WELCOME TO THE FIRST of what is to be a regularfeature within these pages - a bi-monthly round up ofthe work of the Cymdeithas Twmbarlwm Society (CTS).And what better way to start what is hopefully going tobe a long series than with a bit of a potted history. TheSociety is now over 2 years old, having grown out of theSave Twmbarlwm Campaign which started in April2010. The campaign was a direct response to the saddecline of the landscape (of what is something of aniconic mountain) over many years as a result of erosion,public carelessness and the illegal intrusions by off roadvehicles, especially motor bikes. Following theenthusiastic and passionateresponse of local people, the societywas launched in October the sameyear. From the outset it was clear thatthe mountain with the distinctive“Tump” on the top, that dominatesthe South East Wales skyline holdsan affinity with many peoplethroughout the area. The foundingsociety members demonstrated that they meantbusiness by very quickly agreeing, and then activelypursuing, the following objectives:

• To protect and preserve the ancient monument onthe summit of Twmbarlwm and its immediateenvironment

• To ensure that there is secure and robust fencing inplace to prevent access by off road vehicles –especially scrambling motor bikes

• To ensure that fencing and stiles are properlymaintained

• To seek to improve the quality of footpaths on themountain and to work to ensure that pedestrianaccess is not the cause of further erosion

• To raise the public perception of the importance ofTwmbarlwm in historical, environmental andcommunity terms

Action… not just talk!

The premise that actions do indeed speak louder thanwords has always been at the heart of how CTSoperates. From the outset the development of actionplans and very importantly, the development of effectivepartnership working with the likes of Caerphilly and

Torfaen County Borough Councils, Heddlu GwentPolice, CADW and the area landowners LlanarthEstates, have enabled some very good progress to bemade in the relatively short space of time that thesociety has existed. The last 18 months has seen somemajor improvements being carried out in the area byCaerphilly County Borough Council through thelobbying and support of CTS. The creation of a publiccar park on the south approach to Twmbarlwm; theinstallation of new fencing and restoration work on thesteps of the “Tump”; and the installation of some all-important signage, which will serve to welcome and

direct visitors, in addition to warningthose who engage in illegal activitysuch as off-road activity and flytipping, have been very welcomeimprovements to the area.

The society currently has in excess of60 members. Membership, whichcosts only £10 per calendar year, isvery good value for money when you

consider the opportunity that it provides to actually“make a difference” about something that you areinterested in, or as is the case with many CTS members,that you feel very passionate about. In its drive to raisethe profile of both Twmbarlwm and the society, a fullprogramme of events has been delivered since itsinception. These events have ranged from local (and notso local) walks; free entry to historical and environmentaltalks on the local landscape; practical events such aslitter picks and the organised monitoring of illegal offroad activity in the area; to the launch of a real ale calledTwmbarlwm Brew, produced by Newman`s Brewery ofCaerphilly. The society also held a Royal Jubilee Beaconevent in June of 2012, which was attended by over 250people, and acted as the trigger for the lighting of otherBeacons in the area. The production of a number ofinformative and professionally produced societynewsletters is also indicative of a vibrant society.

During the first couple of years of its existence thesociety members met every month at Cross KeysRugby Club. These meetings were usually attended by20 or so of the more active members. Attendingmeetings is not everyone’s cup of tea, and attendancehas never been a prerequisite to joining the society. Thesociety is very grateful for the rugby club`s support in

The unmistakable profile of the “Tump” on Twmbarlwm dominates the skyline of south-east Wales

Making a

Differenceon Twmbarlwm

24 swdirectories.com May/June 2013

Dedicated to research,restore and protect

Mynydd Twmbarlwm ~Gwent’s most iconic

landmark

allowing the use of its facilities. TheSociety is always on the look out forpeople who have a love or interest inTwmbarlwm, and who support thesociety’s aims, especially those whohave experience, knowledge or skillsthat will assist in helping the cause!Whilst CTS achieved much successduring the first 18 months of theirexistence, members had no intention ofresting on their laurels. The advent of2012 witnessed a growing desire tomove the society forward and todevelop new objectives.Becoming a Small Charity

