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Barnard’s Tower ‘belongs to the people’

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Barnard’s Tower: Will the Town Council change their minds about the tower

Barnard’s Tower: Will the Town Council change their minds about the tower

ONE of Pembrokeshire’s most historic buildings is currently up for sale but there is a reluctance to do anything with it.

Barnard’s Tower in Pembroke, has been up for sale since July 2013 and many discussions have been held over what to do with it.

The tower is described as being ‘part and parcel of Pembroke’ by Cllr Jonathan Nutting who feels that Pembroke Town Council should take ownership of the building for the people of the town.

However, Pembroke Town Council have said they do not want to take the tower on because of potential costs that may be incurred in the future.

Cllr Jonathan Nutting says that the council should work together with organisations to turn the tower into a tourist attraction.

Pembrokeshire County Council have said that they may be able to gift the tower to the Town Council but there has been no movement since.

The Town Council has discussed the Tower at a number of its Town Council meetings but in January, it was agreed that the Town Council would not go ahead with the purchase.

Many people in the town see the Tower as an important part of Pembroke and are willing to work with the Town Council should they decide to take the building on.

HISTORY

Barnard’s Tower is of great historic importance to Pembroke and is a 13th century three storey tower which is also a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The building overlooks the Mill Pond and forms part of the town wall.

It was founded by William de Valence and flanks the north-east angle of the medieval town wall of Pembroke, it was built for independent defence.

The entrance to the fore-building was once defended by a bridge-pit and its vaulted passage was guarded by a gate and a portcullis. A spiral stair case , gives access to all the floors and the dome-vault roof supports the remains of a parapet.

The deep, plunging arrow loops are similar to those seen in the Barbican Tower at Pembroke Castle, where they date from c.1260 and from which they were probably derived.

The roof dome is intact, and the whole structure with its fireplace and lavatory is a strong, almost self-contained defensive unit; this was probably necessary as it was isolated on the north-eastern end of town, almost half a mile from the castle.

Barnard’s Tower has been subject to regular and on-going programmes of consolidation and repair since at least the mid-1970s, including the construction of the low walls against the southern face of the tower.

Today the tower is home to a nursery roost of Daubentons Bats.

TAKE A CHANCE

Cllr Jonathan Nutting wants to convince the Town Council that they should take ownership of the tower to take a chance for the future of the town of Pembroke.

Pembrokeshire County Council has been in talks with interested parties in the past about the Tower but they are now looking to gift the tower to the Town Council.

Barnard’s Tower, along with two other buildings, was put up for sale by the council in July 2013.

At the time a spokesperson said that the main reason for selling the Tower was that the Council does not have the resources to hold underutilised assets.

The Council also said they would welcome expressions of interest for the tower from the Town Council.

There was anger at the plans to sell the buildings in the community as it was felt that there had not been enough dialogue between the Council and Town Council about their plans.

Cllr Jonathan Nutting said that Pembrokeshire County Council had acted disgracefully in their advertisements of the buildings as there was no consultation with Pembroke Town Council.

He even suggested that the Town Council should make a starting offer of £1 for the tower and another offer was also made in April 2014.

Two months later Pembrokeshire County Council said they were happy to work with Pembroke Town Council to create a plan for the tower.

BAT SURVEY COST £1,270

Almost a year later, after meetings about purchasing the tower, the Town Council was asked to do a bat survey of the building.

It was revealed that the survey would cost £1 , 270 and some councillors felt that was too much and asked for another valuation.

However, a second valuation came back higher than the first and in June 2015, it was agreed to go ahead with the survey at the price originally quoted.

The results of the survey came back to the Town Council in November 2015 but councillors were still unsure over the cost of the building.

COUNCILLORS CONCERNED OVER FUTURE COSTS

Cllr Wyn Jenkins said that they should not purchase the building as, in his opinion, they could not afford it.

Cllr Keith Nicholas stated that he was originally in favour of the council purchasing the building but added that they may be expected to pay further costs of services in the town which meant that the Town Council could not take it on.

Cllr Jon Harvey said he was concerned about costs which could be involved in the upkeep of the tower and asked for full costs to be prepared.

Cllr Jonathan Nutting said that the Town Council should not make knee-jerk reactions and felt that they should be looking at the long term and not the short term.

Following a vote of 11 in favour and two against it was resolved to withdraw from the purchase of the tower.

Despite this, in December 2015, Pembrokeshire County Council said that they may be able to gift the Tower to the Town Council.

Councillors were still unsure about the future costs of the building while Cllr Nicholas commented that nothing had changed from the previous meeting.

Pembrokeshire County Council had received other offers but it was felt that the best option would be to pass it on to the Town Council.

