experience of English football was half a dozen games as a player with Wimbledon in the late 1990s.

Mcleish Sacked ; Sport in Brief

ALEX McLeish has been sacked by Aston Villa, less than 24 hours after the end of his first season in charge. A winless run stretching to nine matches saw Villa finish just two points clear of the drop and McLeish's fate was confirmed following talks with senior club officials.

Neville Handed Job with England ; Sport in Brief

NEW England coach Roy Hodgson has sprung a major surprise by appointing Gary Neville to his coaching team. The former Manchester United defender has signed a four-year contract, which allows him to continue as a pundit for Sky Sports.