News 2025

Here you’ll find all the latest news and information from Caerleon Civic Society.

December 2025

The December meeting of Caerleon Civic Society was held on Monday the 8th. There was a good turnout of members considering the busy time of year.

As billed in last month’s Community Times, the main item on the agenda was a discussion of the results of our traffic count undertaken over a week in late October. The heavy goods vehicles passing over Caerleon Bridge and through the one-way system, where there is a ban on vehicles over 7.5t (except for access), were counted from 7am to 5pm. Our count showed that there was around 6.5 heavy goods vehicles per hour in each direction (that is 13 per hour crossing the bridge) during weekdays. This is the equivalent of more than one heavy vehicle crossing the bridge every five minutes from 7am to 5pm on all weekdays.

There was considerable discussion about what could be done by the authorities to reduce the number of large vehicles which used Caerleon as a ‘through route’ when other alternative routes might be available. A number of the vehicles counted were not ‘passing through’ but possibly had deliveries in central Caerleon or were travelling to their home depots in the immediate Caerleon area.

Ideas were put forward and discussed about how to develop the survey information further and it was agreed to progress these in the New year. It was also agreed that it would be important to include the experience of people living and working around High Street and Castle Street in terms of noise, nuisance, inconvenience and safety.

The meeting also covered reports on other current issues in Caerleon. Plans to rebuild part of Caerleon Comprehensive School were welcomed despite concerns about the construction traffic that the work would inevitably generate.

The proposal for a 300 acre ‘solar farm’ covering an area of countryside to the north west of Caerleon, and its possible impact on the environment for Caerleon residents, was considered. Public consultation on this proposal is expected to start soon.

The external repair work to the Ffwrwm was noted, and welcomed.

The Clean Air Caerleon initiative, which the Society has supported, continues to develop. Anyone wanting to get involved, please contact me on the Society website.

2026 looks like being a busy year for the Society with major plans for Caerleon being consulted on. If you would like to be involved, please come along to our meetings.

Best wishes to everybody for 2026

Chris Thomas

Chair, Caerleon Civic Society

November 2025

The November meeting of Caerleon Civic Society was held on Monday the 10th.

For a change, our regular monthly business took second place to a presentation from our guests from the Newport – Kutaisi Twinning Association. Not only did we have a very informative evening of talks about many aspects of Kutaisi, and Georgia, but also our guests had bought with them delicious examples of Georgian food and wine! A good time was had by all!

Shirley Egley provided the background to the Twinning Association, of which she is the current Chair, and told us about its history, aims and achievements. Shirley also spoke about Kutaisi, the second city of Georgia. The background about Georgia’s history, culture and geography was necessary as most members would be the first to admit that not much is generally known about this country (about the same population as Wales but over three times the size) on the eastern fringe of Europe having borders with Armenia, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Russia.

Shirley’s introduction was a perfect platform for two further guests – Levoni and Nino - young Georgians who had benefitted from the educational exchange scheme with the University of South Wales and were now working in South Wales schools. They illustrated, in their different ways, their love of the Georgian culture and natural history and its way of life. Nino, in particular, reflected on the current political situation in Georgia and the human aspect of the continuing conflict with Russia in several Georgian regions.

Nigel Hallett, Treasurer of the Association, rounded off the presentation with a request to the support the work of the Association, and maybe become a member? For further information see the website www.nkta.org

A well deserved vote of thanks was made to our guests and members made their way home with thoughts, perhaps, of a different place to go on holiday!

October 2025

The October meeting of Caerleon Civic Society was held on Monday the 13th. Members attending worked through a full agenda of local issues, with planning applications (6 in number this month) attracting informed comment – not necessarily objections to what was being proposed.

The main item on the evening’s agenda was a further look at the Caerleon Community Air Quality Project. Members were eager to hear from Aimee Parker, the organiser of the Project. Aimee had been invited to our meeting to take part in a discussion of the Project Report.

Aimee gave a short introduction to the Project, its recommendations and its background, before leading the discussion and responding to questions. The Civic Society had been a supporter of this initiative from the outset and members were keenly aware that we all needed to progress from ’discussion’ to ‘action’.

