Creigiau is a

dormitory settlement A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

in the north-west of Cardiff, the capital of Wales. The village currently has about 1,500 houses and a population of approximately 5,000 people. The Cardiff

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

is called Creigiau/St. Fagans. The village has a strong Welsh-speaking community, and along with

Pentyrch Pentyrch ( cy, Pen-tyrch) is a village and community located on the western outskirts of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The village gives its name to a Cardiff local authority electoral ward, Pentyrch, which covers the village and immediat ...

has one of the largest clusters of Welsh-speakers in Cardiff. 23.4% of the village speaks Welsh.

History

Creigiau's former industrial centre was a quarry, which opened in the 1870s and closed in 2001. The village was linked to Cardiff and

Barry Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 19 ...

by the Barry Railway's railway station, located on the eastern edge of the village, which was closed as part of the Beeching cuts. The Welsh language has always had a strong presence in Creigiau and the majority of its inhabitants still spoke Welsh in 1890. In the mid-1970s, housing estates sprang up to accommodate commuters. A further large housing estate was built during the 1980s to further accommodate the growing number of commuters wanting to live in the village. This estate is still locally known as "the new estate" or "lower Creigiau". Creigiau became part of the Unitary authority of Cardiff in 1996 following Local Government reorganisation.

Castell-y-mynach

Castell-y-mynach is a late medieval manor house, reputedly built in the fifteenth century. It was remodelled in the early seventeenth century and contains seventeenth and eighteenth century wall paintings. The house is now surrounded by a modern housing development.

Creigiau Pottery

pottery studio Studio pottery is pottery made by professional and amateur artists or artisans working alone or in small groups, making unique items or short runs. Typically, all stages of manufacture are carried out by the artists themselves.Emmanuel Cooper, ...

was set up by Reg and Jean Southcliffe in 1947 as the Southcliffe Ceramic Company, renamed to Creigiau Pottery in 1948. Creigiau produced domestic tableware in either a pale grey glaze, or their best-known copper lustreware. A distinctive Creigiau piece is their kitsch Welsh Pie Dragon, a lustreware pie funnel in the shape of a Welsh dragon rather than the usual bird. In 1962, Tom also took over the Claypits Pottery at

Ewenny Ewenny ( cy, Ewenni) is a village and community (parish) on the River Ewenny in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. Over the years the village has grown into the neighbouring village of Corntown to such an extent that there is no longer a clear boundar ...

, nearby to the Ewenny Pottery. He renamed it Vale Pottery, after the Vale of Glamorgan, it later being renamed again under new owners as Helyg Pottery.

Governance

Creigiau was formerly an

to Taff Ely Borough Council. In 1995 Creigiau became part of Cardiff and the ward elected a Plaid Cymru councillor,

Delme Bowen Delme Bowen is an emeritus professor (cell biology) at Cardiff University. He was Lord Mayor of Cardiff, Wales for the year 2011 to 2012 and was an elected Cardiff councillor for 17 years. Political career Bowen began his political career in 19 ...

, to

Cardiff Council Cardiff Council, formally the County Council of the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Cyngor Sir Dinas a Sir Caerdydd) is the governing body for Cardiff, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. The principal area and its council were established ...

(Cardiff's first Plaid Cymru councillor for 23 years). Since 1999 Creigiau has been covered by a new ward,

Creigiau & St Fagans Creigiau & St. Fagans was a rural electoral ward on the western edge of Cardiff, Wales. Description The ward covered the villages of St. Fagans and Creigiau (in the community of Pentyrch) and the surrounding rural area. The Creigiau/St Fagans ...

Amenities

Local amenities include a bilingual primary school, which teaches through the medium of both Welsh and English, a golf club, a convenience store with a post office, a recreation ground managed by village residents (home of local archery, cricket, football, petanque and tennis clubs), a GP surgery, and local pub called 'The Creigiau Inn'.

Transport

A few bus routes serve the area, mainly operated by Stagecoach and Cardiff Bus A new Rapid Transit Line could be built from Creigiau to St Mellons in Cardiff, via Cardiff City Centre and the Welsh Parliament by 2024. Plans for the South Wales Metro include this line as part of the "Cardiff Crossrail Project", which could also mean the line could be extended further.

References

External links

Photos of Creigiau and surrounding area
{{authority control Former electoral wards of Cardiff Villages in Cardiff