New £755,000 athletics hub to be built at school in Oakdale

Plans have been approved for the community athletics hub at Oakdale's Rhiw Syr Dafydd Primary School by the Caerphilly council's planing committee.

There will be a synthetic running track - the first in the county - space for events including high jump, long jump, shot-put, javelin and discus, and the site will have floodlighting.

The area inside the track will stay as grass and will allow the school to use the area for pitch sports, after-school activities and sports days. Two storage units will be built to store the equipment for the new facilities.

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“Caerphilly is currently one of only six local authorities in Wales without an athletics track, so the approval for the Rhiw Syr Dafydd Primary School project is fantastic news," said Cllr Barbara Jones, cabinet member for education and achievement.

"The new facility will maximise the benefits of our school sites for the wider community outside of school hours, whilst providing opportunities for our aspiring athletes to train within the county borough.

"Now that planning permission has been granted, the council will engage with residents throughout the duration of the contract to address any concerns that may arise as the scheme progresses.”

The council successfully bid for the £755,000 project to be wholly funded through the Welsh Government’s Community Hub Grant programme.