by Andrew Guilford | Dec 15, 2021 | Development Investment
When children and staff at Ysgol Rhys Prichard moved into their new school, they didn’t just get a school, they got a community hub, leisure facilities, rugby pitch and a swimming pool next door too!
The primary school has relocated to the former Ysgol Pantycelyn secondary school site providing bright and airy accommodation and state-of-the-art facilities.
The move has increased its capacity to 240 places and made provision for an external Cylch Meithrin integrated into the new school building. It also includes a large hall which can be shared with the community of Llandovery, a rugby pitch, multi-use games area and hard and soft play areas.
A virtual celebration event has been held to mark the official completion of the £4.3million project, which has been delivered as part of the Carmarthenshire County Council’s Modernising Education Programme, jointly funded by Welsh Government through its 21st Century Schools initiative. A further £350k community hub capital grant was secured from Welsh Government to provide the leisure facility.
The school welcomed Carmarthenshire County Council Leader Cllr Emlyn Dole, Cabinet Member Cllr Glynog Davies along with Chief Executive Wendy Walters and Director of Education and Children’s Services Gareth Morgans to a virtual event to find out what pupils liked best about their new school.
Cllr Dole said: “It’s a unique opportunity moving a primary school to a secondary school location, and all that brings and offers to students and staff.
“The idea behind the Modernising Education Programme of course is to see this duplicated right across the county for all our students and staff.”
Cllr Davies added: “Education has changed dramatically; technology is moving on at a fast pace and I know that that technology is being used at Ysgol Rhys Prichard. We want to prepare our pupils for the future, so that they can get good jobs, and hopefully stay in Carmarthenshire.”
The event included a special screening of a short film which the children helped to make to show-off their new school and all its facilities. It will be shared with their families and the local community who have been unable to visit due to the pandemic.
Local member Cllr Handel Davies said: “Is there a better primary school in Wales or even the world? We’ve got a community hall, a leisure centre, swimming pool, a rugby pitch and the classroom sizes are something else. Not only is it beneficial to the school and the children, but it is also a fantastic community asset.”
The new school was designed by council architects and the works were carried out by local contractors Lloyd & Gravell Ltd.
Carmarthenshire County Council
by Andrew Guilford | Dec 9, 2021 | Creative Economy
A graduate and a staff member from the University of Wales Trinity Saint David have been successful at the Swansea Open 2021 art exhibition at the Glynn Vivian Gallery in Swansea.
Swansea Open is an annual art exhibition held at the Glynn Vivian gallery. The exhibition is open to people living and working in the SA1-SA9 region and can be from any background. Each year the selection is made by a different panel of invited selectors which encourages diverse viewpoints annually. This year, Caroline Thraves, UWTSD Swansea College of Art’s Academic Director for Art and Media, and Professor Uzo Iwobi OBE, and an Honorary Fellow of the University were the invited selectors.
Caroline Thraves said,
“It’s been an absolute pleasure to select the work at the Glynn Vivian. I know Swansea’s full of artistic talent, and many of that talent comes from the Swansea College of Art. It’s fantastic to see the diverse range of art that’s here from 3D art to painting and drawings, and it was hard to select a winner amongst these entries.”
The first prize was awarded to Suzanne Callen, a member of UWTSD’s Student Services department (specifically working in Art and Design) for her oil on canvas painting named ‘Sabina’. The work really stood out for the judges, and Caroline Thraves added that there was something in the way that the portrait looked at them, through the eyes that told a story, and they were really drawn to that.
Suzanne Callen said,
“I entered the competition with the hope that my painting would be selected to be hung. It was a total surprise when my name was announced for the first prize, it was very emotional. I feel this award has given me the confidence boost needed to continue on my creative journey and validates the skills and abilities we have in Students Services.”
Suzanne is a true advocate of lifelong learning, and before lockdown she had attended an introductory oil painting course at UWTSD. During lockdown, Suzanne re-found her love of drawing portraits, and managed to create over 120 charcoal portraits and started using different materials such as ink, watercolour, pastels and finally oil painting as her artistic development continued.
The winning work ‘Sabina’ 2020 was inspired by traditional artists techniques which are used in a contemporary way.
