Melody Music is in fact not a music company, but a travel company that arranges tours for choirs -…read moreincluding booking concerts, flights, coaches and accommodation. Many choirs previously had to find a 'travel' company to provide tour arrangements, and then they were left to sort out booking the concert venues themselves - or had to bring in a separate company to do that. Basically, Melody Music provide a 'one stop shop' for choirs wanting the very hard work of arranging a tour to be done for them by someone else - from start to finish. They have organised concert tours all over the world for some of the biggest and best internationally renowned choirs - for example the Lions Choir and the Morriston Orpheus Male Choir. The company also looks after the promotional side of tours, producing local publicity, brochures and so on. If choirs want to go on sightseeing tours while they're on tour, Melody Music can also arrange that.

This branch of The British Heart Foundation has a spacious shop floor with which to display large…read moreitems of furniture that don't fit in the smaller outlets. It also carries smaller items of furniture, as well as white goods and general electricals. Sadly, the white goods and electricals are not reconditioned, and so they will only accept items that are working at the time of donation, but there's no guarantee that they will continue to do so once you get them home. They do perform function and PAT tests, so the portable appliances are likely to be more reliable. Nevertheless, white goods are the biggest sellers, which is pretty much the same story across the 87 outlets of this kind throughout the UK. Because of this they are always on the lookout for donations to replenish their white goods stock. It's always best to check with them first before loading heavy items into your car and hauling them all the way to the shop, as they will refuse certain items. They won't accept any gas cookers for instance. They also sell some new stock at reasonable prices. This is not damaged or redundant stock. Instead, they rely on buying in lesser known brands that do not carry such a hefty price tag.

Now we're talking. I've been looking for a place like this since I've moved to the UK - a showroom…read morewith an extensive range of second-hand furniture and electronics, not overpriced "antiques". Charity shops carrying larger home items are quite common in Florida, and all of the furniture in my respective family members' houses are sourced from these "thrift stores" and then reupholstered or repainted. Thankfully, this makes it difficult to spend £2,000 on a hutch or dining room table. Speaking of costs, the price here are rock bottom: Sturdy wooden dining sets for under £100, TVs for £25 and bedside tables for a fiver. For me, the appeal is owning a piece of furniture that can't be found in every home in Britain (ahem, IKEA). The staff here incredibly helpful - I wasn't in here five minutes before two members of staff politely informed me that the shop had an upstairs stock room, in case I couldn't find anything I wanted on the ground floor.

I find bike hiring places great for my needs. I ride them about 5 times a year, I house share so…read morecan't keep one in the house, so it's ideal when a cheap hiring place comes along for moi. Enter Pedal Power with a huge array of 2 wheeled implements to set you on your way. Starting at £5 for an hour and up to £15 for a day it's really reasonable and better than wasting your money on poxy public transport. Every bike comes with a helmet (I look a prize in them), Lock, pump and survival kit with repair type gadgets and a spare inner tube. The staff are great in here as well and were really helpful on good bike trails to investigate.

It's a must to take a walk down to the barrage in Cardiff bay but if you can't walk then why not a…read moretake a bike or a quad? (a two seater, 4 wheeled bike that tends to take up the entire path its cycling down) You can hire them from Pedal Power in the bay from £4 (£3 in you're a member) and cycle to your hearts content. If you have the energy and inclination you can cycle them all the way to Merthyr via the Taff trail.

Track 2000 converts tat into treasure…read more This not-for-profit organisation offers second hand furniture to those on a low income, it also trains the unemployed and aids the recycling effort to boot. You can pick up second hand beds, settees, wardrobes and white goods from their warehouse. The ethos is great and it's a fantastic asset for the Cardiff community, but I did find some of the furniture a little overpriced and some of the sofas in need a clean. The building itself is Victorian red brick, with a number of large biodiesel powered lorries loitering outside. Look out for the washing machine drums on the side of the building, which offering fantastic natural drainage and have been converted into ingenious plant holders. Bonus: Just ask and Track 2000 will deliver your furniture purchases

We really like the Llandaff North Community Centre we run our business from there. We have just…read moremoved to the Llandaff North area and we really like it. We offer football coaching in Llandaff North in Cardiff for 6-12 year old boys and girls. All abilities welcome. You can visit our website www.soccersquad.uk we are welcoming new players of all abilities. Mondays and Wednesdays 5pm - 6pm. Contact Lucy or Dave for more information. £5 off fees for 3 months quote: Yelp5 at sign up. You will find us in this community centre from October to March.

