Cwmbrân

 

(kʊmbrän') , city (1981 pop. 44,592), Torfaen, SE Wales. Cwmbrân was created under the New Town Act of 1946 to house employees of the nearby steelworks. It has diverse industries, including the production of car parts, nylon yarn, and cookies.

Cwmbran Welsh - Cwmbrân
Population	47,254
OS grid reference	ST295955
Principal area	Torfaen
Ceremonial county	Gwent
Constituent country	Wales
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	CWMBRAN
Postcode district	NP44
Dialling code	01633
Police	Gwent
Fire	South Wales
Ambulance	Welsh
UK Parliament	Torfaen
European Parliament	Wales
List of places: UK • Wales • Torfaen

Coordinates: 51°′″N 3°′″W / 51.6536, -3.021

Cwmbran (Welsh: Cwmbrân) is a new town in southern Wales, established in the 1950s to provide new employment in the south eastern portion of the South Wales Coalfield. 'Cwmbran' means valley of the crow in the Welsh language. Based around the villages of Old Cwmbran, Pontnewydd, Upper Cwmbran, Croesyceiliog, Llantarnam and Llanyrafon, it has grown to house almost 50,000 people within 50 years of its creation.

Location

Sitting as it does on the corner of the South Wales Coalfield it has a hilly aspect to its western and northern edges, with the surrounding hills climbing to over 1,000 feet. The Afon Llwyd forms the major river valley; although the most significant water course is probably the remains of the Monmouthshire canal. To the east of Cwmbran the land is less hilly, forming part of the Usk valley.

Cwmbran Shopping Centre

Main article: Cwmbran Shopping Centre

Cwmbran Shopping Centre is advertised as the largest under-cover shopping centre in Wales. Unlike most shopping centres, which are usually situated on the outskirts of towns and cities, Cwmbran's town centre is formed wholly by the shopping centre.

Education

The town is home to three comprehensive schools: Croesyceiliog School, Llantarnam School and Fairwater High School. There are numerous primary and nursery schools as well as the Welsh medium school, Ysgol Gynradd Cymraeg. The town centre also boasts a 'Learn-IT' centre (part of Coleg Gwent).

Sport

The town is perhaps most widely known now for its international sports stadium, home to international athletics events in the 1970s and 1980s. The stadium is also the home the football teams, Cwmbran Town and Cwmbran Celtic. Separate grounds at Pontnewydd and [[Croesyceiliog house the town's two senior rugby teams, Cwmbran and Croesyceiliog, although many more of the town's residents owe their allegiances to the rugby sides in the older, adjacent town of Pontypool, and city of Newport.

Transport

Cwmbran railway station is served by trains on the Welsh Marches Line.

Miscellaneous

Cwmbran is twinned with Bruchsal, Germany and Carbonne, France.

It is often joked that Cwmbran has the most roundabouts per square mile than any other town, hence its nickname as 'Home of the Roundabout'.

Famous locals

• Helen Adams, Big Brother Contestant/TV presenter/Hairdresser.
• Ivor Bulmer-Thomas, sometime Member of Parliament and campaigner for the preservation of Churches.
• Daniel Gabbidon, professional footballer for West Ham United and Wales.

References

• Village Publishing (1985). 'The trains don't stop here anymore....' - A pictorial history of Cwmbrân from the 1930s to the present day. Village Publishing. ISBN 0-946043-07-8. 
• Cwmbrân & District Writers (2004). Cwmbrân - And other Routes as the crow flies. ISBN 1-872730-34-5. 
• Philip Riden (1988). Rebuilding a Valley. Cwmbran Development Corporation. ISBN 0-9510548-1-3. 

External links

• A local website
• Cwmbrân Squadron Air Training Corps
• Animal Sanctuary

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