Through discussion it soon became apparent – although we probably knew this – that effective steps to improve air quality locally were extremely complex to both identify and turn into effective and viable proposals. All the factors seemed to be inter-connected and benefits for some may also be detrimental for others.

Members considered that success ultimately required the ‘buy-in’ of a larger range of interests, many of whom had not been prominent in consultation exercises to date. The local schools were a notable and welcome exception to this generalisation.

It was reluctantly acknowledged that even small scale improvements – like temporary changes to street design, for example – could be challenging to achieve.

However, the general mood of the meeting was upbeat and it was felt that the only way forward was to retain the momentum generated by the community workshops and use the Report’s recommendations to press the responsible authorities to take action, including small-scale funding to sustain further work in the community.

It was also recognised that there was considerable potential overlap between the Air Quality Project and the emerging consultation programme of the Roman Caerleon Partnership. Utilising this overlap was considered to be one of the main ways of successfully bidding for the scale of investment needed for the future of Caerleon. However it was agreed by all present that a vision for Caerleon – the ways in which it would look, work and develop in the future – would require a huge input from the whole community.

Aimee was thanked for her contributions.

September 2025

The September meeting of Caerleon Civic Society was held on Monday the 8th. There was a full agenda of local issues, providing opportunities for the exchange of information between members, and discussion about how to move forward on a number of long-standing problems in our community.

A good example of such a problem, which has been considered by the Civic Society over a number of years, is air pollution, particularly in the centre of Caerleon. Or to put it more positively – the need to improve air quality and to move from discussion to action.

Earlier this year an innovative series of workshops were held in Caerleon with the schools and other interested individuals and groups – this is known as the Caerleon Community Air Quality Project. This project has aimed to give the community a voice in how the City Council should go about promoting both the improvement of air quality around Caerleon and opportunities for active travel.

The project’s report is now complete and has been distributed to all those who have been involved. The Civic Society took the opportunity to review the project’s findings, in general, and prepare for a fuller discussion at our next meeting on October 13th when the project organiser, Aimee Parker, will be coming along to discuss the next steps with us.

Two issues related to air pollution were raised in discussion. One was the close link between the worst levels of air pollution and likelihood of local people developing heart disease and other debilitating conditions. National, and international, studies have illustrated the important connections between polluted air and public health, but very little local evidence seems to have been gathered on this topic. The local effect of particle pollution PM2.5 (from vehicles, industry and household heating) as opposed to pollution from vehicle exhaust, NO2, does not appear to be widely documented or available at local level.

Secondly, members recalled that the Caerleon Conservation Area appraisal report from 2018 drew attention to the impact of air pollution, and traffic congestion, on the historic built environment. This impact may not have been apparent in the short term but the external staining of walls and facades caused by persistent vehicle fumes and the damage to the roads, pavements, kerbs and adjacent historic walls from the volume and nature of passing traffic, were two examples. Heavy Goods Vehicles passing through the centre of Caerleon are seen as a contributing factor. So air pollution, together with associated noise, vibration, and danger to pedestrians and cyclists, were seen as contributing to a wholly unsatisfactory environment at odds with the objectives of the Conservation Area.

August 2025

The meeting of Caerleon Civic Society was held on Monday, August 11th.

There was a good turnout of members in this holiday season.

As well as dealing with our usual business, such as reviewing recent planning applications, we were pleased to welcome three of the Community Advocates who have been recruited to assist in the Roman Caerleon Partnership project, together with Dai Price of National Roman Museum, Caerleon, who will lead the project.

In total there are six Community Advocates who are all volunteers. The three who were with us introduced themselves and spoke briefly about their interest in the project. The Civic Society looks forward to working with the Community Advocates and wishes them well.

At this early stage of the project, when asked by the Community Advocates what the Civic Society expected, our response was about the vital importance of regular, up-to-date and factual information from the project to all interested groups and individuals. How this was done was up to the project. We need to know about problems and progress if this is to be a believable and trusted partnership with the whole community.

