Depart: 09:30
Return: 16:30 with drop off before 16:30 at Swansea station
(a packed lunch will be provided)

Maesteg, Bridgend & Porthcawl

Maesteg Town Hall

The building of Maesteg Town Hall was financed by public subscription with the local member of parliament, C. R. M. Talbot, contributing £500 and local miners donating a day's wages. It was designed by Henry Harris of Cardiff in the Queen Anne Revival style, built by G. Thomas & Sons in rubble masonry at a cost of £3,000 and was officially opened on 22 October 1881.

Following significant population growth, largely associated with coal mining, the area became an urban district with the town hall as its headquarters in 1894. The new civic leaders decided to increase the height of the building to four floors in order to accommodate an enlarged covered market. The re-modelling was carried out in neoclassical style by S. J. Harper in 1914.

The building continued to serve as the headquarters of the council for much of the 20th century but ceased to be the local seat of government when the enlarged Ogwr Borough Council was formed at Bridgend in 1974. In 2016 the council announced plans to refurbish the building and, based on a design by Purcell Architecture, to convert it into a community hub. An extensive programme of refurbishment works, which included the construction of a glass atrium and an extension, commenced in March 2020.

Bridgend & Elder Yard
Walking tour of Bridgend and its Townscape Heritage Initiative the previously derelict site is the oldest part of Bridgend Town Centre and has been renovated to provide restaurant space and elegant public space and pedestrian links.

The Grand Pavilion
Porthcawl’s Grade II seafront theatre has been awarded £18 Levelling Up Funding from the UK Government, as a result of Bridgend County Borough Council, working in close partnership with Awen Cultural Trust. The funding will be used to address the condition of its concrete structure.

Tour leader
Moira Lucas

Resources
Maesteg
https://www.visitbridgend.co.uk/market-town/maesteg
https://www.bridgend.gov.uk/news/progress-continues-on-multi-million-pound-redevelopment-of-maesteg-town-hall/
https://www.purcelluk.com/projects/maesteg-town-hall-1/
https://awenboxoffice.com/maesteg-town-hall/redevelopment

Bridgend
https://www.bridgend.gov.uk/media/1251/reg9-4.pdf
https://www.bridgend.gov.uk/media/3b0fvv42/bridgend-town-centre-masterplan.pdf

Porthcawl pavilion and harbour walls
https://www.awen-wales.com/2023/01/19/18m-levelling-up-funding-for-the-grand-pavilion/
https://www.awen-wales.com/our-future/
https://www.bridgend.gov.uk/media/1131/porthcawl-development-framework.pdf
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/work-transform-neglected-corner-porthcawl-24396412

Depart: 09:30
Return: 12:30

Swansea Maritime quarter is the former Swansea south dock which underwent significant brownfield development from the 1980’s onwards. It houses a mix of modern development, including much sensitive or even adventurous re-use of historic buildings. The redevelopment has included a mixture of housing and there is a significant proportion of social housing.
As well as housing the area includes

• The National Waterfront Museum
• Mission Gallery
• Dylan Thomas Centre
• Dylan Thomas Theatre
• Swansea Museum
• Swansea observatory
• The Environment Centre
• the tallest building in Wales, the Meridian Quay Tower
• And the University of Wales Trinity St David IQ campus home to the Annual School.

The Georgian Terrace at Cambrian Place was built at a time when it faced a sandy beach and the area was a place of leisure. The industrial revolution changed all that and brought about development of the docks. With Swansea Marina as its neighbour Cambrian Place is once again at the heart of a place of leisure.

The project lead by social housing provider Pobl Housing follows BS EN 16883: 2017, the European Standard for retrofitting historic buildings and involves extensive testing and modelling. This is against the backdrop of achieving challenging Welsh Housing Quality Standards and performance meeting fuel poverty objectives.
Then tour will look at:

1. Researching significance and history
2. Assessing the building and it's context
3. Setting objectives and developing proposals

Accessibility
The tour involves walking between different sites and on uneven surfaces but the terrain is generally flat

Tour leaders
Trefor Thorpe
John Edwards
Sally Edwards

Resources
Swansea Maritime quarter
https://museum.wales/media/24814/Swansea-Maritime-Quarter.pdf

Cambrian Place
https://edwardshart.co.uk/projects/cambrian-place-swansea-major-refurbishment/