Cymmer (Welsh : Cymer) is a small village in the community of Cymer and Glyncorrwg, in Neath Port Talbot in Wales, set on a hillside in the Afan Valley near the confluence of the River Afan and the River Corrwg. In 2001, Cymmer had a population of 2,883. [2]
Cymmer can also be spelled "Cymer", with "Cymmer" being the English-language version, and "Cymer" the Welsh language one. The word "Cymmer" translates from Welsh into English as "joining place of two rivers", and it is here that the Afon Corrwg and the Afon Afan meet, to flow onward as the River Afan until entering the sea at Aberavon/Port Talbot.
The immediate area is set in a densely forested upland area with steep sided river valleys cut through by the Rivers Afan and Corrwg. Patches of open moorland exist to the north and south.
The Cymmer electoral ward was one of the top 10% most deprived wards in Wales according to the 2005 Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation. [3]
Local public houses include The Refreshment Rooms (the preserved Rhondda and Swansea Bay Railway station) and a working men's club called The Coronation Club. Local amenities include a library, a community swimming pool, a sports hall, primary school, a police station and fire station.
Cymmer is also the name of the electoral ward for the immediate area around the village. It elects a county councillor to Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council. The ward includes some or all of the villages of Cymmer, Abercregan, Duffryn and Croeserw in the parliamentary constituency of Aberavon. Cymmer is bounded by the wards of Resolven to the north; Glyncorrwg to the northeast; Gwynfi to the east; Blaengarw, Caerau and Maesteg West of Bridgend county borough to the south east; Bryn and Cwmavon to the southwest; and Pelenna to the west. [4]
In the 2008 local council elections, the electorate turnout was 48.23%. The results were:
Candidate | Party | Votes | Status |
---|---|---|---|
Scott Jones | Labour | 594 | Labour gain |
David Williams | Ratepayers | 463 |
Only one nomination was received for the 2012 Local Council Elections, from the sitting councillor Scott Jones. Jones continued to be the councillor of Cymmer without a contest.
In the 2017 local council elections, the results were:
Candidate | Party | Votes | Status |
---|---|---|---|
Scott Jones | Labour | 673 | Labour hold |
Jeff Jones | Independent | 370 |
In July 2018, Councillor Scott Jones resigned the Labour whip. He therefore now sits as an independent.
Aberavon was a constituency in Wales in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was represented from 1922 until 2024 by the Welsh Labour Party. It included the town of Aberavon, although the largest town in the constituency was Port Talbot.
Port Talbot is a town and community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, situated on the east side of Swansea Bay, approximately eight miles from Swansea. The Port Talbot Steelworks covers a large area of land which dominates the south east of the town. It is one of the biggest steelworks in the world, but has been under threat of closure since the 1980s. The population was 31,550 in 2021, comprising about a fifth of the 141,931 population of Neath Port Talbot.
The River Afan is a river in Wales whose valley formed the territory of the medieval Lords of Afan. The Afan Valley encompasses the upper reaches of the river. The valley is traversed by the A4107 road. Settlements in the area include Cwmafan, Pontrhydyfen and Cymmer. The town of Aberavon, whose name in Welsh Aberafan means 'mouth of the Afan', grew up on the banks of the river and was later subsumed by the town of Port Talbot.
Aberavon is a town and community in Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales. The town derived its name from being near the mouth of the river Afan, which also gave its name to a medieval lordship. Today it is essentially a district of Port Talbot, covering the central and south western part of the town. Aberavon is also the name of the nearby Blue Flag beach and the parish covering the same area.
Margam is a suburb and community of Port Talbot in the Welsh county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, close to junction 39 of the M4 motorway. The community had a population of 3,017 in 2011; the built up area being larger and extending into Taibach community.
Abercregan is a village in the community of Cymer and Glyncorrwg, in the Welsh county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Glamorgan. It is situated around 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) north-east of Port Talbot and just west of Cymmer, and is also close to the River Afan. Abercregan was once a thriving mining community but since the decline of the British coal industry, much of the housing has been demolished and most of its inhabitants have moved to neighbouring villages. The 1980s and 1990s saw the closure of the village school, the boys club, post office and the last remaining shop 1989. The local authority decided to turn the school into a Field Study Centre, which was later closed and relocated to Margam Park. The building was demolished following the closure.
Port Talbot was one of the four local government districts of the county of West Glamorgan, Wales from 1974 to 1996. The borough was initially called Afan, changing its name to Port Talbot in 1986.
Taibach or Tai-bach is a community and suburban district of Port Talbot, Wales. It is a settlement centered on the main A48 road, sandwiched between the river Ffrwdwyllt and Margam. Parts of Margam are within the community boundaries.
Cwmafan, also known as Cwmavon, is a large village and community in the Afan valley in Wales, lying within Neath Port Talbot County Borough. It had a population of 5,603 in 2001, increasing slightly to 5,615 at the 2011 Census. Cwmafan is known for having a high percentage of Welsh speakers. In many ways it is a suburb of the nearby town of Port Talbot which is less than 2 miles (3 km) to the south. The literal translation of Cwmafan from Welsh to English is complex, Cwm means valley with Afan as the name of the river flowing through, hence the village residing within the Afan Valley. It could be a version of Afon which means river, so literally the "River Valley", this is common in Wales and the UK with many rivers being called Afon or Avon. There is also a Saint Afan, which it is possible the river was named after. There have been other suggestions but none accepted locally.
Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council is the local authority for the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, one of the 22 principal areas of Wales. The council was controlled by the Labour Party from its creation in 1996 until 2022, when Plaid Cymru and a group of independent councillors agreed to share power.
Sandfields is a mainly residential district of Port Talbot, Wales. The area is located in South Wales on a narrow coastal plain between Mynydd Dinas and the sea. The M4 motorway, A48 trunk road and South Wales Main Line run nearby. The area includes a council estate, industrial areas and a seaside resort at Aberavon Beach.
Sandfields West is an electoral ward and a community of Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales. It is part of the parliamentary constituency of Aberavon. The ward elects three county councillors to Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council.
Sandfields East is an electoral ward and a community of Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales. It is part of the parliamentary constituency of Aberavon. The ward elects three county councillors to Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council.
Bryn and Cwmavon is an electoral ward of Neath Port Talbot county borough, south Wales. The electoral ward comprises the parishes of Bryn and Cwmavon.
Glyncorrwg is a village in the Afan Valley, in southern Wales.
Gwynfi is an electoral ward of Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales.
Resolven is and electoral ward of Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales. Resolven is made up of the parishes of Resolven and Clyne and Melincourt.
The electoral ward of Aberavon electoral ward includes the communities of Baglan and Baglan Bay, in Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales. Baglan falls within the parliamentary constituency of Aberavon.
Cymer Afan Comprehensive School was a comprehensive school, located in Cymmer, Neath Port Talbot, Wales. It offered mixed-sex education to around 200 pupils aged 11–16. In November 2017, plans were announced to close the school. Following two failed court appeals, the school closed in July 2019.
Pelenna is a community in Neath Port Talbot, Wales. It largely covers the valleys of the rivers Pelenna and the Blaenpelenna, to the east of the town of Neath.