This registered charity offers training and experience in music, video, computers and graphics to…read moreyoung people aged 16-25 in the Cardiff area. It aims to help young people recognise their potential and give them a greater sense of self-worth by offering learning opportunities in a relaxed and friendly environment in the heart of the city centre. From photographic and image manipulation courses to video-making taster workshops, it's a hub of musical and other activity. Some young people take longer courses at the centre that lead to qualifications, while others just join in shorter activity workshops or one-off events. There's also a cheap coffee bar based at Grassroots to give young people the chance to drop in to socialise or find out more about what's on offer. There's an advice office, too, providing a free drop-in service covering issues and problems of relevance to young people.

A charity with its heart firmly in the right place, Grassroots is a tireless trainer of arty…read morepursuits to young people. If you're 16-25 and want to get skills and advice in music, video, computers, graphics, photography, performance or the Internet, they can help. Several years back there were also regular lo-fi gigs at its Charles Street base, while a coffee shop remains at the premises, proving Grassroots walks it as well as it talks it.

You wouldn't think looking at the urban front of the Adamsdown Resource Centre that there is a…read moresecret paradise of willow arches and fresh fruit, veg and flowers within, but there is and it's beautiful. This community garden is just one of the resources the Centre offers you as well as the chance to become involved in maintaining it. If you live in Adamsdown then you are lucky to have such a fantastic resource on your doorstep. Out of the Centre's offices come walks and workshops, classes, meetings, training, festivals and fun days. Their windows are plastered with posters offering a 'free homework club', 'summer woodwork project', the chance to 'sing in a community choir'. ...And they're open to other suggestions, this is a community space, this is your space. If you live in Adamsdown and want to get to know your neighbours, knock on this door, grab a cup of tea and get involved.

I love what Age Concern is all about. They are one of the most important charities that are…read moresupporting the elderly in many different ways. Isolation is a huge problem for old people these days, as it is for younger people too, but whilst younger people may get depressed about feeling alone, there are a multitude of other potentially harmful factors of living in seclusion for the old. Isolation is a product of modern society, where communities have broken down, with large numbers of the workforce being incredibly mobile, often relocating great distances away from their parents. The fact that we have transient societies means that it's difficult to start and maintain friendships, so there are fewer people looking out for the welfare of the nations OAP's. I'm always saddened to learn of yet another old person being found dead in their home by the postman, or the milkman, instead of by a family member or a neighbour. Age Concern addresses the issue of isolation amongst a plethora of other initiatives to offer support to the frail and needy. Their shops provide a significant amount of revenue to fund these directives, and so they play an important role within the charity. This particular shop is a good one. It is well stocked, and often has good quality clothing with a few designer labels thrown in for good measure. They also have a reasonable bric-a-brac section and the books and DVD's often offer up quite a few titles that I snap up readily. Great!

Being one of those people who can't go into a charity shop without coming out with a year's supply…read moreof books, my creaking bookshelves and increasingly overloaded cupboards are eternally grateful this place isn't nearer to my house. The shop houses an impressive supply of reference books and is well ordered by subject. The staff here are clearly able to sort through the titles, and so there is a section devoted to the best quality works and the 'classics'. For the specialist reader, the shelves are also divided up into categories as diverse as Religion, Pregnancy, Foreign Language and Antiques. Throughout my English Literature, I found this quite the resource as next year's reading list often tended to appear just hours after the school's essay hand-in date. At turnover times such as these, text books and professional guides are always prominently displayed within the shop so do make sure you get in quick. At other times, keep an eye out for buy one get one free incentives. Who knows, you could take a chance and find your new favourite author. URBAN CHALLENGE: Buy a book by an author you've never read before

The Wales Co-operative Centre is a development agency based in Cardiff but working right across…read moreWales to support community regeneration, economic development and social justice through a range of co-operative projects. Their aim is to help communities develop businesses or projects which value people and the environment as much as they aim to make a profit, and which promote social, financial and digital inclusion. Projects include a fair trade project to help mainstream businesses adopt a fair trade policy; a Money Advice Scheme; and IT schemes introducing people in disadvantages communities to new technologies. Originally set up in the early 80s to help redundant workers from declining heavy industry, the centre has evoled into an organisation helping a wide range of communities and businesses across Wales. You can browse their website to find out about their projects and how your business or community might be able to benefit. There's also an online community discussion forum where you can share ideas with other co-operatives and social enterprises, ask questions and receive support.