The summer months saw theexploration of various avenues offunding for the society and projects thatcould be realistically undertaken. Itbecame clear that becoming a charitywould enable the society to access themany funding opportunities available. At the AGM inOctober, 2012, a new constitution was adopted and ateam of Trustees was appointed. As a result, CTS isnow a “Small Charity”.Also agreed at the AGM was a list of priorities andobjectives for the society to achieve over the comingyears. The ultimate aim is to have a landscape that wecan all be proud of to hand on to future generations. Itis hoped that the ability to secure regular funding willenable new projects to protect and maintainTwmbarlwm, especially the need for more academicresearch to be carried out at the site. The previously mentioned groundwork improvementsbeing undertaken by Caerphilly County Borough Councilare nearing completion, and in the future it is hoped thatCTS will be more actively involved in the managementof the area, with its members being involved in voluntaryhands on maintenance work. A Spring Clean on Twmbarlwm

An excellent example of how members get involved inpractical hands on work was well illustrated in a recent

society event. On a grey and coldMarch Sunday afternoon up onTwmbarlwm, the scene was brightenedby the heartening sight of over twentyCTS members busily conducting a litterpick on the mountain and surroundingarea. The clear-up was undertaken aspart the wider Caerphilly Spring Cleanevent, supported by Caerphilly CountyBorough Council.The Keep Wales Tidy campaign kindlysupplied litter picking equipment and t-shirts. Over 25 bags of rubbish werecollected on the day. In addition, a largeamount of rubbish, being the remnantsof old fly tipped material, was alsocleared from the area, including carwheels, tyres, building materials,household waste and scrap metal.

The litter pick turned into a realcommunity event, with a number ofvisitors to the area spontaneously

joining in and collecting what litter they could during theirtime in the area. These unexpected volunteers includedlocal visitors, members of a Cardiff based Walking Club,and even a visitor from as far away as Derby! Thewelcome involvement of these unexpected volunteerscontributed to a great atmosphere on the day.

It is fair to say that these are exciting times forTwmbarlwm and CTS, with several exciting projects inthe pipeline. We plan to have a stand at local fetes andcarnivals throughout the summer, where you will be ableto find out more about the Society, so look out for us,we’re really a friendly bunch. But if you want to knowmore about CTS, please visit our website atwww.twmbarlwm.co.uk where you can find out moreinformation, download a membership form or even joinor donate online.

We look forward to telling you more about thework and plans of the Cymdeithas TwmbarlwmSociety in future editions. Until next time.

Terry Evans, Chairman, Cymdeithas Twmbarlwm Society

The newly installed path on the Pegwyn-y-Bwlch approach to “The Tump” was asa result of CTS’s campaigning.

A few of the CTS volunteers who braved a cold March afternoonto clear two huge piles of rubbish and litter from Twmbarlwm.

May/June 2013 swdirectories.com 25

THERE IS SOMETHING very rewarding about hardphysical work. It becomes even more rewarding on abright sunny day when you are a volunteer doingsomething for a good cause.

Our task was to build a fence between Mynydd MaenCommon and the ancient monument of Twmbarlwm,which will help to keep sheep and cows off the tump.The site we chose was where illegal off-road vehiclesand scrambler bikes have worn two trenches, causingmassive erosion to the hillside. This is one of ourSociety’s key objectives for the year in pursuit of our aimto protect this special historical landscape. Ourcountryside is continually under pressure and we haveto value our green spaces.

The Twmbarlwm Society put out a call for volunteersvia email and Facebook. One sunny Sunday morningwe met at the tump to see who would turn up. So thatis why a few teachers, a taxi driver, a civil servant, agraphic designer, a college lecturer, charity worker aschool boy and many others could be found working asa team under the expert guidance of Dave, a Societymember who handily runs a fencing company, andHoward the farmer who grazes his animals on theCommon.

