Hundreds protest over future of visitor centre

Hundreds gathered at a visitor centre on Saturday to protest against plans to close cafes and shops.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is considering no longer running the amenities at Coed y Brenin, Gwynedd, as well as at Bwlch Nant yr Arian and Ynyslas, both in Ceredigion.

Organisers Caru Coed y Brenin community group is keen to take control of that centre, but NRW warned that process could take a few years.

An NRW spokesman said: "We are looking across all of our remit and critically reviewing what we can and must continue to do, what we stop, and what we slow or do differently."

The Coed y Brenin visitor centre, which opened in 1996, has more than 50 miles of mountain bike trails, walking trails and a cafe that attracts more than 100,000 visitors each year.

NRW has already announced it is considering cutting 265 jobs, with "every member of staff in every visitor centre facing redundancy".

But it said paths, access, car parks, and toilets would remain.

Councillor Delyth Lloyd Griffiths, who is part of the Caru Coed y Brenin group, said: "We don't want any part of this place to close, we need it for cyclists, walkers and local people.

"At the moment, if things close here, there will be no life here, and closing it will make it much more difficult to open again in the future.

"We are a community group with enough knowledge in the industry, we could take over tomorrow if needed, we have enough skills."

Mabon ap Gwynfor, MS for Dwyfor Meirionnydd, said he wanted to see all the facilities on the site remain open.

He said: "It would have a detrimental effect on the community and the local economy.

"People are coming together to show our opposition and to try to ensure that the centre stays open."

Meanwhile campaigners in Ynyslas said they had invited members of the public to learn about the work at their visitor centre to show it is not “just a room with a coffee machine”.

They described it as a learning hub and field study centre that hosts hundreds of educational visits every year, adding that it has particularly popular with people from cities and has attracted visitors from Sweden this year.

Prys Davies from NRW said: “One element that was included in proposals to staff is that we no longer operate catering and retail provision at visitor centres, but that the sites themselves remain open for walking and biking , as will play areas, car parking and toilet provision."

He added the organisations was looking at information from trade unions as well as its partners and stakeholders before making final decisions. He said NRW could seek out partners to run the services once those decisions have been made in early November.