She adds: “There is a lot of reflectivity at the time in this painting and my need to have that connection with the face to look at them in detail rather than the virtual. Sabina looks out from the canvas as we were looking out of our windows at what was happening in the world. The grey background almost oppressively hangs heavy around the individual. The plain background with hint of light source has now become a signature of my work. The floating frame creates the impression that there is more than the surface to survey and draws the focus to the ‘boxed-in’. The painting captures a moment in time when senses and emotions were heightened, and my own creativity was re-unleashed. The situation of working from home gave me the opportunity to release this, it has allowed me to use my time productively not just for work but for my own creative self-development. I’m on a journey which many people have followed and am loving the process as it unfolds.”
Sabina – 1st prize winner in the Swansea Open 2021 Art Exhibition
In addition to this competition, Kate Bell and Anne Price- Owen, from the Friends of the Glynn Vivian were invited to select a winner for the ‘Friends Award for Swansea Open 2021’. The prize was awarded this year to UWTSD Fine Art graduate Owain Sparnon for his work ‘Trwodd draw yr wyf yn edrych/ I’m looking through you.’
Owain’s work was described by Kate Bell as being: “very ambitious which is abstract in its nature, but shows huge depth and gravitas, a lot of colours, a lot of mixed media. The way that he has created the composition, the marks on the canvas really caught our eye.”
The winning piece, ‘I’m looking through you’, was a painting created as part of a series of works for Owain’s degree show. It’s one of five paintings of that scale and it was made in response to things Owain comes across daily – things such as photographs, landscapes, reflective lighting, and sounds. Layering, unravelling, intertwining and decontextualising an image were crucial to the process. The work is a combination of paint, collage, and sculpture as Owain is intrigued by the boundary between painting and sculpture. The painting reveals recollections, thoughts, secrets, and experiences of his subconscious through colour, remnants, texture and the unknown.
Owain said,
“Winning this award is a great privilege and I am delighted to be exhibiting my work at the Glynn Vivian Gallery alongside talented artists from the Swansea area. I have been very fortunate to have several opportunities since graduating which have really helped me to continue to develop my artwork – I won the Josef Herman Foundation Award in memory of Carolyn Davies a few months ago, my work was recently exhibited at Mission Gallery as part of the Artist in the World exhibition and since October, I have worked as an artist at Swansea College of Art after being successful in the Artists Benevolent Fund’s Step Change Fellowship Programme. To be able to continue working at Swansea College of Art, and to have a studio for myself where I can experiment and develop my artwork, is an invaluable experience.”
Swansea College of Art Lecturer, Gwenllian Beynon said,
“I am delighted to see Owain succeed and get credit for his work by winning an award at the Glynn Vivian open exhibition so soon after graduating in the Summer from the Fine Art course. Owain works his practice with a focus on working by focusing on printing and mixed media. When he was a student Owain studied a little through the medium of Welsh, and it is clear from seeing his career develop that that is important to him. It’s great to see our graduates succeed and be known for their art outside the College of Art and the University.”
Professor Sue Williams, Programme Manager of Fine Art: Studio Site & Context said,
“It is excellent news that Owain has won this award and we, the fine Art staff in Swansea, would like to congratulate him. Owain deserves this acknowledgement as his work is authentic and original. Owain’s work reveals a great passion and commitment to the language of material and surface, and I am in no doubt we will see more of Owain’s exciting and provocative work in the future.”
University of Wales Trinity Saint David
by Andrew Guilford | Dec 9, 2021 | Development Investment, Travel Transport Tourism
City centre shoppers are enjoying a sociable and relaxing new experience in Swansea Market.
Lord Mayor of Swansea Cllr Mary Jones at the launch of Swansea’s Market’s new Market Garden
The iconic venue has just become yet more welcoming.
The Market Garden – a new area at the heart of the venue – is a new place where people can eat, work and enjoy themselves. They take food and drink there having bought it from nearby market stalls.
Its launch was welcomed on Saturday, December 4, with a visit by Lord Mayor of Swansea Cllr Mary Jones.
Ailie Kenna at the launch of Swansea’s Market’s new Market Garden
Gwaun Cae Gurwen Brass Band helped usher in the new era, there was more music from singer-songwriter Ailie Kenna and there was fun with festive characters Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, The Grinch and Elf on the Shelf.
Elf on the Shelf at the launch of Swansea’s Market’s new Market Garden
The market’s Christmas-themed best dressed stall competition was won by Janet’s Café, with Arlene’s Sweetie Jar and Nonna’s running the winner close.
The green-themed Market Garden, developed by Swansea Council, features more than 170 plants together with an assortment of comfortable, garden-style tables and chairs for visitors to enjoy food and drink bought from a wide variety of market stalls.
