People in a deprived suburb of Cardiff are fighting plans for a professional rugby club to build an artificial grass pitch on a popular park. The proposals for Pentwyn's Parc Coed Y Nant are part of an already highly controversial Cardiff council scheme which would see part of the nearby Pentwyn Leisure Centre taken over by Cardiff Rugby.
Some 415 people have signed a petition against the proposed 3G pitch, which would only be accessible to the public at certain times and would occupy much of the park – a spot cherished by dog walkers, who say alternative walking routes are plagued by antisocial behaviour and drug use. Campaigners say the people of Pentwyn have been "forgotten" in the plans for the pitch and leisure centre.
The leisure centre is yet to reopen to the public since shutting in March 2020 due to the Covid pandemic. Following the site's closure Cardiff Rugby spent time training there before it was turned into a vaccination centre. Last year the council revealed plans for an "upgrade" which some locals see as a downgrade. Part of the building would be exclusively leased to Cardiff Rugby and there would be a smaller pool with no water slide.
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The council has also submitted a planning application for a 3G pitch which would be available to the public on weekday evenings and weekends and would at other times be used for Cardiff Rugby training. It is understood the council would pay for the new facilities and the rugby club would then pay rent across a 25-year lease. Although £4m in public money is expected to be spent on the leisure centre and pitch hundreds of locals feel the community would be worse off. A council spokesman said: "The 3G pitch is one of a number of proposals to help improve the income performance of the Pentwyn Leisure Centre to protect its long-term financial sustainability."
Rhian Vernall, a 41-year-old mum-of-three who lives near Parc Coed Y Nant, said: "We are losing an open green space which is really popular. People have picnics there in the summer and kick a ball around. The [planning documents] say people can walk behind the leisure centre but there's anti-social behaviour, drug-taking, violence – it all goes on there at the skate ramps. That area is hidden away whereas the field faces houses and roads. My neighbour is in her 60s and the field is the only place she feels safe walking her little dog."
The mum, whose eldest son is autistic and sensitive to light, fears the impact the pitch's floodlights would have on him. Among the 30 public comments on the application – 27 of which are objections – worries over light pollution are a common theme. People in nearby homes claim the council failed to write to them and that they only learned of the plans because of a community group. They are also concerned the pitch would threaten otters, bats, birds, and badgers as well as seeing trees cut down.
The neighbourhood around the leisure centre is in the most deprived 4% of small areas across Wales according to Welsh Government rankings from 2019. Ms Vernall described the community as "totally forgotten", adding: "Growing up I went to Pentwyn Leisure centre every weekend with my dad and when you see it being taken away and the kids on the streets getting up to all sorts you think: 'It's 2024.' We had it as kids but our kids are missing out because the council won't fund it.
"Houses are being built all the time but they're taking away all the facilities. I went to Llanishen leisure centre at the weekend because my child was at a birthday party and it was absolutely packed. You think: 'How can you do up one leisure centre like this and let Pentwyn just crumble?'" She pointed to the multimillion-pound improvements to Splott and Eastern leisure centres in recent years.
Among the people to submit objections was Greg Bibby who wrote: "As a child growing up in Cardiff I spent many happy weekends and school holidays at the leisure centre. It kept me off the streets. It will be a travesty if these plans go ahead." Meanwhile Dr Anna Sanders argued the 3G pitch would destroy the homes of wildlife through "the uprooting of trees which have been established for decades". Ben Robertson also objected, writing: "I use the field to walk a family dog, take my niece and nephew to play football, and help with my mental wellbeing."
The leisure centre, which first opened in 1989, is home to a swimming pool with a wave machine, squash courts, a sports hall, fitness suite, bar and café. A council spokesman said: “The 3G pitch does not as yet have planning permission and therefore it remains a proposal at this stage. Revised plans for the centre are in the process of being developed following community consultation last year. These fully costed proposals will be shared with the community in due course.”
Cardiff Rugby was approached for comment. For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter.