As the project progresses the Civic Society is committed to getting involved, making suggestions and responding with constructive comments.

One further important point made by our guests was that groups and individuals in Caerleon should not wait to be asked about their views, but should let the Community Advocates know their views as often as they wish by contacting the project directly by email at

Caerleon.Community@museumwales.ac.uk

So the ‘ball is in the community’s court’ – what are your views about the future of Caerleon, especially as a visitor destination?

Without doubt, the Partnership project will only meet its aims, in the longer term, by achieving a sustainable balance between the views of residents, local businesses and visitors.

What are your views? – don’t hold back! This is an important opportunity to be part of a potentially significant change in the fortunes of Caerleon.

If you wish, come along to a Civic Society meeting and make your voice heard.

Please come along to our next meeting on Monday, September 8th at 7.00pm in the Barn at the rear of the White Hart, High Street, Caerleon.

Chris Thomas, Chair, Caerleon Civic Society

July 2025

The meeting of Caerleon Civic Society was held on Monday, July 21st.

A small group of members had an interesting discussion about a range of current issues affecting Caerleon and its environment. Our meetings are informal in nature and there is plenty of scope for members to contribute their views, provide and exchange up-to-date information about items of concern, and plan future meetings, including invitations to guest speakers.

The range of issues covered was, as usual, wide and varied. Current planning applications and planning enforcement are regularly discussed. The Society is consulted on all planning applications in Caerleon and we provide the City Council Planning department with any comments – we also alert the Council to any planning issues which are causing concern. We frequently notify the Council about, for example, overgrown and blocked footpaths in the area.

The Society remains vigilant about future developments in Caerleon. At present we have responded to an early consultation about the rebuilding work planned at Caerleon Comprehensive School ; continue to gather information about the ‘solar farm’ proposals for a large area of about 300 acres to the north and west of Caerleon ; and to express concern to the City Council about delays to the publication, for consultation, of the Local Development Plan for the City over the next 15 years.

The Society was particularly pleased to note that the partnership project between CADW, Museum Wales and Newport City Council, has received £250,000 in grant funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. This will fund the initial phase of the project to ‘to improve the heritage and tourism offer in Caerleon for both the local community and visitors’ and will support a series of studies and plans to shape delivery of the new vision, which will culminate in comprehensive master plans for Roman Caerleon.

The Society expects to be fully involved in the response to this very significant opportunity to have a say in the future of our community. If you want to find out more about this project, and the other issues that we consider, please come along to our meetings.

Chris Thomas, Chair, Caerleon Civic Society.

June 2025

The June meeting of Caerleon Civic Society was held on Monday the 9th.

Regular, or new, readers may wonder exactly what is considered at our monthly meetings. We cover a wide range of issues – no prior knowledge is needed, just a desire to make Caerleon a better place to live and work.

Would you like to know more about current issues affecting Caerleon?

Are these issues of interest to you?

Would you like to come along to a meeting and join in the discussion?

At our June meeting we talked about:-

Current planning applications including a new house at Trinity View; design details for an existing house in the Conservation Area; the latest situation at the former Campus site; and details of a secure dog walking area off Malthouse Lane.
There are 86 ‘listed buildings’ in Caerleon. We want to know more about the rules that apply to these important buildings and decided to invite an expert to a future meeting.
The amount of litter on our streets is often not acceptable. We began a conversation about what could be done about this problem.
The Roman Caerleon Partnership is beginning its work. This cooperation between the National Roman Museum, CADW and Newport City Council could bring significant and beneficial changes to Caerleon. We talked about this project and the importance of the whole community getting involved.
Air Quality in our streets remains a serious problem. We discussed the recent community initiative, including the schools, to come up with practical suggestions. We agreed to take this issue up with important local organisations such as the Health Board.
A member described the state of St. Julian’s Wood after seeing quad bikes destroy both the peace and quiet of these ancient woods and the surface of the natural paths there. We agreed to contact the City Council about our concerns.

