is a building in
Cardiff
Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
, Wales, used by the
Senedd (Welsh Parliament; ; formerly the National Assembly for Wales). It is named after the medieval king (''Howell the Good''), King of
Deheubarth in
South West Wales.
The building was previously known as Crickhowell House (), after the former
Secretary of State for Wales,
Lord Crickhowell.
It houses
Members of the Senedd and their staff, as well as staff of the
Senedd Commission. The
Welsh Government
The Welsh Government ( ) is the Executive (government), executive arm of the Welsh devolution, devolved government of Wales. The government consists of Cabinet secretary, cabinet secretaries and Minister of State, ministers. It is led by the F ...
also operates from the building and occupies one whole floor and part of another.
It is leased by the Senedd under the
Government of Wales Act 1998
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
.
The building was opened in 1991 and has a total floor area of . It is built of red brick and is connected to the
Senedd building in
Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay (; colloquially "The Bay") is an area and freshwater lake in Cardiff, Wales. The site of a former tidal bay and estuary, it is the river mouth of the River Taff and River Ely, Ely. The body of water was converted into a lake as part ...
. Crickhowell House was housed the temporary debating chamber for the National Assembly for Wales from 1999 until its new building, also originally known as the , was opened in 2006.
Tŷ Hywel is part of the Senedd estate in Cardiff Bay, along with the
Senedd building and the
Grade I listed Pierhead Building.
Two covered link bridges connect the Senedd building to Tŷ Hywel. Construction of the link bridges began in September 2004 and they were completed by December 2005.
The former temporary debating chamber was reopened on 25 June 2008 by
Charles, Prince of Wales
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms.
Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, a ...
as , a youth debating chamber and education centre.
Since April 2025, Siambr Hywel hosts plenary sessions of Senedd Cymru whilst the debating chamber in the Senedd building is undergoing refurbishment to increase its capacity to accommodate the 96 members that are due to be elected in May 2026.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ty Hywel
Politics of Cardiff
Buildings and structures in Cardiff
Government buildings in Wales
Senedd buildings
Government buildings completed in 1993