NEW ATTRACTION WILL OPEN AT WEEKENDS BEFORE THE SUMMER HOLIDAYS

LLYS-Y-FRÂN Lake is set to make a splash this summer with the launch of what is being billed as Wales’s largest inflatable aqua park.

The new attraction, at the popular reservoir and visitor destination near Clarbeston Road, will feature a floating obstacle course with slides, launch towers, blast bags and other inflatable challenges.

Visitors will be able to enjoy one-hour sessions on the water, with safety equipment included in the £25 ticket price.

Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water, which runs Llys-y-frân Lake, completed the acquisition of the aqua park from Aqua Parks Group in March. Work is now under way to inflate and anchor the multi-component course in the lake ahead of its opening.

The aqua park will open at weekends before the start of the six-week school holiday period. It will then operate daily during the school holidays, with the season expected to finish in early September.

James Thompson, Head of Visitor Attractions at Dŵr Cymru, said: “We are thrilled to announce the launch of an Aqua Park at Llys-y-frân Lake.

“We look forward to welcoming both holidaymakers and local residents from across West Wales and beyond to experience the Aqua Park.

“This new addition enables visitors to enjoy the water in a safe, fully lifeguarded environment.”

Llys-y-frân Lake, situated north of Haverfordwest in the foothills of the Preseli Mountains, has become one of West Wales’s best-known outdoor attractions.

The site, which includes 350 acres of woodland, grassland and open water, benefited from major investment in 2021 with the opening of a new visitor centre and activity centre. A four-star campsite was added in 2023.

Dŵr Cymru said environmental surveys had been carried out and indicated that the aqua park was unlikely to have a negative impact on local wildlife. The company said measures were being put in place to protect the lake’s habitats and species.

Recent inland bathing water assessments have also confirmed that Llys-y-frân Lake has excellent water quality. Welsh Water said monitoring would continue throughout the summer bathing season.

A community open day will be held at Llys-y-frân Visitor Centre on Sunday, May 17, from 11:00am to 3:00pm, where plans for the aqua park will be on display and staff will be available to answer questions.

The new attraction will add to the existing activities at Llys-y-frân, which include bike hire, walking and cycling trails, mountain bike routes, a pump track, lakeside café and gift shop.

Further updates on opening dates and the full summer timetable will be published on the Llys-y-frân Lake Facebook and Instagram pages.

ARMED police were called to a supported accommodation building in Johnston after a man allegedly barricaded himself inside a room while behaving aggressively and racially abusing staff.

Dyfed-Powys Police confirmed officers were called to Silverdale Lodge at around 8:55am on Saturday (May 2) following reports of disorder involving a resident.

According to police, the man allegedly acted aggressively towards staff members and made racially abusive comments before barricading himself inside a room at the property.

The force said armed officers were deployed to ensure the safety of staff, other occupants and the man himself.

A spokesperson for Dyfed-Powys Police said: “Dyfed-Powys Police was called to Silverdale Lodge in Johnston at approximately 8.55am on May 2 following a report of a male behaving in an aggressive manner and being racially abusive towards a member of staff.

“Officers attended the scene and the male had barricaded himself in a room.

“In order to ensure the safety of the male, staff members and other occupants of the building, armed officers attended the scene.

“The man was detained and arrested. There were no injuries to members of staff or officers reported. There is currently no ongoing threat to the public.”

Police confirmed Billy Pitman, aged 29, has been charged with racially aggravated public order offences, criminal damage and threats to cause criminal damage in connection with the incident.

Pitman was remanded into custody and appeared before Swansea Magistrates’ Court on Monday (May 4).

We will bring you the court result as we receive it.

Contractor admits preparatory flooring work ‘did not meet the standards we expect’

A TENANT says she was left “angry, stressed and upset” after work carried out on her wetroom floor allegedly caused further damage and raised concerns about potential flooding.

In an email complaint seen by The Herald, Katie Louise-Howells, from Milford Haven, said her wetroom floor needed replacing after anti-slip flooring “blew”, allowing water to seep underneath the material and into the concrete base.

She claimed a contractor from Cardo was assigned to the job and was in her home for around 30 minutes, leaving behind what she described as an “appalling” standard of workmanship.

The tenant said she contacted Cardo the following morning to complain and requested that a supervisor attend to inspect the work.

She alleged the contractor returned before the supervisor arrived, but she refused to let him continue until the standard of work had been reviewed.

According to the complaint, a supervisor later attended and agreed the work was not to the “best of standards”, but the tenant claimed it was dismissed as a “work in progress”.

The tenant alleged self-levelling compound had been poured over old anti-slip flooring and trim without proper preparation.

She also claimed the material had been spread over her threshold and toilet, and that product had been left outside her home.

She added that her daughter stepped into a half bag of mix which had allegedly been spilled on the driveway.

Drainage concerns

The tenant said she later sought advice from WB Griffiths and another self-employed contractor.

She claimed she was told there was now “no other choice” but to have a tray fitted, as the floor had not been properly feathered and there was no proper run for water to drain away.

She said this could potentially lead to flooding issues, and added that she would now like a surround fitted around the tray to help prevent spillages.

“I am so angry,” she wrote.

She said she was not asking for compensation, but wanted the work completed to a “high and good standard” to prevent further problems.

The tenant also claimed Cardo had not admitted fault or apologised.

Cardo response

Responding to the concerns, Rhydian James, Managing Director of Cardo (Wales & West), said: “Cardo carried out preparatory flooring works on behalf of its client.

“We recognise that the work undertaken did not meet the standards we expect, and we are sorry for this.

“Due to scheduling and access challenges, it was agreed with the client that the remaining works would be completed directly by them to help minimise disruption to the resident, and we were therefore unable to return to site to address the issues.

“We have addressed this with those involved to ensure this does not happen again.”

Tenant remains unhappy

After being shown Cardo’s response, the tenant said she remained unhappy with the way the situation had been handled.

She claimed there had been a lack of professionalism throughout and said she felt she had been left to do “all the chasing” because of what she described as vague communication.

She also criticised what she described as poor working practices, claiming the floor had not been properly prepared and that dust sheets were not used while wet mix was brought into her home.

She further alleged that rubbish and leftover product were left outside her property and on her driveway.

“There was no pride at all,” she added.

The tenant said she is now waiting for the remaining work to be completed and hopes the issues can be resolved quickly to ensure the wetroom is safe and properly finished.