Pencoed

Pencoed
Pencoed
 Pencoed shown within Bridgend
Population 11,832 [1]
OS grid referenceSS957815
Principal areaBridgend
Ceremonial countyMid Glamorgan
CountryWales
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post town PENCOED
Postcode district CF35
Dialling code 01656
Police South Wales
Fire South Wales
Ambulance Welsh
EU Parliament Wales
UK ParliamentOgmore
List of places
UK
Wales
Bridgend

Coordinates: 51°31′22″N 3°30′17″W / 51.52275°N 3.50474°W

Pencoed is a town in the county borough of Bridgend, Wales, United Kingdom, 15 miles from Wales's largest city of Cardiff. Lying on the Ewenny River it has a population of around 11,000 (latest figures show 11,832).

Early habitation

The earliest evidence of habitation in the community area is the Ogof y Pebyll Bone Cave (51°30′57″N 3°30′47″W / 51.5159°N 3.5131°W, Grid Ref: SS951807) The cave is a Scheduled Monument and appears to have been lived in during Neolithic or Bronze Age periods. Worked flint flakes have been found, along with the teeth of numerous mammals, of many different species.[2] It is believed that there was a Norman castle in what is now the town.

Present day settlement

Pencoed as a town did not develop until the late nineteenth century, around the coal mining industry. The coal mines have now closed.

The town nestles in the Ewenny valley, bisected by the M4 motorway at junction 35. About a mile to the north of the town, lies the upland relief of the South Wales Valleys. To the south lies the rolling countryside of the Vale of Glamorgan and the rugged north coast of the Bristol Channel.

The town consists of three distinct areas, which were once four small hamlets. To the north is Penprysg ('end of the brush wood'), a hilly region backing on to the low ridge (100 m) of Cefn Hirgoed ('long wooded ridge'). To the west is Hendre ('old town') which rises from the railway line in the centre of the town to the common land at Ystadwaun ('flat moorland'). The central part of the town, which lies on the valley floor east of the railway, consists of Pencoed itself and Felindre (Mill Town). There are numerous streams rising and running through the town and two main rivers the Ewenny Fawr (the Big Ewenny) and the Ewenny Fach (the Small Ewenny). At the centre of the town, close to Pencoed railway station, is the war memorial (known locally as the Monument), the shopping centre and the local Community Hall (Pencoed Miners' Welfare Hall). The town is well provided with sports facilities, schools, pubs and clubs. A new development 'Earlswood Parc' was announced in 2002 and now has been completed, incorporating various 'Westbury' built homes and Bocam business park.

The current Mayor is Councillor Jim Hancock OBE.

Proper pronunciation of the name Pencoed is a cause of some argument within the town. The English approximation of the standard Welsh pronunciation of the name, which means end or head of the wood, is /ˈpɛnkɔɪd/ PEN-koyd, though many locals pronounce it /ˈpɛnkɔːd/ PEN-kawd or /ˈpɛnkoʊd/ PEN-kohd.

Pencoed hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1998.

Twinning

Pencoed has twinning arrangements with:

References

  1. ↑ Population from the South Wales Fire Service
  2. ↑ Coflein.gov.uk NPRN: 307635. Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust (search for PRN: 00384m). Cadw SAM: GM434: Ogof y Pebyll Cave

External links