Community
Bright new community space opens in centre of Haverfordwest
AN EXCITING new community space has opened in the Riverside Shopping Centre in Haverfordwest.
Based in the former Wimpy building, @No5 Riverside offers a community café, ‘Library of Things’ and employment support – all in one town centre location.
It follows a 6-month renovation project by Norman Industries as part of its supported employment programme, with funding from Welsh Government.
“The café will be a fantastic resource offering dedicated sessions to a wide range of community groups, including people with dementia or a learning disability, carers, and gentlemen’s groups,” said Cllr Tessa Hodgson, Pembrokeshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Social Services.
Known as ‘Caffi Cyfle’ (cyfle is the Welsh word for ‘opportunity’) the café is open 10am to 4pm Monday to Saturday. It is fully inclusive – please ask how to book a quiet time or about suitable food options.
Karen Davies, Programme Manager, said the café menu has been designed by Pembrokeshire’s neuro diverse community.

“The simple hot menu is designed to provide meals suitable for people of all ages removing the food that is often left on the side of the plate,” she said. “The small plate option recognises that people with small appetites want to be able to buy an appropriately sized meal saving money and food waste.”
The café will also offer training and employment to people with barriers to employment including people with neurodiversity conditions.
“We know that the hospitality sector has challenges recruiting staff and yet there is a large pool of people who could work in this industry given the right training and support,” said Karen.
“People with impairment and difference make excellent employees with low levels of absence and high levels of commitment. We already run a café in Milford Haven run by people with learning disability. We want to show the sector how this can be achieved in a busy town centre café environment.”
The Library of Things offers people the opportunity to borrow items that they can’t afford or don’t want to buy.
People can borrow a wide range of things such as a gazebo, lawnmower, pressure washer, wheelbarrow, children’s games or fancy dress.
“Cllr Cris Tomos, Cabinet Member for the Environment said: “We all have items that we have bought for one job, which have then sat in our cupboards gather dust never to be used again.
“Now we have the opportunity to reduce the use of precious resources by borrowing the item rather than buying it for a fraction of the cost.

“The Library of Things is a fantastic opportunity for people in Pembrokeshire to contribute towards actions for the environment.”
The unit at No.5 Riverside stood empty for a number of years and took a significant investment to bring it back to life. Financial support was provided by a Circular Economy grant to support town centre regeneration from the Welsh Government.
Riverside Shopping Centre Manager Nigel Stroper said he was delighted to welcome @No5 to the Riverside Shopping Centre.
“I have been so impressed with the efforts of all concerned with this enterprise which brings real points of difference to both the shopping centre and town centre, the staff are so enthusiastic – they are a credit to the work done by Norman Industries,” he said.
“I am confident this is a great step forward in the regeneration work beginning in our lovely little town.”
Local County Councillor Tom Tudor said it was a great initiative. “This is an excellent facility and very much welcomed for the centre of town,” he said. ”We wish it every success.”
Also based @No5 are the staff from Employability Pembrokeshire. During the day, the upstairs space will be used as a drop in space so that people can meet with the mentors from a wide range of employment projects that support progress into work. The team at Employability Pembrokeshire can help with training, work experience and getting paid work. For people with a disability they can also help to assess and put in place support to ensure people have success in the work place.
To borrow an item from the Library of Things, please visit www.pembrokeshirecircle.org and follow the share link. Items can also be booked at the counter in @No5 where the fantastic team are available to help.
Are you thinking about throwing away something that still works or could be repaired? Why not donate the item to the library so that others can use it? Items are repaired, tested and made available to others reducing waste going to landfill. Items can be dropped off @No5 or at Norman Industries.
To contact the community café, Caffi Cyfle, please phone 01437 776609 or email [email protected] or message the Caffi Cyfle facebook page. The café is open from Mondays to Saturdays, 10am to 4pm.
Community
Cilgerran Church in Wales school petition to be heard
A PETITION opposing proposed changes for a north Pembrokeshire school is to be heard by councillors later this week.
At last May’s meeting, Pembrokeshire County Council considered a report of the School Modernisation Working Group which outlined the findings of a review of education provision in the Preseli area.
A later July meeting backed a general consultation to discontinue Cilgerran Church in Wales Voluntary Controlled School, and to establish it as a 3-11 community school.
“In particular, the review considered the extent of surplus school places in the area, set against a significant decline in the pupil population,” the council in its consultation has said.
The consultation closed on January 30.
Hundreds have opposed the proposed changes, with a petition, on the council’s own website opposing the changes recently closing after gaining 391 signatures.
Any petition of more than 100 signatures triggers a debate at one of the council’s scrutiny committees, in the case of Cilgerran that debate taking place at Pembrokeshire County Council’s February 5 schools and learning overview and scrutiny committee.
