Trevethin or Trefethin () is a suburb of

Pontypool Pontypool ( ) is a town and the administrative centre of the county borough of Torfaen, within the Historic counties of Wales, historic boundaries of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire in South Wales. , it has a population of 29,062. Locat ...

and a

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

Torfaen Torfaen (; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county borough in the South East Wales, south-east of Wales. Torfaen is bordered by the county of Monmouthshire to the east, the City status in the United Kingdom, city of Newport, Wales, Newport to t ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. It includes two

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 t ...

s (Trevethin and St Cadocs and Penygarn) for

Torfaen County Borough Council Torfaen County Borough Council () is the governing body for Torfaen, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. History The borough council was created in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 as a lower-tier district council with borough status. ...

. It is in the historic county of

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

History and amenities

Trevethin was a small village that was the seat of the parish of Trevethin in ancient

Abergavenny Hundred Abergavenny was an ancient Hundred (country subdivision), hundred of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire. It was situated in the northern part of the county, bounded on the north by Herefordshire; on the east by the hundreds of Skenfrith ( ...

. It has become a modern suburb, as economic growth led to a construction boom surrounding the village in the 1960s and '70s. Today Trevethin almost imperceptibly merges with nearby Penygarn. In 2005 it was announced that the district's local school, Trevethin Community School, was to close. Pupils were moved to Abersychan comprehensive school and

West Monmouth School West Monmouth School (Welsh: ''Ysgol Gorllewin Mynwy''; colloquially: West Mon) is a state-funded and non-selective secondary school in Pontypool, Torfaen, south Wales. Admissions Pupils who attend the school generally live in the Torfaen area. ...

. The school buildings have since been demolished, but for a period beginning in 1988, they housed

Ysgol Gyfun Gwynllyw is a Welsh language, Welsh-medium all-age school located in Trevethin, Pontypool in Torfaen, Wales and named for Saint Gwynllyw. The school had 781 pupils on roll in 2024. The school changed its name from ''Ysgol Gyfun Gwynllyw'' to ''Ysgol Gym ...

, a Welsh-medium education secondary school located in Trevethin, which remains on the former site of the Trevethin Community School, but in modern buildings. Trevethin is situated in Pontypool and is on the southernmost point of the

Brecon Beacons National Park Brecon Beacons National Park, officially named Bannau Brycheiniog National Park (), is a National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in Wales. It is named after the Brecon Beacons (), the mountain range at its centre. The national park ...

. Near to Trevethin are various famous landmarks including the Folly Tower and

Shell Grotto A shell grotto is a type of folly, a grotto decorated with sea shells. The shell grotto was a popular feature of many British country houses in the 17th and 18th centuries. It suited the Baroque and Rococo styles (which used swirling motifs sim ...

both of which were originally built by the Hanbury family during the 18th century. Trevethin was part of the

Communities First Communities First was a Government of Wales, Welsh Government programme aimed at reducing poverty. The programme was community focused and supported the most disadvantaged people in the most deprived areas of Wales with the aim of contributing t ...

initiative until its closure in 2018. A 2012 Communities First report identified Trevethin as the most deprived community in its cluster of communities, and one of the most deprived in Wales overall.

Notable people

* Morgan Edwards

Football club

Trevethin have a football team, who play in Division Two of the Gwent Central League. According to their website, they play their home games at top pitch, a football pitch near the top of Trevethin.

External links

: Trevethin's new Nextdoor network of neighbours : Read about Nextdoor herewww.geograph.co.uk : photos of Trevethin and surrounding area

References

Suburbs of Pontypool Communities in Torfaen Electoral wards of Torfaen Villages in Torfaen {{Torfaen-geo-stub