The Village Bakery, Wrexham to expand 'with 50 new jobs'

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall were invited to flip Welsh cakes at the Wrexham bakery in 2015

A Wrexham-based bakery is to create 50 new jobs to help it cope with a "growing order book".

A dozen apprenticeships will be among the extra positions at The Village Bakery's three sites at the Wrexham Industrial Estate and in nearby Minera.

The increase will bring the firm's workforce up to 500.

Operations director Simon Thorpe said the firm was "very fortunate" to be going through "another period of significant growth".

The plan is separate to a proposal the firm submitted to Wrexham council last year for an expanded £16m "super bakery", which was linked to 100 potential new jobs.

Apprentices for the current expansion will be trained at the firm's £4m baking academy and innovation centre, which was officially opened by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall in 2015.

Village Bakery operations director, Simon Thorpe (centre) with apprentice bakers Bilei Mejbri (left) and Jac Griffiths