ROCH CASTLE near St Davids is proud to announce its recent wins at the Historic Hotels of
Europe Awards, held in the heart of Prague.

Adelle and Johanna, representing Roch Castle, accepted two distinguished accolades for the entire team: Historic Eco Hotel of the Year and the Silver Award for Historic Castle Hotel of the Year.

The Historic Eco Hotel of the Year award recognises Roch Castle’s dedication to sustainable
hospitality, a core value shared by staff and visitors.

This award celebrates the castle’s eco-friendly practices and commitment to preserving the environment while offering a luxury
experience steeped in history.

The Silver Award for Historic Castle Hotel of the Year also honours Roch Castle’s unique ability to provide guests with an unforgettable stay in an authentic and beautifully restored 12th-century castle.

The management gave a heartfelt thank you goes out to everyone who supported Roch Castle and voted in the awards.

Special recognition is due to our exceptional team, whose hard work and dedication
made these achievements possible.

For more details on Roch Castle or to experience this award-winning destination for yourself,
visit our website at www.rochcastle.com, email [email protected] or call 01437 725 566.

BUDGET supermarket giant Lidl could be building a new store near a Pembrokeshire seaside town with the promise of 40 jobs, and is seeking the public’s views following the launch of a consultation.

Lidl is exploring plans to develop a new food store on land off the A478, near the entrance to Park House Court in the village New Hedges, close to Tenby.

Earlier this year, the German supermarket giant said it was keen to open at a new location in Pembroke Dock, where it already has a store, along with hopes to build a new store in Tenby.

There are currently three Lidl stores in Pembrokeshire, at Pembroke Dock, Haverfordwest and Milford Haven, the latter of which has recently been given the go-ahead for a new revamped store.

Lidl has now launched an online consultation for the proposals, with a public information event due to take place on December 4 at De Valence Pavilion, Upper Frog Street, Tenby between 3 and 7pm.

In the consultation documents, Lidl says: “Lidl GB is seeking views regarding proposals for a new foodstore on land off the A478, Narberth Road in New Hedges near Tenby.

“A new Lidl store at this site would increase local shopping choice, create up to 40 new jobs, and offer high quality products at great prices.

“The planning application will consider a range of matters including design, landscaping and highways.”

It says the proposed store would be “built to our very latest specification, including modern in-store facilities like Lidl’s popular bakery, a 1,334 sqm sales area, and customer toilets with baby changing facilities”.

The scheme proposes 103 parking spaces, including six accessible, nine parent and child bays, and covered cycle parking, along with “enhanced environmental features including solar panels on the roof and rapid electric vehicle chargers for two vehicles in the parking area,” adding: “Lidl has an ongoing commitment to enhance the sustainability of its stores.”

It says the scheme, if approved, would create “up to 40 jobs for local people including full and part-time roles, with entry-level staff receiving Lidl’s competitive £12.40 per hour starting pay”.

The consultation says community leaflets, including feedback forms, will be arriving soon. 

Following the consultation a formal application is expected to be lodged with Pembrokeshire County Council planners for consideration at a later date.

PLANS for £2m plans for wheelchair accessible holiday lodges at the site of a Pembrokeshire deer park attraction have been resubmitted after they were previously withdrawn on the eve of a meeting recommending they be refused.

In an application submitted to Pembrokeshire County Council, Mr and Mrs Evans seek permission for 15 lodges at Great Wedlock, Gumfreston, near Tenby, the site of a 176-acre deer farm attraction, opened last year, and a recently-granted market traders’ barn.

An earlier application was recommended for refusal by officers at the July meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council’s planning committee, but, at the start of that meeting, members heard the application had been withdrawn at the agent’s behest.

Reasons for refusal given to members included it was outside of an identified settlement boundary in a countryside location, it was considered to have an adverse impact on visual amenity and did not include a Green Infrastructure statement.

In a supporting statement, the applicants had said: “Over the last 48 years, my wife and I have developed holiday parks firstly in Pembrokeshire and then throughout the UK. We decided to return to Pembrokeshire where it all started for us in 1976, to develop the deer park and are now looking to develop the wheelchair accessible lodge development, to support our business and for the benefit of Pembrokeshire and its economy.

“In 2020 we bought Great Wedlock Farm and set about applying for planning permission to open the farm to the public to provide a new tourism destination and allow visitors to re-connect with the countryside and natural beauty Pembrokeshire has to offer. The deer were purchased from Woburn Abbey and some from the late Queen’s estate (to ensure the highest quality of deer breeding stock). We opened the deer park in May 2023 with a great emphasis on catering for disabled persons and the elderly.”

They have previously said build costs to complete the development would be circa £2m.

St Florence Community Council did not support the previous application, saying there was no evidence of need for the accommodation, raising concerns about the impact on exiting holiday accommodation, and the design which it says should consider all disability groups not just those in a wheelchair.

Following the withdrawal, amended proposals have now been submitted by the applicants through agent Atriarc Planning, following a consultation recently held with St Florence Community Council.

A supporting statement by the agent says: “Following the meeting, the plans have been revised to create a less linear arrangement with further landscaping provided on site. The new lodge arrangement has been revised to create a less structured environment whilst also providing for a higher degree of natural landscaping.

“A new ‘Pembrokeshire’ hedgerow (circa 222m) is now provided along the site boundary to the west and minor infill hedge to the south. Along with the proposed planting, the placement of the units also creates a site layout, which would limit further access to the wider lands under the applicant’s ownership (therefore constraining any future extension of the site, to seek to allay the community council’s primary concern of further development on site).”

It says the amended plans were re-presented to the Community Council in October, and it “noted to the applicant it was now in a position to support the proposed development”.

The amended application will be considered by county planners at a later date.