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‘Student Festival Fortnight’ brings student deals to St David’s

Luthien Evans

News Editor

St David’s is set to hold an extended two-week sale event for students, similar to events held by the shopping centre in previous years.

This year’s ‘Student Festival Fortnight’ will be held from September 21 to October 4 for students from across the city.

Students will be able to save up to 20% on shopping and dining experiences at the shopping centre.

The event, which in previous years has spanned a single day, has been extended to comply with Welsh Government guidelines which have recently been tightened to combat the rise in positive coronavirus cases across Wales.

Adjustments have been made by St David’s to allow for proper social distancing measures, as well as accommodating the staggered return of students over the coming weeks ahead of the start of the Autumn term.

The aim of the event is to allow for students to feel ‘sorted and organised for the start of term’, according to the St David’s website.

This is made possible with sales across clothes, technology and food stores, with prices slashed for students that sign up on the St David’s website.

Proof is needed of student ID from the online signup before the discounts can be accepted in store over the two-week period of the sale.

Many of St David’s stores are getting involved.

Clothing stores from The North Face to Victoria’s Secret are offering 20% off instore, with multiple stores offering varying discounts for those eligible.

Restaurants are also getting involved, with Wahaca offering 20% discounts on meals, whilst Shake Shack are offering a buy one get one free meal deal.

Once registered online, students are able to recieve discounts from stores across St David’s and will be automatically included in the prize draw. The ‘Survival Bundle’ includes prizes varying from Wagamama £15 vouchers to £100 John Lewis gift cards.

As the Festival has been formed with COVID-19 precautions in mind, students will be able to shop on a budget, collecting the deals safely.

Clwb Ifor Bach closes its doors due to COVID-19 The decision follows changes to Welsh Government guidelines

Tirion Davies may have. confident the measures we have in thanked the customers who had reEditor-in-Chief Clwb Ifor Bach, as with many place provide a safe and welcoming turned to the venue before its recent

Clwb Ifor Bach, the Live mupubs and clubs in Cardiff, were able environment, the additional staffclosure, but highlighted the “crisis” sic venue and nightclub on to reopen in August for seating caing costs associated with running a the events industry has faced since Cardiff ’s Womanby Street pacity, in compliance with Welsh venue in line with the current guidethe beginning of the COVID-19 announced on September 22 that it Government guidelines. lines coupled with the new restricpandemic. will close its doors indefinitely. The club gave a statement on their tions on opening hours mean that it Since it was established, Clwb Ifor

The club, known by many as social media pages, announcing, is no longer financially viable for us Bach has hosted numerous music ‘Welsh Club’ because of its work “we have unfortunately taken to remain open”. stars, and prides itself on having with Welsh music artists and its the difficult decision to close our Clwb Ifor Bach confirmed that been “an early platform for some of appreciation of Welsh culture, was doors once again. Although we are the closure would be temporary and the biggest names in music today”. established in 1983 and has been a Such artists as the Stereophonics, musical focal point in Cardiff since George Ezra, Mark Ronson, Catfish it first opened. & the Bottlemen, Foals and Cold

Its mural by Mark James in celplay have played at the venue over ebration of Welsh singer Gwenno the years, with up-and-coming acts Saunders’ album ‘Y Dydd Olaf ’ is booking the club as its Welsh venue known by many across the city, and during tours across the UK. Clwb Ifor Bach was expected to reThe temporary closure of Clwb ceive many visitors following the Ifor Bach is not the first club in Careasing of lockdown restrictions in diff to close since the COVID-19 August. pandemic began, but it one of few

Yet, since the recent announcewhich has chosen to close voluntarments made by the Welsh Governily due to monetary reasons. ment regarding further restrictions Despite the setback, the club is due to the ongoing COVID-19 panoptimistic it will reopen in a betdemic, the nightclub has decided to ter position once the threat of the close for the forseable future. global pandemic has significantly

The new guidelines enforce a lessened. 10pm curfew on pubs and bars With live shows lined up for 2021 across Wales, and implemented the and bands already booked for gigs, ‘rule of six’, meaning that patrons at there is an expectation that Clwb bars, pubs and restaurants would be Ifor Bach will eventually reopen at unable to congregate in groups of Clwb Ifor Bach: The club, with its distinctive mural, will close due a later date, though it’s unlikely it more than six, limiting the amount to the COVID-19 pandemic. Source: Llywelyn2000 (via Wikimedia will be soon given the current rate of capacity some establishments Commons) of COVID-19 cases in Wales.

23 Cardiff schools record cases of COVID-19

Schools across Cardiff have recorded positive cases of COVID-19 in September since the reopening of schools

Sam Portillo News Editor

During September, following the mass reopening of schools across Wales, Public Health Wales has announced that 23 schools across Cardiff have recorded cases of COVID-19.

Infected staff and students were ordered to self-isolate at home for fourteen days, complying with Welsh Government guidelines, in addition to individuals who were in close and prolonged proximity with those infected based on a track and trace system.

The two-week order covers the COVID-19 incubation period, so if people have not developed symptoms within that time, they are allowed to return to school and usual life.

The incubation period is a requirement, and is aimed at halting the spread of COVID-19 to further, more vulnerable parties.

Cardiff recorded 136 cases of COVID-19 from 14th to 20th September, an increase of 70 cases in comparison to the previous week.

During this period, Cardiff had a positive test proportion of 5.7%, higher than the Welsh average.

The Public Health Wales data from September 23 noted Cardiff had a positive proportion of 5.4%, lower than the previous Cardiff average, but higher than the Welsh positive proportion average of 4.5%.

Mount Stuart Primary School: The primary school noted that 60 pupils and 9 staff members were told to self-isolate after an incident. Source: Srsval (via Wikimedia Commons) It is believed the return of students likely to spread coronavirus as well. This At Mount Stuart Primary in Cardiff and staff to school environments and is in direct contrast to the flu” Bay, for example, 60 pupils and 9 staff university students moving into shared There was much discussion regardmembers were ordered to stay at home accommodation have contributed toing sending children back to schools after a single Year 1 pupil tested positive wards this rise in numbers of the past before the announcement was made by for the virus. few weeks which have lead to the lockthe Welsh Government on July 9. AlIf they are well enough to do work, down of numerous Welsh counties. though children are relatively safe from self-isolating staff and pupils can make

Welsh Health Minister Vaughan the virus, they are more likely to infect use of online learning technologies like Gething reassured parents at the start more vulnerable members of society. Microsoft Teams and educational webof the month, reminding them that chilRather than “locking down” entire sites to complete work from home. dren are relatively safe from the disease schools, the Welsh Government has With Cardiff now following its neighand that they should continue sending told that it trusts the schools to keep bouring counties and going under local their children to school. a record of class groups, so only those lockdown, it remains to be seen wheth

Mr Gething expressed, “Children who have been in prolonged proximity er the measures implemented will be and young people are much less likely with the infected person might need to enough to ensure that the children of to suffer harm and they are much less self-isolate. Cardiff remain sage from COVID-19.