Cross Hands

{{Short description|Village in Carmarthenshire, Wales}}

{{distinguish|Cross Hands, Pembrokeshire|Cross o' th' Hands}}

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

{{Infobox UK place

| country = Wales

| welsh_name =

| static_image_name = Cross Hands station site geograph-3361063-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg

| static_image_caption = site of the former railway station

| constituency_welsh_assembly = Llanelli

| official_name = Cross Hands

| coordinates = {{coord|51.7952|-4.0857|display=inline,title}}

| unitary_wales = Carmarthenshire

| lieutenancy_wales = Dyfed

| constituency_westminster = Llanelli

| post_town = LLANELLI

| postcode_district = SA14

| postcode_area = SA

| dial_code = 01269

| os_grid_reference = SN562127

| population =

| community_wales = Llannon

}}

Cross Hands is a village{{cite book |editor1-first=John |editor1-last=Davies|editor1-link=John Davies (historian)|editor2-first=Nigel |editor2-last=Jenkins | editor2-link=Nigel Jenkins| editor3-first=Menna |editor3-last=Baines|editor4-first=Peredur I.|editor4-link=Peredur Lynch|editor4-last=Lynch |title=The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales|page=503 |year=2008 |publisher=University of Wales Press |location=Cardiff |isbn=978-0-7083-1953-6}} in Carmarthenshire, Wales, approximately {{convert|12|mi|km|abbr=off}} from Carmarthen.

Cross Hands is notable for its Public Hall, erected in 1920 and designed by an unknown Italian designer in the classic Art Deco Style. Fully restored, the Public Hall has a fully functioning stage and cinema screen and is protected as a Grade II* listed building. During the 1960s and 1970s the village was a useful halfway stop for motorists from South East Wales driving to/from Pembrokeshire with the local chip shop adjacent to the village crossroads being a very popular facility.

The continuous built up area which includes the villages of Cross Hands, Gorslas, Cefneithin and Pen-y-groes had a population of 5,717 in 2011.Ammanford Built up area sub-division [http://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011 ONS Census 2011 Key Statistics]

Cross Hands is a growing residential[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-11377473 BBC News – Housing plans for former tip site in Cross Hands] and employment area and includes the established Cross Hands Food Park to the south west of the A48. A new business park, the Cross Hands Business Park,{{Cite web |url=http://www.swanseabaypartnership.com/en/cross-hands-food-park.htm |title=Cross Hands Food Park |access-date=2013-08-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131003201817/http://www.swanseabaypartnership.com/en/cross-hands-food-park.htm |archive-date=2013-10-03 |url-status=dead }} is being developed to the northeast of the A48 which the local authority hopes will create 1,000 jobs.[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-15640542 BBC News – £13.5m to create 1,000 jobs park at Cross Hands]

Gweunydd Glan-y-glasnant, a Site of Special Scientific Interest notable for its species-rich neutral grassland{{Clarify|date=August 2016}}, is {{convert|3/4|mi|km|1|abbr=off}} southwest of Cross Hands.{{cite web| url=http://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx?chosenLayers=sssiwalPIndex,sssiwalIndex,backdropDIndex,backdropIndex,europeIndex,vmlBWIndex,25kBWIndex,50kBWIndex,250kBWIndex,miniscaleBWIndex,baseIndex&box=253252:210699:257012:212749&useDefaultbackgroundMapping=false|title=MAGIC Map Application – Gweunydd Glan-y-glasnant|website=DEFRA MAGIC Map|publisher=DEFRA}}{{cite web|title=Site of Special Scientific Interest, Carmarthenshire, Gweunydd Glan-y-glasnant|url=https://naturalresources.wales/media/636999/SSSI_0170_Map001d74f.pdf|publisher=Natural Resources Wales}}