The new young plants will grow to make the space more green, any plants struggling to bed in will be replaced and seasonal flowers will also be added at appropriate times.
The new attraction’s name celebrates a previous era when the centre of the venue was traditionally home to a flower market.
Operated in line with latest Covid guidelines, it has power charging facilities, recycling bins and a water station to refill water bottles. Free public Wi-Fi is planned.
Highchairs are available to those with young children. There are warmers for baby bottles and food – and there’s a toddlers’ play table.
For the first time, dog lovers can take their well-behaved pets to the market. Dogs can enjoy a bowl of water at Swansea Jack’s kennel – as long as they follow the market’s new “doggie rules.”
Swansea’s Market’s new Market Garden eating, meeting and greeting area
Bakery stallholder Jan Evans said: “The Market Garden is a fantastic addition to the market in an area that was previously not very heavily used.
“Visually, it’s a huge improvement and it’s wonderful to see our customers enjoying using this new facility already.
“I’m really looking forward to having new events there and I’m sure it’ll prove to be of benefit to everyone in the market.”
Council cabinet member Robert Francis-Davies said: “The market will play a key role in Swansea’s great future, being led by our £1bn regeneration scheme.
“Its Market Garden is part of a £440,000 improvement programme at this wonderful venue. It’s accessible, inclusive, well managed and will bring new footfall for traders to benefit.
“It’s designed for the benefit and enjoyment of all customers – for meeting friends and family, catching up on work and enjoying the fantastic range of food available from the market.
“It’s set to become a popular destination and is a flexible space that can also host events and exhibitions which will help attract a broader audience.”
Swansea’s Market’s new Market Garden eating, meeting and greeting area
The market, run by the council, attracts more than four million shoppers a year in non-pandemic times and is the permanent home to more than 100 businesses.
The Market Garden, which is close to the famous cockle stalls, is visible from every direction due to its 7.5m-high pergola, the shape of which mirrors the market’s monumental domed roof.
The new attraction’s design and name were decided by the public as part of a consultation exercise this year. Traders had an input too.
Key for the traders was maintaining sight lines across the market. This was achieved by designing an open pergola without any walls but onto which decorative features can be hung to add greenery and create atmosphere.
The Market Garden stands on a formerly under-used and relatively unattractive space in the centre of the market. It previously had tables rented by the day by casual traders.
They have ceased trading in that area but will remain in the market, hiring other space. They have the option of using a smart new area a few yards away, next to the world-famous stalls that sell cockles, laver-bread and other delicacies.
Swansea’s Market’s new Market Garden eating, meeting and greeting area
More: www.swanseaindoormarket.co.uk
Swansea Council
by Andrew Guilford | Dec 8, 2021 | Development Investment, Well-being Region
We are delighted to have featured as a case study in a paper exploring wellbeing as the basis for regional development post-Covid.
How the researchers conceptualised 4theRegion’s approach
4theRegion is a movement to co-create a happier, healthier South West Wales with a thriving economy that serves the wellbeing of people and the planet. We want to see our region leading the way in making new ways of living, working and organising our society and our economy so that it is more visible, more accessible and more relevant to all those who live here.
The case study looked at 4theRegion’s unique approach based on community engagement and the close cooperation of a range of stakeholders in a local network, all of which is underpinned by wellbeing.
The paper, written by researchers Beth Cummings, Samantha Burvill, Robert Bowen, and Leonie Themelidis from Swansea University, has been published in RSA Magazine. It was based on interviews with our directors Dawn Lyle and Zoe Antrobus, and ten of our members, which the researchers then thematically analysed for data.
The researchers felt 4theRegion’s business model of connecting people in the region through events, projects and forums, with a focus on our six Impact Areas including The Wellbeing Region, was unique. They therefore undertook a detailed case study to understand our approach and analyse its benefits and possible ways it could be improved.
The researchers said their findings “underline the unique approach taken by 4theRegion, centred on an asset-based local development grounded in social purpose. This approach is influenced by well-being and seeks to engage with a wide variety of community stakeholders to derive holistic flourishing”.
They felt that “4theRegion are instrumental in bringing together the ecosystem of South West Wales towards a focus on purpose and well-being.”
They said everyone in this ecosystem was “linked by a social purpose in achieving sustainable development and well-being”, which also stemmed from the overarching focus on the Well-being of Future Generations Act in Wales.