This could be done by a Community Asset Transfer at less than market value for local social, economic or environmental benefit.

At the Town Council meeting in January, it was agreed that the matter would be laid on the table and that they would not be going ahead with the purchase of the Tower.

PEMBROKE NEEDS ATTRACTIONS

Speaking to the Herald on February 2, Pembroke Cllr Jonathan Nutting said: “It’s all part of a plan. Pembroke needs attractions to keep people in Pembroke for the whole day rather than just going to the castle and then going off to the beach.

“Barnard’s Tower is part and parcel of what I see as integrated plan because what I did try and sell to them was that it would make a possible interpretation centre for the Town Walls, it would make a possible interpretation for the bats of south Pembrokeshire and we have to take them into account.

“It would make a brilliant interpretation centre because the Mills Ponds are a brilliant bat sanctuary and a place where you can pick up lots of things so it gives a potential for other visitors to use the town in a different way rather than just going to see the castle.

“What we’re trying to get them to do is see the castle as a start off point and they actually go around and in a circle of things that are happening in the town.

“The Council now want to gift the tower to Pembroke, they’re not interested in money, Pembroke doesn’t desperately want to take it on because they can’t see the money for where to do the tower up and put the floors back in.

POTENTIAL IS THERE

“CADW have got no worries as long as the structure is not changed, the bat people have got no problem as long as we take the bats into account. The potential is there but there is no money.

“All the Town Council can see at the moment is that they might have a white elephant on their hands where they have to pay for insurance and then maintenance which could be horrendous.

“We don’t want it just sitting there as a dead tower. The vast majority of visitors don’t even know it’s there because they never get that far and it is quite an important part of the town walls.

“Obviously Pembroke is now looking to invest in the future, we’ve got 21C, the Town Walls Trust and lots of different groups working in the town but they are not coordinated very well and we need a professional so what I am trying to get from the county council and Welsh Government is for them to put a town coordinator in.

“That has the potential to coordinate these groups, coordinate where the income comes from and where the town goes forward.

“We need a tourist industry that attracts people all the time so the tower is an integral part. There is potential to bring together the Town Council, 21C and the Town Walls Trust on a joint project.”

PEMBROKE 21C

Gareth Jones from Pembroke 21C told the Herald: “I was part of a group working in partnership with the Town Council to scope out any potential uses for the Tower.

“Pembroke Town Council are still in discussions about it and we will wait to see what their response is before moving forward.

“We are happy to work with anyone who is trying to retain Barnard’s Tower.

“Barnard’s Tower is a fantastic feature in the Town Wall and it could paint an even richer picture of town and its history as a heritage centre or information centre. Obviously we would have to consider the bats that are in there at the moment.

“It is a great opportunity and I would certainly be up for it and I think we should just go for it and I would like to be a part of any group dealing with this in the future.”

PEMBROKE TOWN WALLS TRUST

Janet Drogan from the Pembroke Town Walls Trust confirmed that they had been to two meetings with the Town Council about the tower.

She added: “The Town Walls Trust has got plenty on its plate to deal with the town walls but it is a part of Pembroke’s heritage. All things need funding.

“It is definitely an asset but there are so many assets that have a potential for the future but we can’t deal with all of them at once.”

In April 2014, The Town Walls Trust posted the following about the state of the wall and Barnard’s Tower on their website. They said: “While some stretches remain well maintained and other parts have been patched up from time to time, other stretches of wall are showing signs of long-term neglect – ivy-covered and in urgent need of re-pointing.

“The town’s three great medieval gateways are all long gone and it is partly in order to ensure that the remaining walls do not go the same way that the Pembroke Town Walls Trust has recently been formed.”

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

Although the building may have been declared surplus to requirements there is definitely an appetite to do something with the Tower.

Pembroke Town Council held a full council meeting on Thursday (Feb 11) after The Herald went to press.

Nobody wants this to become a ‘dead tower’ but will the Town Council change their minds to help bring this tower back into use?

Will the Town Council also accept Pembrokeshire County Council’s gifting of the tower to them?

It is clear that there is potential for the tower to become an important part of the town and the people in Pembroke would clearly like to see something done with it.

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Rugby Weekly – Tenby’s promotion push continues

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It’s crunch time for all rugby clubs around the county, whether promotion is their aim or fighting relegation or even just trying to improve their league position, it’s now or never. 

Last weekend saw an important win for Fishguard in division two west which should put any relegation fears to bed completely. James Griffiths added an impressive 18 points for the Seagulls as they defeated Nantgaredig 33-19. 

