The town of Bridgend is set to see its fair share of development work in the coming years thanks to a range of regeneration projects that are currently taking place in the area. The town is home to almost 50,000 people and is known for being at the heart of Bridgend County Borough in its location 20 miles west of Cardiff between Wales’ capital city and Swansea.
It is also a place of great history with evidence of habitation in the area dating back as far as the Bronze Age and the town itself even named after a medieval bridge that crosses the River Ogmore.
However, like many places across Wales, while both history and heritage are important here plans for future development of the town are still foremost in many people’s minds. It comes after the Bridgend town centre regeneration masterplan which was first published in 2021 that outlined a vision for the area as a “liveable and vibrant place” with a number of development zones and projects set to support it. For the latest Bridgend news sign up to our newsletter here.
While some of the projects set out in the plan are still yet to get started others are already well on their way to completion. From schools and housing to leisure facilities and other developments here are some of the standout plans that are currently set to go ahead in Bridgend over the course of 2025 and beyond.
Bridgend College campus
How the new Bridgend College could look
(Image: Rio Architecture)
With the demolition of the former police station at Cheapside completed and work to tear down the former Brackla One multi-storey car park currently under way early stages of plans to create a new multi-million-pound campus for Bridgend college are beginning to take shape. The £80m project, which was approved by the local council in 2023, will see the creation of a modern college campus which features a number of amenities once completed such as classrooms, IT suites, multi-purpose studios, catering kitchens, performance areas, hair and beauty salons, and dance studios. The campus, which is expected to be finished some time in 2026, will be set out across two buildings once completed and will look to provide “exceptional” teaching and learning facilities for the area as well as a 250-seat theatre.
Nolton Street
Nolton Street in Bridgend
(Image: Google Maps)
A number of developments will also be seen in Bridgend’s Nolton Street with the eyesores that were the former Ranch chip shop and Welcome to Town pub being ripped down. Plans were submitted to Bridgend County Borough Council in June 2024, which could now see the area on the corner of Nolton Street and Edward Street turned into a small urban park and garden.
It comes after both buildings at 53 and 55 Nolton Street were left vacant after The Ranch was destroyed in a fire in 2020 and left derelict, with a caved-in roof and boarded-up windows, while the Welcome to Town pub had already been closed for decades. The latest set of proposals could eventually see the site transformed through the creation of the public space named Nolton Gardens with an urban garden that will contain a variety of plants, trees, and a public sitting area If given the go-ahead.
Sunnyside
Work to develop a wellness village with homes and a new health centre near Bridgend town restarted in 2024 after more than three years on hold. The development, known as the Sunnyside Wellness Village, will be built on the site of the council’s former Sunnyside offices and magistrates’ court, which were demolished in 2015.
It will see the creation of 59 affordable homes as well as a three-storey health centre containing a GP practice, community dental services, and a pharmacy based on land near the town centre. The work will be led by Linc Cymru alongside Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board and Bridgend County Borough Council with a completion date for the health centre set for 2025 followed by the homes a year later in 2026.
Prospects for other changes
Plans to develop the nightlife scene in Bridgend are also taking shape with a license recently granted for the Loft Bar in Nolton Street, which is situated in a number of buildings that had previously been left empty, along with the proposed relocation of the Hobos music venue to the former fire station in Derwen Road. Other planned improvements from the town centre masterplan which are yet to begin include those to create a new town square and a new entrance to the railway station from Tremains Road along with improvements to Wyndham Street.
Speaking on the future plans for the town, councillor Neelo Farr who is the cabinet member for regeneration, economic development, and housing, said: “We continue to remain hugely ambitious for Bridgend town centre and the various short- and long-term projects featured within the masterplan are focused firmly upon delivering regeneration and fresh investment.
“Work is already well under way on delivering two of the major developments identified within the masterplan – the all-new modern campus for Bridgend College at Cheapside and the wellness centre that Linc Cymru is establishing at Sunnyside along with new affordable housing. By increasing footfall, supporting local businesses, generating fresh investment, and supporting a mixed economy both of these projects are intended to serve as major catalysts for further town centre regeneration.
“Using the Transforming Towns programme we have also invested more than £770,000 of Welsh Government funding into enhancing and upgrading existing town centre properties and this has supported the development of a thriving night-time economy which in turn has helped Bridgend town centre to develop a growing reputation as a hub for high-quality restaurants, bistros, cafés and more. As we have to take account of the wider financial climate and the need to work in partnership with private landlords and third sector organisations progress on some aspects of the masterplan has been slower than we would prefer but we remain no less aspirational and have designed the masterplan so that it remains flexible and able to react and adapt to changing conditions and market pressures. I am confident that the masterplan is more than capable of delivering upon its aims and that we will continue to see significant change taking place in Bridgend town centre as a result.”