The Cilgerran e-petition, created by Louise Williams, raised concerns including the school could become part of a federation, a loss of permanent head teacher on site, a shared head teacher would have to oversee several schools, loss of funding control and the ability to maintain the school’s current healthy and stable funding, and a loss of commitment to the church, in turn could impact on the school’s and pupils values, beliefs and cultural beliefs.
It said: “Ysgol Cilgerran VC school has strong links with the Church community in Cilgerran and we believe this will have a negative impact on the children who attend the school, the community of Cilgerran and the links between the two.
“We are proud of our school ethos and values which are strengthened by our links with the church. The school has close and strong relationships with our Church in Wales federation governors one of which is also our safeguarding governor.
“Our Church Federation governors work closely with the school and are regular visitors to the school and the children. They provide vital support and guidance to the school and have a positive impact on the Children’s education. We believe these links will be weakened by this proposal to remove our VC status and we believe this is an un-necessary action.”
The proposals for Cilgerran are part of a wide range of potential education changes in the county.
Two petitions, opposing the potential closures of Manorbier and Ysgol Clydau schools, were recently heard at full council and a further petition opposing the potential closure of Stepaside School has recently been launched, which has generated enough support to be heard at a future council meeting.
Charity
Vincent Davies raises £13,682 for air ambulance charity
Independent Haverfordwest store backs lifesaving crews with year of community fundraising
A WEST WALES department store has raised more than thirteen thousand pounds for a lifesaving emergency service after a packed year of community fundraising.
Staff at Vincent Davies Department Store collected £13,682 for the Wales Air Ambulance Charity, after voting the organisation their Charity of the Year for 2025.
The independent retailer organised events throughout the year, including an Easter bingo, bake sales, quizzes, raffles, staff sales, Christmas jumper days and a festive wreath-making workshop. Charity jam jars placed in Café Vincent also helped gather steady donations from customers.
One of the most popular attractions was the store’s charity singing penguin trio, which drew smiles from shoppers of all ages and boosted collections.
Sarah John, Joint Managing Director at Vincent Davies, said: “Raising £13,682 for the Wales Air Ambulance Charity is something we are extremely proud of at Vincent Davies Department Store. As a director, it’s wonderful to see our community come together to support a charity that makes such a lifesaving difference.”
The air ambulance is consultant-led, delivering hospital-level treatment directly at the scene of serious incidents and, when needed, transferring patients straight to the most appropriate specialist hospital.
Working in partnership with the NHS through the Emergency Medical Retrieval and Transfer Service, crews can provide advanced critical care including anaesthesia, blood transfusions and even minor surgical procedures before reaching hospital.
Operating across the whole of Wales, its teams travel the length and breadth of the country by helicopter and rapid response vehicle to reach patients quickly in both rural and urban areas.
This is not the first time the Haverfordwest store has backed the cause. In 2016, staff previously raised £5,831 when the charity was also chosen as their beneficiary.
Mike May, the charity’s West Wales Regional Fundraising Manager, said: “We are so grateful to Vincent Davies Department Store for raising an incredible amount for our charity. Throughout the year they put on a variety of different events and what a successful fundraising year it was.
“The charity needs to raise £13 million every year to keep our helicopters in the air and our rapid response vehicles on the road. By raising £13,682, the staff and customers have played an important part in saving lives across Wales.”
The store says it will announce its Charity of the Year for 2026 in the coming weeks.
Community
Councillor meets chief constable to address Monkton and Pembroke concerns
COUNTY COUNCILLOR Jonathan Grimes has met with the new Chief Constable of Dyfed-Powys Police to discuss crime, antisocial behaviour and wider community issues affecting residents in Pembroke and Monkton.
Cllr Grimes, who represents Pembroke St Mary South and Monkton, said the meeting followed his invitation for senior police leaders to visit the area and hear first-hand about local concerns.
The Chief Constable, Ifan Charles, attended alongside officers from the Pembroke Neighbourhood Policing and Protection Team, meeting the councillor in Monkton for what were described as open and constructive talks.
As part of the visit, they also spoke with Monkton Priory Community Primary School headteacher Dylan Lawrence and Danny Nash from Pembrokeshire County Council Housing Services to gather views from education and housing professionals.
Discussions covered a range of issues raised by residents, including domestic abuse, drug and alcohol misuse, antisocial behaviour and environmental concerns such as littering, dog fouling and dangerous or inconsiderate driving.
Cllr Grimes acknowledged recent police successes, particularly in tackling drug-related activity, but said enforcement alone would not solve the area’s challenges.
He said closer cooperation between the police, council services, schools and the wider community would be needed to deliver longer-term improvements.
The councillor added that he plans to encourage residents to form a local community group in the coming weeks, aimed at developing practical solutions and strengthening partnership working across the area.
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