New advisory boards will serve as a liaison for two of Neath Port Talbot's biggest scheduled developments in the coming years. The new Wildfox Adventure Resort in the Afan Valley and the Global Centre of Rail Excellence in Onllwyn are both set to bring huge sums of investment into the local economy in the near future along with the promise of many new jobs.
Specialist advisory boards consisting of members of cabinet and development representatives will now be set up after approval on Wednesday, February 22. The Wildfox Adventure Resort development was approved by Neath Port Talbot Council in November and will see a £250m adventure resort set in the Afan Valley on 132 hectares of land at Pen Y Bryn by Croeserw and Cymmer.
The proposals will include 570 holiday lodges, a 50-bed hotel and 15-bed apartment hotel, as well as indoor water park and canyoning facilities. Work is due to begin later this year. Developers of the site requested to set up a a liaison forum here to ensure the maximisation of the social, environmental, and economic benefits of the resort for the local people in communities based nearby.
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Along with representatives of the Wildfox group councillors such as the leader, deputy leader, and other cabinet members would sit on an advisory board reporting back regularly to the relevant scrutiny committees. It would also help ensure partners are considerate to nearby communities as well as pushing the vision of the Afan Valley Adventure Resort and helping stimulate economic growth.
Similarly at the multi-million-pound development of a Global Centre of Rail Excellence based at the former Nant Helen opencast site in Neath Port Talbot and Powys there will also be an advisory board set up for regular dialogue with the local community. The 550-hectare centre will see a series of electrified testing tracks as well as space for research, development, and education facilities. Work began at the site in October 2022 with an expected completion date expected some time in 2025.
Here the panel will also help to provide regular updates on ongoing work and future plans as well as providing a formal mechanism for elected representatives to raise concerns with GCRE. Cllr Alun Llewelyn was in attendance at the meeting and said: "These are quite important bodies in trying to ensure that we are delivering these projects in the way we want to see them develop and as their work evolves I'm sure they will take on board the points that have been made." You can read more of our stories from Neath Port Talbot here or subscribe to our newsletter here.
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