P-04-607 Call for the Welsh Government to Purchase Garth Celyn – Additional information submitted by third party

William Powell, Assembly Member,

Chair of the Petitions Committee

National Assembly for Wales                                     

Dear Sir

I write to you regarding the future of Garth Celyn, the historic home of the Princes of Wales in Abergwyngregyn.

For a number of years, we have been taking groups of young people on a tour of north Wales in the name of Urdd Gobaith Cymru to learn about our history and heritage as part of their A-level course in Welsh as a second language. As part of the course, they study Saunders Lewis’s play, SIWAN.

Kathryn Gibson, who owns Garth Celyn and is also a renowned historian, has dedicated years of her life to detailed and comprehensive research into the history of the site. She has proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that this was the headquarters of the Princes of Wales. Other historians in Wales, as well as a number of other individuals and bodies, have endorsed this research and have noted the importance of this historic building to our history.

Kathryn has been opening the doors of her home and welcoming visitors of all ages from all corners of Wales and beyond since 1988, and her commitment to sharing Garth Celyn’s important story has been unique and valuable. The story of the Princes of Wales is exceptionally important, and every school in Wales should be passing on knowledge of this significant part of our history to future generations.

It was, therefore, very sad to hear that the future of the Home of our Princes is in jeopardy, but it was also encouraging to hear about Kathryn’s campaign to ensure a future for the house. I believe that bodies such as CADW, the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales, Gwynedd Council and, certainly, the National Assembly for Wales, have a duty to secure Garth Celyn for future generations.

I look forward to hearing the results of the Petition Committee’s deliberations at the Assembly on 24 February 2015. I very much hope that this is only the beginning, and that the National Assembly for Wales will ensure that Garth Celyn is, in the near future, safeguarded and developed as a site of historic significance for everyone in Wales.

Yours sincerely

Helen Greenwood,                                                                                                     Development Officer for the Gwent Region,                                                                                Urdd Gobaith Cymru

Urdd Office (Gwent Region),Ty'r Ysgol, Holland Street, Ebbw Vale, Blaenau Gwent NP23 6HT.                                         Telephone: 01495 350155 / Fax: 01495 306867 E-mail: HelenG@Urdd.org