Please come along to our next meeting. Details can be found on out Facebook page

Chris Thomas, Chair, Caerleon Civic Society.

May 2025

Caerleon Civic Society met on the 12th. Apart from receiving progress reports about various on-going projects in Caerleon, and dealing with current planning applications, the issue of the day was the 300 acre solar ‘factory’ proposal for land to the north west of Caerleon, including a small part of Newport City Council’s area.

The majority of the site is within Monmouthshire and Torfaen. Some residents of the area affected had begun a petition and campaign objecting to the proposal and wanted to engage with the Civic Society. They attended the May meeting and were welcomed, although it was ‘standing room only’ in our small meeting room. There was an informative exchange of views about the proposal – with perhaps more questions than answers at this early stage.

There was considerable common ground between everyone present. The Civic Society was able to confirm that it had already expressed its views to Newport Council, objecting to the vast scale of the proposal and its likely impact on all aspects of the environment. The Civic Society indicated that it would ‘spread the word’ about the petition and campaign, including publicity for a public meeting which was held on May 16th in Ponthir. WATCH THIS SPACE….

The advent of this major proposal confirmed the Civic Society’s view that the whole community needed further accurate and up-to-date information about issues like this so that individuals could be more fully involved in the decisions that are likely to affect them.

Joining the Civic Society is one way of getting information and getting involved.

This year is likely to see other major developments for Caerleon being bought forward for public consultation :-

The publication of the Local Development Plan for Newport through to 2035.
The Partnership between the City Council, the Roman Legionary Museum and CADW about the development of Caerleon’s heritage and tourism potential.
…..and the solar factory.

April 2025

The April meeting of Caerleon Civic Society was held on the 14th. Councillor Emma Stowell-Corten, Newport City Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture and Communications, was present to talk to us about her role.

Those members who attended heard an upbeat and positive presentation about the City Council’s Strategy for Culture and Heritage. The breadth of the Strategy was necessarily summarised in the time available but there were key messages about the potential in Newport, and Caerleon, for the development of tourism to reflect the city’s rich culture ands heritage. There was emphasis on the Council supporting existing organisations to produce and promote live cultural events of all kinds.

An informal, and lively, discussion followed. Particular mention was made by members about the perception of central Newport and the need to improve the way in which it was seen as a welcoming and safe place for cultural events.

Councillor Stowell-Corten gave particular attention to the emerging partnership in Caerleon between CADW, the National Museum and the City Council, stressing that its success in attracting funding and improving the town for visitors as well as residents and those who work here, will depend on long term commitment and full consultation with the whole community. Members supported this initiative and restated the intention to be fully involved in its progress.

Other items on our April agenda included our consultation response to the Transport Plan for South East Wales produced by the Cardiff Capital Region – a formal body representing 10 local authorities in the region, including Newport. Members felt that this was one of those consultation reports that was challenging to ‘get to grips’ with and that its main recommendations needed to be more clearly stated. Nevertheless members broadly agreed with the Plan’s vision and objectives and wished to register the Civic Society’s support for the development of better public transport, especially a new station in Caerleon.

One of the planning applications that was discussed referred to ‘the installation and operation of ground mounted solar photovoltaic arrays with all associated works, equipment and necessary infrastructure’, i.e. a very large solar farm. Only a small part of this scheme actually fell within the Newport/Caerleon boundary but the main site would cover 100’s of acres of countryside in immediately adjacent Monmouthshire and Torfaen.

Because the solar farm proposal was so large it was called a Development of National Significance and would be dealt with directly by Welsh Government. The whole process was currently at a very early stage with the applicants (Bluestone Energy) requesting direction about the need for an Environmental Impact Assessment.

After discussion members were clearly in favour of the critical need for such an assessment so that the whole debate about the site’s environmental qualities versus green energy could be opened up to properly informed consultation with the communities in the 3 local authority areas. It was agreed to respond to Newport Planning with our views. This was likely to be the beginning of a very lengthy and complicated planning application process.

So there are plenty of important local issues to consider in coming months – please come along to our regular monthly meetings and join in.