Our plan was to plant 50 yards of parallel fenceposts, stretch wire along the outside and to fill the gapswith logs and pine trees. We also installed a kissing gateto allow walkers access to the Common. The next stagewill be to plant hawthorn bushes on either side formingan impenetrable barrier which will look entirely naturaland attract wildlife. At Blaen Bran Community Woodlandin Cwmbran similar fences are very effective and looklike they have been there for decades.

It’s surprising how much fencing and pine trees agroup of enthusiastic volunteers can deal with using afew garden tools and brute force. It’s even moreimpressive how much progress can be made when theteam includes a farmer and his strapping sons with a

great big tractor for banging in the fence posts and twovolunteers who have brought their own (licensed)chainsaws. This freed up the rest of the team forindustrial-scale “snedding” which I now know to bestripping the side shoots and limbs from the trunk of atree. Maggie and Sue kept us well refreshed with foodand drink.

After a full day’s work in the sun I crawled through thefront door, able only to croak in a weak and parchedvoice “cold beer, I need cold beer”. My dear partnerlooked up and muttered something about some workneeding doing in the garden. Voluntary work can beunappreciated sometimes.

Why don’t you join us next time? You will get thesatisfaction that you are doing your bit to preserve thelandscape and heritage of a unique site. You’ll also havea lot of fun with plenty of banter, repartee and awfuljokes. To see what CTS are up to next check out thewebsite www.twmbarlwm.co.uk or join ourFaceBook group for some lively discussion.

Dedicated to research, restore and protect

Mynydd Twmbarlwm ~ Gwent’s most iconic landmark

View of the the first 50 yards of fence, affectionately dubbed “TheAlamo” by CTS and their hard working band of volunteers.

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Volunteers toiled all day to manhandle logs andtrees into position to form a hopefully impenetrablebarrier to help defend Twmbarlwm.

In Defence ofTwmbarlwm

24 swdirectories.com July/August 2013

PICTURE THE SCENE. Bronzed smiling young peoplestrolling in the unbroken sunshine wearing shorts andsunglasses. Young mothers applying sun screen toimpatient small children, eager to break away andexplore the attractions. The gentle sounds of a singercrooning wartime dance hall favourites wafting on thebreeze. Could this be San Tropez or Villefranche? No, itwas the Famous 40s Summer Fayre in Risca on a veryfine Saturday in early July and another opportunity forthe Twmbarlwm Society to spread the word about ourwork to research, restore and protect the mountain andits unique landscape.

Now I don’t know about you but I think that there isnothing worse at these events than seeing people sittingpassively behind tables with a few leaflets. Our aims wereto raise awareness of the mountain and our Society, tobuild support for our activities and, who knows, attract afew more members. To achieve these aims we wouldneed to talk to as many people as possible.

We needed a gimmick to draw the crowds. Now Ididn’t know this, but there are lots of activities thatgroups can do to stand out from the crowd and raisemoney at these events. We considered and rejected thehuman fruit machine (too many people required), platesmashing (health and safety) and a baked bean bath(nobody wanted to show too much enthusiasm for thisone in case they were invited to be thebather).

The greasy pole pillow fight wasrejected on almost every possibleground, not least being tooundignified for a serious organisationwith charitable purposes. Soundedlike fun though!

We decided to go for coin rolling.Terry, Chair of the Society and creativegenius, performed miracles in

converting a large piece of plywood into a low-tech butintriguing board game. Players had to roll a coin downa chute to reach the summit of Twmbarlwm.

