The saga of Neuadd Gymuned Resolfen Community Hall

During 1992, the two Neath Borough Councillors representing Resolfen informed the Community Council that they had secured a Communiy Projects Fund grant of £85,000 for the provision of a community hall for the village.

The first stage of planning for a hall was the location of a suitable site and quite quickly the top right hand corner of the recreation ground (the old swimming pool) was earmarked. However once this decision was made public a very determined resistance to the scheme was immediately apparent from residents living near the park and following a public meeting the Council withdrew from that particular option.

Following the decision to withdraw from the park site an offer was received from Mr Ray Hale, an officer with the St.John Ambulance to let the Council have the site of the old ambulance station adjacent to Sardis Chapel. However planning conditions made it impossible to build there.

It was then resolved to approach West Glamorgan County Council for permission to build on the site of the old Boy’s School, latterly known as the Adult Centre. This again proved too costly because it meant demolishing the old building and providing a car park at an estimated cost of £50,000.

The next scheme to be considered was the upstairs of the Miners Welfare together with a small section of the ground floor. While considering the viability of this project the Council embarked in a minibus to Garnant and Cwmllynfell to seek advice from similar renovation schemes. A combination of defects exposed by structural survey, rising costs and the ticklish problem of ultimate ownership of the building sank the scheme once again.

Finally, some five years after beginning the search for a community facility, it was resolved to convert the redundant Salvation Army Hall in Tan–y-Rhiw Road, formerly Seion Chapel. Fortunately, as soon as this particular scheme became operational everything fell into place, and the contractors completed a superb renovation.

The Community Hall / Neuadd Gymuned, was finally opened by the Council’s Chairman on the 1st May 1999. Resolfen now possesses a community facility, which is envied by many other communities, and hopefully its difficult birth will be forgotten in time and it will serve all sections of the community for generations to come.

Ninian Williams (Clerk to the Council/ Clerc i’r Cyngor)

( The Community Centre was re-christened "Y Ganolfan" in 2005 and is now an established feature of village life)