In 2015 Wales became the first country in the world to bring wellbeing goals into law. The Well-being of Future Generations Act emphasises the need for policy to be founded on the seven principles of a prosperous Wales, a resilient Wales, a healthier Wales, a more equal Wales, a Wales of cohesive communities, a Wales of vibrant culture and thriving Welsh language, and a globally responsible Wales.
The Well-being of Future Generations Act (Image: Welsh Government)
The researchers noted how South West Wales was a largely rural area based around a regional city, Swansea, and felt that their findings on 4theRegion would “contribute to wider knowledge about the impact of regional development on places with similar demographic and geographic characteristics”.
They said “These findings could support organic sustainable growth within communities, which is recognised as an important aspect in the post-Covid recovery.”
They noted how our approach was based on cooperation between various stakeholders from across the region, including local businesses of all sizes, every local authority in the region, Swansea Bay City Region, local community groups, charities, social enterprises, schools, colleges, universities, “and all individuals in the regions who could play a role in local development”.
This, they said “Aligns with a bottom-up approach to regional development that is promoted within more recent literature, advocating networks and clusters through entrepreneurial ecosystems, and engagement across the triple helix of industry, government and education”.
The researchers said “The findings from the case study of 4theRegion underline the value of cooperation among relevant local stakeholders to identify, conceptualise and seek solutions to specific issues that impact the local economy.”
They added that 4theRegion also play “an important role as an enabler, organising events, leading discussions and engaging the various stakeholders in order to achieve impactful outputs”.
The researchers concluded by saying “The emphasis on prosperity, resilience, health, equality, cohesion, cultural value and global responsibility represent important aspects in ensuring sustainable economic development that could have a positive impact on everyone. These principles could provide a valuable foundation for a more inclusive recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, supporting opportunities for businesses to develop resilience, promote environmental sustainability and enhance productivity through a better work-life balance.
“This emphasis on well-being was highlighted during the Covid-19 pandemic by increasing capabilities to work from home, and a greater awareness of how work stresses impacted employees before the pandemic. While discussions on well-being and regional development gain traction, further research is needed to explore this in different contexts, however, the example of 4theRegion and Welsh Government policy implies that the principles of well-being could support more inclusive regional development in the post-Covid recovery.”
by Andrew Guilford | Dec 7, 2021 | Circular Economy, Development Investment, Travel Transport Tourism
People are being given the chance to help shape the revamp of Carmarthen town centre’s bus station.
Carmarthenshire County Council, working with transport engineering group Atkins, has secured funding to improve and enhance the bus station in Blue Street.
Feedback from investigations and user surveys show that the existing bus shelters are too small and do not provide sufficient shelter for waiting passengers.
These are being replaced with two new continuous shelters to provide better weather protection and ‘green-roof’ canopies to help capture carbon and attract bees and butterflies.
A small number of hornbeam trees that are constrained by the current shelters will need to be removed, however a larger range of new trees and ornamental shrubbery will be planted to compensate and add more greenery to the Blue Street area.
Further improvements will include the widening of the central reserve and enhanced landscaping of the area to bring people closer to nearby shops and businesses.
The council and Atkins are now seeking public views to help them shape final design proposals.
Members of the public, town centre businesses and stakeholders, public transport operators and users, and anyone else with an interest in the scheme, is being invited to provide feedback on the plans and ask questions about the scheme.
Cllr Hazel Evans, Cabinet Member for Environment, said: “Encouraging people to use public transport and sustainable travel options is a key priority for the council.
“These improvements will not only enhance the bus station but also support our commitment to tackling climate change by introducing more green infrastructure, helping capture carbon emissions and attract a diversity of wildlife.
“The work ties in with other town centre improvements to encourage people into town and provide more safe space for people and businesses as part of our post Covid-19 economic recovery plan.
“A few small trees that are currently constrained will need to be removed as part of these works, but we look forward to bringing the county’s first green roof bus shelters to Carmarthen and planting more trees than we are removing to capture more carbon emissions than the current bus station can.”
Construction is due to start in January and will take around three months to complete.
The council and Atkins will work with local businesses to ensure minimal disruption around delivery times and peak periods, with parking and loading bays maintained throughout the works.
Signage and information will be posted in advance and during the works to redirect buses and passengers to temporary stops just around the corner in Lammas Street, near the Rose and Crown.
People can view and feedback on the proposals by visiting www.carmarthenshire.gov.wales.
Comments and questions will help inform the final design scheme and timing of the works.
Carmarthenshire County Council
