Login
Login

Blaengarw

{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}

{{Infobox UK place

| country = Wales

| welsh_name =

| constituency_welsh_assembly =

| official_name = Blaengarw

| static_image = Blaengarw Hotel - geograph.org.uk - 934091.jpg

| static_image_width = 250px

| image_caption =

| population = 1,789

| population_ref = (2011)

| coordinates = {{coord|51.624147|-3.587378|display=inline,title}}

| unitary_wales = Bridgend

| lieutenancy_wales = Mid Glamorgan

| constituency_westminster = Rhondda and Ogmore

| post_town = BRIDGEND

| map_type =

| postcode_district = CF32

| postcode_area = CF

| dial_code = 01656

| os_grid_reference = SS902928

}}

Blaengarw is the uppermost village in the river valley (Cwm Garw) of the River Garw, in the county borough of Bridgend, Wales.

In the English language Blaengarw means the rugged 'front' or 'head' of the valley. The population of Blaengarw ward according to the 2001 census was 1,895, falling to 1,789 at the 2011 census.{{cite web|url=http://www.ukcensusdata.com/blaengarw-w05000596#sthash.RP7SoE4s.dpbs|title=Ward population 2011 |accessdate=10 April 2015}}

History

File:Blaengarw Station 1825329 77fd4abe.jpg station Blaengarw in 1962.]]

During the 19th and 20th centuries the village served as a mining town for the coal miners of the Garw Valley section of the South Wales coalfield. Built in 1893, the Blaengarw Workmen's Hall is a testament to this history and is still used today as a community and entertainment centre. The Welsh poet Daniel James (Gwyrosydd) composed the popular Welsh hymn Calon Lân while working as a coal miner at the Blaengarw pit.{{cite web|title=Garw|url=http://www.thevalleys.co.uk/explore/explore-the-valleys/garw|website=thevalleys.co.uk|publisher=thevalleys.co.uk|accessdate=13 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117030031/http://www.thevalleys.co.uk/explore/explore-the-valleys/garw|archive-date=17 November 2015|url-status=dead}} The town was a flashpoint of public disorder during the UK miners' strike (1984–1985).

{{cite news |title=End of the Miners Strike in 1985 |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00h1jgv |newspaper=BBC Two |date=18 May 2011 |accessdate=29 April 2016}}

Governance

Formerly a separate ward electing one councillor, since 2022 Blaengarw has formed part of the three-member Garw Valley ward.{{cite web|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi/2021/1084/schedule/made |title=The County Borough of Bridgend (Electoral Arrangements) Order 2021 |website=legislation.gov.uk |publisher=The National Archives |date=22 September 2021 |accessdate=9 November 2023 }}

Time banking

File:Blaengarw - geograph.org.uk - 18513.jpg

Blaengarw is home to the largest Time Bank in Europe the Blaengarw Time Centre, hosted by Creation Group.{{cite book|title=People Money: The Promise of Regional Currencies|year=2012|publisher=Triarchy Press Limited|isbn=1908009764|author1=Margrit Kennedy |author2=Bernard Lietaer |author3=John Rogers }}

The Blaengarw Time Centre is based in Blaengarw Workmen's Hall which was bought by the community in 2000. For every hour spent on community work citizens receive one "Time Credit" which can be used to attend one hour of a social, educational or cultural event. Community assets in the village include a food shop, a community café, a heritage café, a digital inclusion centre, a community library and a sculpture studio. Activities organised by the centre include coffee mornings, arts classes, information technology classes, a youth club, dance and drama workshops, sugar craft and after-school clubs.{{cite web |url=http://www.summer-foundation.org/en/Initiatives/Blaengarw-Time-Centre |title=Blaengarw Time Centre |publisher=Summer Foundation |accessdate=29 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160602030746/http://www.summer-foundation.org/en/Initiatives/Blaengarw-Time-Centre |archive-date=2 June 2016 |url-status=dead }}

Film

The 2001 comedy Very Annie Mary, starring Rachel Griffiths, Jonathan Pryce and Ioan Gruffudd was filmed in the village,{{cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0188128/locations |title= Very Annie Mary (2001) |work=Filming locations |publisher=IMDb |accessdate=29 April 2016}} as was the 2019 Channel 4 miniseries The Accident.{{cite news|author=Kathryn Williams |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/lifestyle/tv/the-accident-where-filmed-four-17137618 |title=The locations in Wales where Channel 4's The Accident was filmed |date=24 October 2019 |work=Wales Online |accessdate=7 September 2021}}

Notable people

:See :Category:People from Blaengarw

References

{{reflist}}

External links

  • [http://www.thegarwvalley.org The Garw Valley Web Site]
  • [http://www.garwvalley.co.uk Garw Valley Web Site]
  • [https://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=3081898 www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Blaengarw and surrounding area]

{{Bridgend}}

{{authority control}}

Category:Villages in Bridgend County Borough