News
‘Safe and happy place’ day centre closure expected to be confirmed

PEMBROKE DOCK’S Anchorage day centre could close as soon as November if a recommendation before senior councillors on Monday, September 9, is backed.
The county council is currently changing care provision for older adults and those with learning disabilities, and fears have been raised recently that Pembroke Dock’s Anchorage day care centre is to close.
At the September 9 meeting of Cabinet, it is recommended members “close the Anchorage Day Centre with effect from November 1, 2024,” along with, as part of wider changes in the service, establishing social enterprise models in the Crymych’s Bro Preseli and Narberth’s Lee Davies Centre with effect from April 1, 2025.
The report for members lists three options: to maintain the status quo, the favoured option listed above, and to close the Anchorage with a social enterprise centre in Bro Preseli and ending the service level agreement with the Lee Davies Centre on March 31 of next year.
A series of engagement events have taken place at The Anchorage recently, outlining the reasons and the options in continued service.
The Anchorage Day Care Centre in Pembroke Dock has been a “safe and happy place” for adults with learning difficulties and additional needs for decades.
In more recent years it has expanded to support elderly dementia sufferers.
At the July meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council, members received a petition calling for the council to keep the centre open.
Speaking at that meeting, petition creator Peter Welsh – who said there had been no real consultation on the proposals – was joined by many of the service users in the public gallery at County Hall, Haverfordwest.
He launched an impassioned plea for the centre to remain open, saying of the service users: “They are a family, a happy group of individuals that enjoy being together in safety at their home, the Anchorage.
“They are effectively voiceless, we will be their voice.
“It’s an injustice; inexcusable targeting of the vulnerable. Please don’t use these vulnerable individuals as pawns for a money-saving gain.
“We may lose this battle today, but I hope not; they need your support. Just imagine if it was your son or daughter or grandchild being put through this uncertainty that is affecting their lives; you would feel the same sense of anger as us.”
To thunderous applause from the gallery, he finished: “July 18, 2024; for those in the gallery, today it is their day, their lives; yet it could be today that is also your day. Today we appeal to you on their behalf, today you have an opportunity to right a wrong.”
At the July meeting, Chief Executive Will Bramble said the pressures on social services in the county were so high that the 12.5 per cent council tax increase did not even meet the demands of that department alone, adding: “The only reason we were able to have a balanced budget was by cutting services in order to have a balanced budget.”
Despite a plea by local councillors Tony Wilcox and Brian Hall to give the centre a breathing space ahead of a potential move to an as-yet-unbuilt facility in Pembroke, the matter was expected to come before the September meeting of the council’s Cabinet.
The three options will be considered by Cabinet members on Monday.
Community
Castle Ward Councillors Meet at Waldo Lounge to Discuss Residents’ Concerns

ON MONDAY (Mar 11), County Councillor Thomas Baden Tudor, alongside Councillors Randell Izaiah Thomas-Turner and Dani Thomas-Turner from Haverfordwest Town Council, held a joint meeting at the Waldo Lounge.
The gathering provided an opportunity for the councillors to address issues raised by Castle Ward residents and discuss matters of local concern. Councillors were joined by representatives from Welsh Ambulance Services University NHS Trust and Haverfordwest, Fishguard, and St Davids Police, who provided valuable updates on their current and future plans.
Councillor Tudor expressed his gratitude to the services for their insightful contributions, which highlighted ongoing efforts and future projects aimed at improving public services in the area.
Education
Children learn how delicious potatoes are produced locally in Pembrokeshire

SCHOOL children from across Pembrokeshire, aged from five to 16, learnt how the food produced locally is delicious and nutritious during a highly successful ‘Food Story / Stori Bwyd’ event, held by the Pembrokeshire Agricultural Society.
During the event potato, dairy, sheep and poultry farmers from all over the county volunteered their time to talk to the children and give hands-on demonstrations. They explained to the children how they produce potatoes, dairy products, eggs and meat. They also demonstrated how they farm sustainably, look after local wildlife and how they care for the countryside.
The event was held on the Pembrokeshire County Showground and the focus was on potato growing, production and supply. The children also got the opportunity to taste locally produced jacket potatoes with a variety of toppings cooked perfectly and served by staff from Castell Howell.
Kathy Wilson, a former teacher and now an Honorary Pembrokeshire Show Governor, organised the event on behalf of the Society’s Food Story / Stori Bwyd. She said, “I would like to say a massive thank you to each and every one of the volunteers and who took two days out from their busy work on the farm to come and talk to the children and demonstrate how they produce food and drink. A big thanks also to the local providers who contributed to the event. The smiles on the faces of the children said it all, they listened intently, enthusiastically took part in the demonstrations and the teachers took resources back with them to their schools to continue the learning.
“One of the important elements of Pembrokeshire Agricultural Society’s work is educational and spreading the word around the county about how local food is produced by farmers. Everyone enjoyed eating the jacket potatoes after they had learnt how hard the farmers work to produce them.”
As well as food production, the event was an opportunity to teach the children about the seasonality of what farmers produce locally and how the weather and climate affects the work farmers do as well as the different food groups and healthy eating.
Adam Thorne, Pembrokeshire Agricultural Society’s President was one of the farmers who volunteered their time to talk to school children at the event. He said, “The Society would like to thank Kathy Wilson and Jo in the show office for all the hours they have put in to organise this magnificent event. To see how much the children enjoyed learning how their food is produced through hands-on demonstrations is heart warming.”
Pembrokeshire Agricultural Society would like to thank NFU Mutual Pembrokeshire, the CLA Charitable Trust and Women in Wales, for their financial support. Thanks also to the Camrose Vintage Working Day for their support as well as the NFU, Wales Farm Safety and Puffin Produce for providing educational resources and buckets for the schools and pupils.
Food Story volunteers will be at the County Show on 20 and 21 August 2025 with an interactive display and demonstrations for children to have fun and take part in to learn where their food comes from.
News
A477 crash at Carew roundabout causes major delays

A CRASH on the A477 at Carew roundabout caused significant traffic delays this morning (March 13).
The collision, involving two vehicles, occurred at around 10:20am. Dyfed-Powys Police confirmed that no injuries were reported.
The road was closed while recovery teams worked to clear the vehicles, leading to heavy congestion in the area.

A police spokesperson said: “Dyfed-Powys Police received a report of a two-vehicle road traffic collision on the A477 at Carew roundabout at around 10:20am today (March 13).
“No injuries have been reported. There are delays in the area due to high volumes of traffic. Recovery is at the scene, and the road will reopen once the vehicles have been recovered.”
Traffic in the area remained slow while recovery operations continued.
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