Pontprennau

infobox UK place
country = Wales
constituency_welsh_assembly= Cardiff North
map_type=
official_name= Pontprennau
"Bridge of Trees"
unitary_wales= Cardiff
lieutenancy_wales= South Glamorgan
constituency_westminster = Cardiff North
post_town= CARDIFF
postcode_district = CF23
postcode_area= CF
dial_code= 029
os_grid_reference= ST214824
population= 8,564

Pontprennau is a district of the city of Cardiff, Wales.

History

Pontprennau is the Welsh language for Bridge of Trees (as in wooden bridges or footbridges), and once was an area made up of several farms. It was designated in the 1970s for residential development, with the M4 Motorway Junction 30 developed for the purpose, and has expanded greatly since the early 1990s. The expansion has been made up primarily by private sector housing, and corporate offices.

Today

According to the United Kingdom Census 2001 there were 8,037 people living in Pontprennau, however this has expanded greatly since due to sustained housing development both in West Pontprennau and on further pieces of unused land. A major expansion of the area is expected within the next several years, with planning permission being sought for a further 4,000 houses in the farmland lying between Pontprennau and Lisvane.

Community

East Pontprennau adjacent to the M4 motorway junction 30 is the commercial sector of the development, housing Cardiff Gate services, Cardiff Gate Business Park and Cardiff Gate Retail Park. The business park provides office accommodation to regional representation for many multinational companies, and is also home to the Emergency Control Centre for South Wales, and the fire training centre. The retail park is home to a large 24/7 Asda supermarket and petrol station, a B&Q DIY store, a McDonalds restaurant and several home furniture stores.

Central Pontprennau is mainly devoted to hosuing development. The northern edge and highest point in the community is where the Community centre, the church and Pontprennau Medical Centre are located. At the bottom of the hill is the western edge, which has a small commercial area, with a large proportion of the land dedicated to industrial use now being converted to private sector housing. It also houses Pontprennau's only public house, Cardiff's BUPA hospital and a retail garage.

West Pontprennau is the newest of the three areas. Mainly residential housing, but it also contains a small supermarket and Cyncoed Medical Centre, which transferred from Cyncoed to Pontprennau in 2005.

chool

There are presently no schools in Pontprennau. This is due to Cardiff Council continuing its local debate due to both the need for capital investment in a school in Pontprennau, and the need to rationalise other schools in the Cardiff district which are unfilled or require large capital investment. A local primary school had been promised for September 2007 (claimed as a "victory" independently by both Local Councillors), but again the council may move the date and not fulfill its promise as the council have failed to reach an agreement on the closure of several schools in the rest of the city.

Transport

Pontprennau has good transport links, being located next to the M4 motorway junction 30. Public transport is provided by Cardiff Bus, which serve Pontprennau with services 57 and 58 with services running approximately every 7-8 minutes during peak time taking around 40 minutes to reach Central Station via Pentwyn, Llanederyn, Penylan and Roath.

port

Pontprennau Community Centre playing fields (allocated to the school, but open for community use) provides one of many "green-grass-expanse" family activity areas within the community, as well as a standard sized footabll field. The field is the home of the "Pontprennau Pumas" the local football team, running teams in both the local Under 16s and Adult league, and sponsored by Cardiff Gate Business Park. Contact with the Pumas can be made via Georgina Phillips, the club secretary.

Local services

Police Station
* Llanedeyrn Police Station, The Maelfa, Llanedeyrn.

Fire Station
* Roath Fire Station, Colchester Avenue.

GP Surgeries
* Cyncoed Medical Practice, Darlington Drive, Pontprennau.
* The Pontprennau Medical Centre, 33 Kenmare Mews.

Dentist
* Elisha Dental Care, 31 Kenmare Mews, Pontprennau.

Pharmacies/Chemists
* Pontprennau Medical Centre, Kenmare Mews, Pontprennau.
* Asda Pharmacy, Derring Road, Pontprennau.

Post Office
* Pontprennau Office @ Asda, Derring Road, Pontprennau.

Community Centre
*Pontprennau Community Education Centre, Heol Pontprennau, Pontprennau.
*The community centre houses a children's playgroup, and it is used by local political representatives for residents surgeries.

Church
*The church has suite of meeting rooms, a coffee shop, and a lounge. The coffee shop (PCs) is open every week day from 10.00 to 14.00.

Library
*There is no library at present located in Pontprennau, but a mobile library service visits [http://www.cardiff.gov.uk/content.asp?nav=2868,2970,4770&id=1662&Positioning_Article_ID=&Language=&parent_directory_id=2865&d1p1=1 once a week]

Leisure Centre
* Pentwyn Leisure Centre, Bryn Celyn Road, Pentwyn.

Supermarket
* ASDA at Cardiff Gate Retail Park
* Waitrose

Local Council

Cardiff Council the local authority which covers Pontprennau, the main council offices are at County Hall, Atlantic Wharf, Cardiff.

Representation

Pontprennau & Old St. Mellons is an electoral division located in the North East of Cardiff. It is represented by Dianne Rees and Jane Rogers of the Welsh Conservative Party.

Government

National Assembly

Pontprennau is in the Cardiff North constituency for the National Assembly for Wales, currently represented by Jonathan Morgan AM, a member of the Conservative Party.

Westminster

Cardiff North is currently represented by Julie Morgan MP a member of the Labour Party. She is married to the First Minister of Wales, Rhodri Morgan, and actively maintains a weblog.

External links

* [http://www.geocities.com/juliemorganmp/ Julie Morgan MP] Official site
* [http://juliemorgan.typepad.com Julie Morgan's Weblog] Jan 2006 onwards
* [http://juliemorgan.blogdrive.com Julie Morgan's Weblog] May 2005-Jan 2006