Elsewhere in the second division, Milford were beaten 32-8 by a good Lampeter outfit. The Mariners are still a little too close for comfort with the drop zone but should have enough quality to see them safe. 

At the other end of the table Tenby sit in second place and have played fewer games than leaders St Clears and third place Lampeter. They won impressively again last weekend, beating Pontyberem 64-19 at Haywood Lane. Fletcher Broadhurst impressed with two tries as did Hywel Baker who also grabbed himself a brace. Another excellent performance in an outstanding season so far in which promotion would be the absolute icing on the cake. 

In Division Three West, Pembroke were well beaten by Laugharne 74-15 in which the outstanding Liam Price and Nico Setaro both crossed the whitewash 4 teams a piece. The latter also added 7 successful conversions. 

There was a local derby at Pill Parks where Llangwm hosted Pembroke Dock Quins and it was an exciting clash. The visitors won narrowly 28-23, Craig Barnett and Gethin Bradney both scored two tries for the Quins. The Wasps battled hard and will be proud of their performance, Gethin Thomas impressed for the hosts with two tries of his own but it wasn’t enough to secure the points. 

St David’s hosted the high flying Cardigan outfit and were unable to score in reply to the visitors 20 points, with it ending 20-0. The Saints however won’t be losing too much sleep over it as they have had a great season so far. 

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Stephen Crabb leads inquiry on retaining community bank services  

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PRESELI Pembrokeshire MP, and Chair of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee Stephen Crabb is leading an inquiry in Parliament that will investigate the closure of high street banks in Wales, as well as access to cash.

In November 2023, Pembrokeshire saw the closure of Lloyds Bank in St Davids, and in the coming months both Barclays Bank and Halifax in Haverfordwest are set to close. In recent years, Wales has experienced a rapid decline in the number of high street banking services available to the public. Already in 2024, 23 high street bank closures have been announced in Wales, while automated teller machines (ATMs) declined by nearly a quarter between 2018 and 2023.

The Committee willconsider how declining high street banking services are impacting vulnerable people and small businesses across Wales, who are often more reliant on cash than digital banking. It will also examine how Wales is being affected by the loss of high street bank services, and whether the problem is worse in Wales than other parts of the UK.

Mr Crabb is a staunch advocate for retaining community banking facilities, especially in rural communities like Pembrokeshire where many local branches remain the only source of face-to-face banking provision for miles.

Recently Mr Crabb challenged Barclays Bank senior management on their decision to close the bank branch in Haverfordwest– a move that will see Barclays not only pull out of the county town, but means they won’t have a branch left anywhere in Pembrokeshire. He has also engaged with LINK – the UK’s largest cash machine network – and continues to campaign on the basis that a Banking Hub is established and that ATM machines should be retained or installed, especially in areas worst affected by the closures.  

Following the launch of the inquiry, MP Crabb added: “It is really sad to see so many banks across Wales closing as online banking grows in popularity. Despite the advantages of online banking, for a rural community with an ageing population like Pembrokeshire, bank branches hold huge importance as they offer face-to-face customer service.”

“I am acutely aware of the inconvenience that the bank closures locally have already caused following hundreds of replies from constituents to my ‘online banking survey’ ”

“I am looking forward to gathering further evidence on this subject through the committee’s inquiry, and will continue to put pressure on the relevant stakeholders to ensure that adequate alternative provisions are made through the establishment of banking hubs as well as the instalment of ATM machines where necessary.”

“In this inquiry, we are particularly keen to hear from those likely to be directly affected by the shift away from cash and physical banks. I encourage anyone with first-hand experience of losing banking services to give evidence to the Committee”

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Trains resume between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock as works end

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TRAIN services resumed this morning (Thursday 28 March) after ten days of essential round-the-clock work to upgrade track and drainage between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock.

The railway was closed from Monday 18 March to Wednesday 27 March to allow Network Rail teams to replace more than 200 metres of track and 300 tonnes of ballast (track stones) between Pembroke station and Pembroke Dock.

Work to improve the drainage between Narbeth and Kilgetty stations was also completed at the same time.

Nick Millington, Network Rail Wales and Borders route director, said: “This essential work in Pembrokeshire demonstrates our commitment to improving the reliability of the service we provide to passengers along our route.

“We know that replacing the track can be disruptive and very noisy, so I would like to thank the residents of Pembroke for their patience while our team carried out this crucial work.”

Colin Lea, Planning and Performance Director at Transport for Wales said: “We’re pleased that our colleagues in Network Rail have completed this essential work and that Transport for Wales rail services resumed today.

“We’d like to thank passengers for their patience while this work has progressed and look forward to welcoming passengers back in time for the Easter weekend.”

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