March 2025

The March meeting of Caerleon Civic Society and Annual General Meeting was held on the 10th. All the Society’s officials were re-elected.

Unfortunately, our guest speaker, Councillor Emma Stowell-Corten, had to cancel at the last moment for personal reasons. However, Councillor Stowell-Corten will be visiting us at our next meeting on April 14th and she will be presenting the City Council’s Strategy for Culture and Heritage. This strategy will be of key importance to the future of Caerleon. Do come along and join in.

Following our AGM it is a good time to remind readers what the Civic Society stands for and what you might expect if you became a member and came to our monthly meetings.

The recent successful community-wide response to the Council’s proposals to close our Town Hall and Library shows what can be done when the community comes together and shows the strength of its views.

The Civic Society is an independent membership organisation that aims to preserve the character of this historic and friendly town and its surrounding area and to make people aware of the need to look after it. The Society campaigns for conservation and improvement by working with, and supporting, other groups in Caerleon.

At our meetings we informally discuss local issues of current concern and press the responsible organisations for answers and action. We are consulted on all planning applications in the area and are also consulted by the Council and other public bodies about proposals for our town. We have initiated campaigns to urge action for change and improvement.

A key point is that the more active members that we have, the more that we can do. Membership is open to everyone who wants to support the Civic Society. Your subscription will help make a difference. We actively welcome new members.

The current annual subscription is £10 per person. The subscription fees for 2025/26 are now due. Membership runs from April 2025 to the end of March 2026.

Fees can be paid by BACS to Santander business account, Caerleon Civic Society, 09-01-54, 15352908 – please set up a Standing Order, if you wish ; or by cash at our meeting or at Caerleon Post Office. If you pay online please confirm your name and contact details, for record purposes, by email to caerleoncivicsociety2025@gmail.com

Our website has a new address – https://caerleoncivicsociety.wixsite.com/caerleoncivicsociety

We also have a Face Book page.

February 2025

Perhaps the major issue, raised at our January meeting, was Newport City Council’s proposals to review the provision of public libraries and community centres across the City. This review is part of the Council’s budget-making process for 2025/26.

In particular, members were extremely concerned that Caerleon library was being considered for closure and that the future of Caerleon Town Hall (termed a community centre) was also being reviewed.

Members heard that the Council’s Cabinet report on these proposals acknowledged that our library is well-used and that the Town Hall has the most bookings of any centre.

The future of the library seems to depend on the future of the Town Hall. The report states that the whole building requires significant capital expenditure to bring it up to a modern standard and that the Council does not have the budget to fund such work.

The report states that the alternative to closure is that the whole building could be transferred from the Council to an organisation from within the community which would run it in the future. This is called a community asset transfer. The report suggests that Caerleon has a high proportion of people with experience in professional roles, implying that there would be community capacity for a community asset transfer.

Members did not accept this argument and considered that the threat of closure within a relatively short timescale needed to be countered robustly and certainly before any consideration of the viability of asset transfer. Members felt that the future of this building and its use needed to be seen in the context of any major investment in Caerleon as a whole as part of the emerging Roman Caerleon Partnership between the National Museum, CADW and the City Council.

Members concluded that this issue needed a more sensitive approach with less emphasis on the ‘bottom line’ and with more recognition of the basic requirement to ensure the continued existence of this much-needed building, and its current uses, which are central to the life of the community.

The Council’s proposals are open to public consultation until February 5th. Members were encouraged to make their own comments on the Council website within the consultation period. Please make your views known so that the Council is clear about the strength of feeling in Caerleon. There is also an online petition that you can support.

January 2025

The Civic Society’s meetings in December and January were attended by a modest, but enthusiastic, number of members. As usual, a range of local and current issues were discussed.

In particular, members were extremely concerned that Caerleon library was being considered for closure and that the future of Caerleon Town Hall (termed a community centre) was also being reviewed.

Members heard that the Council’s Cabinet report on these proposals acknowledged that our library is well-used and that the Town Hall has the most bookings of any centre.