If you successfully evaded the obstacles of sheepand pot holes you won a prize of a bag of sweets. If youlanded in a cloud you won an even bigger prize i.e. twobags of sweets. At 2p a go it wasn’t a huge earner butit provided a fascinating and addictive challenge tosome and, most importantly, made people pause longenough for us to engage them in conversation. Nexttime we might charge to watch the highly entertainingspectacle of Martin, our Treasurer, attempting to erecta gazebo single-handedly in a light breeze beforerealising that he didn’t have all the pieces.

A good time was had by all and the event was anenormous success both for Risca and for the Society.Our team of enthusiastic volunteers spoke to a hugenumber of people and gained quite a few newsupporters for our efforts to preserve the landscape andheritage of our iconic mountain, Twmbarlwm.

We are compiling a list of events for the Autumnso to see what CTS are up to next please checkout the website www.twmbarlwm.co.uk or join ourFacebook group at Cymdeithas TwmbarlwmSociety for some lively discussion.

The latest CTSnewsletter isnow availablefrom localvisitor centres,libraries andother publicplaces. It’s full ofnews and interest-ing articles – pickup one now or visit our website to request a copy.

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Roll-up, Roll-up, LearnAbout Twmbarlwm!

24 swdirectories.com August/September 2013

THE TRUSTEES AND MEMBERS of theCymdeithas Twmbarlwm Society (CTS)are a very enthusiastic and optimisticbunch. They only have to sense theslightest inkling of what may be goodnews, to loudly declare to anyone who iswilling to listen, that there are “excitingtimes ahead for the society”! Well, weare delighted to report that following asuccessful application for funding from theWelsh Government’s Tidy Towns initiative(TTI), there are indeed very exciting times ahead!

The TTI was launched in April 2008 with the aim of“supporting the people of Wales to take responsibilityfor the quality of their local environment so that they cancontribute towards a Clean, Safe and Tidy Wales”.

During the early years, TTI was delivered through apartnership between the Welsh Government, the 22Welsh Local Authorities, and Keep Wales Tidy (KWT).Significant funding supported a wide range ofcollaborative projects and activities across Wales whichall served to benefit Local Environmental Quality.

Following an evaluation of the scheme in 2009, TTIwas widened to allow community groups to bid forfunding, in addition to local authorities and KWT. So,earlier this year CTS Trustees decided to submit anapplication for funding which would enable the societyto undertake a number of projects during 2013-14 thatwould improve the environment on Twmbarlwm.

With nearly £1 million being up for grabs forcommunity led projects, and with a maximum projectvalue of £30,000 being set to enable as manyorganisations as possible to benefit from the funding,competition was intense. A total of 134 applicationswere received by the Welsh Government, and all werecarefully considered by an independent assessmentpanel. 75 projects across Wales were eventuallyawarded funding towards a wide variety of initiatives.

So what did CTS manage to secure? The excellentnews is that the WG awarded the society the grand totalof £24,000 to help continue the sterling work of recentyears which has sought to improve the environment onTwmbarlwm and its immediate area – a landscapewhich over many years has been subjected to muchabuse, resulting in the significant damage that is visibletoday. The funding will enable the following work to beundertaken: • To introduce new defence measures and strengthen

existing fences in order to prevent the unlawfulaccess and subsequent damage and nuisance

caused by off-road vehicles; and to effectively tackleoccurrences of fly tipping.

• To improve access to the area for all legitimate usersthrough repairing existing paths and developing newroutes, and providing new seating areas.

• To install a variety of information and warning signsto reinforce the work completed to improve thedefence of, and access to the area.

• To plant native tree and plant species to improve theappearance area around the car parking area.

• To purchase much needed equipment for use duringthe society’s litter clearance exercises.The project has been dubbed, “Towards a Tidy

Twmp”, and the work activities which aim to have theproject completed by the end of March 2014 have beenagreed. Whilst the advice of Caerphilly County Borough(with whom the society has an excellent workingrelationship) has been sought and gratefully received, itis anticipated that the vast majority of the proposedwork will be carried out by CTS members and othervolunteers, in collaboration with members of theCommoners Association. This promises to be achallenging but very rewarding time for all concerned.

