Furnace, Carmarthenshire

Village in Carmarthenshire, Wales

Village in Wales
Furnace is located in Carmarthenshire
Furnace
Furnace
Location within Carmarthenshire
OS grid referenceSN503013Community
  • Llanelli Rural
Principal area
  • Carmarthenshire
Preserved county
  • Dyfed
CountryWalesSovereign stateUnited KingdomPost townLLANELLIPostcode districtSA15Dialling code01554[1]PoliceDyfed-PowysFireMid and West WalesAmbulanceWelsh UK Parliament
  • Llanelli
Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament
  • Llanelli
List of places
UK
Wales
Carmarthenshire
51°41′24″N 4°10′01″W / 51.690°N 4.167°W / 51.690; -4.167

Furnace (Welsh: Ffwrnes) is a village near the town of Llanelli in the county of Carmarthenshire, Wales.[2] Furnace is named after the furnace built by Alexander Raby before the village was established. The main furnace remains but is neglected and in ruin.

Before the name 'Ffwrnes' or 'Furnace' was evident, the small hamlet was called 'Cwmddyche' which consisted of a few farmsteads and Bryn-y-môr house, which is Stradey Park hotel today. The village is at the mouth of a valley in which the Afon Cille flows. Llyn Trebeddrod or Furnace Pond is also within the village boundaries, and was constructed as a reservoir to serve the furnaces.[3]

It is under the authority of Carmarthenshire County Council and Llanelli Rural Council.[4]

Stradey Park hotel controversy

In 2023 the village came under the limelight when plans were announced that its 4-star Stradey Park Hotel would be used to accommodate asylum seekers. These plans led to the dismissal of 95 staff from the hotel.[5] ‘Furnace Action Committee’ formed to oppose the plans, leading protests outside of the site. Counter protests have been led by the Llanelli branch of Stand Up to Racism with support from TUC Cymru.[6] Incidents at some protests on the site have led to arrests and charges.[7] Some reports have linked far-right groups with the protests.[8]

References

  1. ^ "Llanelli – UK Codes – The Phone Book from BT". Thephonebook.bt.com. Archived from the original on 5 September 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  2. ^ Carmarthenshire County Council: Area and density of Community Wards Archived 28 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Llanelli Community Heritage on Furnace and its furnace. Archived 15 May 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Llanelli Rural Council
  5. ^ "Stradey Park Hotel: Ninety-five staff to be made redundant". BBC News. 27 June 2023. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  6. ^ Harries, Robert (12 July 2023). "'There is no racism here' - neighbours of asylum seekers hotel". WalesOnline. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  7. ^ Jones, Branwen (11 July 2023). "Four charged after protest at hotel set to home asylum seekers". WalesOnline. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
  8. ^ "Stradey Park asylum seeker uncertainty fuels fear in Furnace". BBC News. 5 August 2023. Retrieved 30 August 2023.