On the face of it, the village of Peterstone appears settled and tranquil. Nestled along the sea wall, almost equidistant from Cardiff and Newport, the idyllic hamlet is home to some of south Wales' most unblemished green space, the sprawling Gwent Levels and a smattering of small housing estates.
But beyond that there is a community vying to keep itself alive, a mission which has suffered a series of blows over the years. In 2019 its beautiful mid-15th century St Peter's Church was converted into a private home. Then in 2018 it lost its last village pub, and it currently has no shop, pub, church or other amenities.
Within walking distance for most of its residents, the Six Bells was once the place where locals would meet every week, on a Friday night after a long day at work or at family lunches on a Sunday. "Living so close we can see how its kind of gone to rack and ruin - but also that it's got so much potential," said resident Helen Colvin, who moved close by the Six Bells with her partner almost exactly at the same time it closed four years ago.
Read more: The overgrown, derelict former pub a small community is desperately trying to save
"This pub has served the community for 400 years and its loss has ripped the heart out of our village."
Plans to resurrect the pub have never really gathered momentum and although locals agree something needs to be done, there has been little movement other than a failed plan earlier this year to convert it into cottages. Today walking past the site is almost eerie. There are signs for the pub on the road nearby, as well as the one above the door which remains. The picnic benches, once enjoyed by revellers sitting with a pint on a sunny day, are still there. But the shrubbery is overgrown, weeds have sprouted and the pub is now cordoned off by metal gates preventing trespassers.
Residents say the closure has left the community with no social outlet and has left older residents isolated and forgotten, something made even worse by the coronavirus crisis. "It's a 400 year-old building and it's always served the community so well," Helen said. "So it's a shame and a loss to the community. A lot of people here feel the same."
Bernie Cook, 80, has lived in Peterstone for 58 years and has fond memories of the pub. "50 years ago it was the place to go," she said. "My husband and I were getting a house, having children and everything and so didn't go out much at the time, so it was a treat. It was run by Mr and Mrs Troake then, and it was a real hub. There was the room with the bar when you walked in, original Tudor beam, a roaring fireplace, kitchen and lounge and it really was so cosy."
Bernie said the pub had a long history - her friend's grandfather was actually born there - and was at one point popular among everyone in the community, from young families to farmers and others working nearby. "The farmers would come in in their wellies at the end of the day or at the weekend - it was very much a community place. People in the business park would go for lunch there, and you would have everything from birthdays to other celebrations.
"Prior to it closing it was maybe even more of that - there would be rugby days you'd go over, and at Christmas and New Year too. My husband's friends had a darts night on a Tuesday and we would all go off to the races with the money and things like that. Visitors' choirs used to come too."
Bernie said the pub later went through a string of different owners but retained its popularity for the most part until the years immediately prior to its closure. Now it has closed, residents in Peterstone are without a regular meeting point apart from sporadic events held at the village hall across the road.
"That is used for special occasions but the difference between that and the Six Bells was that that was always open if you wanted it," she said, adding that the pandemic had brought her closer to some neighbours and that locals would benefit from having somewhere to socialise again. "We struck up a lovely friendship - when I couldn't go out I would bake things and then we would share them. We are a good community."
In August 2021 the pub's current owner, Hub Enterprises Newport Ltd, submitted plans to convert the building into three cottages which would have seen the front of the site retained and housing developed on the rest of the lane. The application drew criticism from some residents who said it was out of character with the rest of the area and would not benefit the wider community. In January 2022 planners rejected the application, saying it "fails to demonstrate that every reasonable attempt has been made to secure a suitable business re-use of the building" and that it would have a "detrimental impact" on the green belt in Peterstone.
While that has provided some temporary respite, it has left the Six Bells in limbo. Now a group of residents have come together with ambitious plans to eventually purchase the site and reopen it as a pub, farm shop, visitor information centre for the Gwent Levels and community amenity. The Peterstone Wentlooge Community Benefit Society is running a local group, Save the Six Bells Peterstone, and hosts a monthly Saturday coffee morning to raise awareness of their cause. The group has already secured a grant for a viability survey and is exploring a number of funding options including the community ownership fund, the Welsh Government's community facilities grant and low-cost loan. Residents are now aiming to arrange a meeting with the building's owners to discuss potential options for the site. Helen Colvin believes that as well as benefitting the community, a multi-use venture is also more realistic than developing the pub into housing.
"In a small village which is actually a no-development zone, we just don't see that it's going to get planning [as housing] anyway. We did a community survey last year which had quite a strong response and so we decided to take the project forward. I think it would make a massive difference in preventing the social isolation that people are experiencing. A lot of people here are older and don't know or see each other. Having a space to go and relax and socialise would improve people's quality of life."
Helen said incorporating a visitor centre promoting the sea wall and Gwent Levels would also make people more aware of the need to preserve the area's biodiversity after some controversial planning applications, such as a major solar farm which was rejected last year. She said she hoped to develop the visitor centre element of the site in partnership with wildlife organisations.
"Other parts of the Gwent Levels have visitor centres, but we don't which means this area is quite neglected. So when we get things like those applications, a lot of people are not fussed about it. Having one would make people more proud of where they live.
"We want to support local producers, encourage people to visit this beautiful area and help to protect it so it can continue supporting the community for future generations.”
Save the Six Bells Peterstone hosts its next coffee morning on Saturday October 29 at Peterstone Village Hall. You can keep up with the latest events organised by the group via the Save the Six Bells Peterstone Facebook page.
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