We are always looking for new members interestedin protecting our iconic mountain, and now is a greattime to get involved. If you are interested in joining us orsimply finding out more about our activities then pleasevisit the society web-site at www.twmbarlwm.co.uk.Go on, you could be just a couple of mouse clicks awayfrom becoming part of the exciting times that are ahead!

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“Exciting Times Ahead!”for a Tidy Twmp

24 swdirectories.com October/November 2013

The Tidy Towns funding will go a long way to-wards stopping this sort of abuse to our beautifullandscape and help us create a tidy environmentfor all the community to visit and enjoy.

WHY OH WHY DO I DO THIS? – that is getting involvedin a society dedicated to saving and protecting the locallandscape of Mynydd Twmbarlwm.

It’s not for the committee work, that’s for sure. I getfed up with the sound of my own voice at the trustees’and members’ meetings – yes, I can hear theresounding “Here! Here!” to that comment.

And there’s even more work for the trustees at themoment with the Welsh Government funded “TidyTwmp” project underway. Meetings with councils,landowners, contractors and suchlike and a seeminglynever-ending stream of emails and form filling. We allvolunteer for this organisation for our own personalreasons, but the common, underlying fact is that we doit because Twmbarlwm means so much to us.

My story is simply that I am Risca born and bred,Twmbarlwm has always featured in my life – from beingtaken up there regularly by my mam and dad when Iwas a kid, cycling and camping there in my early teens,and I even dragged my art college friends up there. It’salways been the first place I’ve walked any new puppyor “acquaintance” and of course the place to take mygrand daughters on their first outdoor excursion.

Nowadays, when I walk up to the Tump and acrossthe ridgeway (at least twice a week) the stresses ofeveryday life get put on hold – whatever the weather. Iinvariably have my ‘pack’ of Welsh Springer Spanielswith me and I love to see them bounding about in thebracken and heather – they certainly know how to enjoylife to full – we could learn a lesson or two from them.When I sit in one of my favourite spots to contemplatethe view they too settle down alongside me and I’m surethey enjoy the solitude and views as much as I do.

Often, I meet other walkers – I can never resistasking “Have you come far?” and am often surprised atthe answer – the past few months I’ve spoken to visitorsfrom around the UK (Devon, Kent, Leicester, Glasgow,Norwich), Ireland, Canada, USA (Florida, Carolina,Memphis), Armenia, Africa, New Zealand, Japan – mosthave some sort of family link to the area or are visitingfriends, but all are impressed with the mountain and

surrounding landscape.Woe betide if they ask “Do you know the

area, what exactly is the Tump?” – I then startto drone on … “…always lived in Risca – mostof my youth playing up here – before Ty-Signwas built – camping with the Cubs – Iron AgeHill Fort, Romans, Normans, blah, blah…”

I apologise if I’ve caught any of you andprattled on about Twmbarlwm - but it is aplace I am proud to have on my doorstep andI will never tire of its mystery or thosemagnificent views.

But a great opportunity for me to spout onabout Twmbarlwm came in September, whenJohn Griffiths AM, Minister for Culture and

Sport answered our invitation to visit the mountain. Hewas accompanied by Jocelyn Davies AM and GwynPrice AM.

It was not a great day for taking in the gloriousviews – it was a cold, wet, misty, autumnal day but theyall donned their waterproofs and braved the elementsfor members of CTS to guide them up the steep slopesto show them the work being done to repair fences andput in barriers to deter illegal off-roading.

The VIPs were impressed with the wide scope ofoperations already done and proposed by the society –from replanting of hedgerows to in-depth archaeologicalresearch of the area.

The AMs were no strangers to the area though –each had happy recollections and stories of previousvisits there with family and friends – all agreed thatTwmbarlwm is an important community and touristresource for south-east Wales to cherish and promote.

If you agree with that sentiment and would like to help preserve your environment for future generationsthen please consider joining CTS – go towww.twmbarlwm.co.uk for more information or linkup to the Facebook group.

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The western approach to Twmbarlwm at Pegwyn y Bwlch

“A Special Place” IWill Always Cherish

24 swdirectories.com December 2013

John Griffiths AM, Minister for Culture and Sport (right),Jocelyn Davies AM and Gwyn Price AM were shownaround Twmbarlwm by CTS members.

A few months down the line since the communitygroup, Cymdeithas Twmbarlwm Society, had thegood news of receiving funding from the WelshGovernment towards the improvement ofTwmbarlwm mountain, the area is starting toshow the benefits.

The grant, which is part of the WG’s Tidy Townsinitiative, supported by Caerphilly County Borough Council,is aimed to encourage community involvement and CTSvolunteers come out in all weathers to lend a hand.

On the mountainside above Risca, contractors haveall but finished the installation of nearly 1km of fencingwhich was designed to keep off-road vehicles and trail-bikes off the Scheduled Ancient Monument and soprevent further damage to the iron age hill fort at themountain’s summit. This is no mean achievementconsidering the amount of rainfall we’ve had in the lasttwo months.

Volunteers from the society have been doing their bittoo. On a cold wet weekend in January, a group donnedtheir snazzy hi-viz vests and did a litter pick on theslopes of the mountain and gathered a large pile ofrubbish into bags for the CCBC to collect later.

After the litter pick they went on to help haul timberfrom the forestry which had been prepared by NaturalResources Wales for use in the fencing project. Despiteworsening weather conditions this stalwart groupcollected enough timber and brushwood to fill at leasthalf the fencing completed so far.

Chair, Terry Evans, said “I am so proud of this groupof people – to give up time for volunteer work like this ispraise-worthy enough at the best of times – but in suchwet, windy, freezing conditions like we had today it isabove and beyond the call of duty”

It was just as well that CTS members Sue and Grettaset up their “field-kitchen” because the hot drinks andhot dogs they provided were much needed to keep thecold at bay. PC Tump (Simon James), who has alwaysbeen a great supporter of CTS, was also on hand toensure that volunteers working at the top didn’t get lostin the mist.

Over the next few months the society will be organisingfurther volunteer work days to complete the “Tidy Twmp”project – this will include more litter picks, planting hedginginto the fences and erecting signage. The society hope toinvolve other community groups too – if you or your groupwould like to offer your support, then please contact themthrough their website (details below).

CTS plan for most of this project to be ready beforeGood Friday (18th April) because that will beTwmbarlwm’s first major event of the year, “The Hot CrossBun Walk” – that’s when, according to local tradition,people from miles around come to walk up the mountainjust like pilgrims used to do hundreds of years ago. It’salways a great family day out and the society distributeshot cross buns to everyone who makes the climb.OTHER CTS EVENTSCTS is a busy little society, apart from the majorrestoration and construction work on the mountain thereis also a programme of talks and other events toentertain those who enjoy local history and interests. Todate we have lined up talks on:• ‘Local Traditions and Customs: How far back do they

go?’ Peter Brown, University of South Wales.• ‘The Cistercian Grange Farms on Mynydd Maen’ Dr

Maddy Gray, USW.• ‘Bringing the Ship to the Mountain’ - Newport

Medieval Ship Project’s Toby Jones, Curator.• ‘Pre-Roman road network in Iron Age Gwent’ (the

Silures) by Paul Thomas USW.Dates and details of all events will be found on thewebsite www.twmbarlwm.co.uk

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Contractors, with the help of willing volunteers, put thefinishing touches to a run of fencing on Twmbarlwm

Beyond the Call of Duty

24 swdirectories.com March 2013

Some of the work day volunteers are happy to line up withPC Simon James despite the wet and windy weather.

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