Angry resident gets apology after appearance in 'propaganda' video

Martin Shipton

A resident who attended a council-run exhibition about plans to regenerate the town where he lives has received an apology after, without his knowledge, he was included in a Labour Party “propaganda” video.

Darren Beveridge visited the Hi Tide Inn in Porthcawl, best known for hosting the annual Elvis Festival, to view Bridgend County Borough Council’s latest plans for regenerating the seaside town.

Days later he was shocked to see a shot of himself talking to a planning officer in a video of the event on Facebook promoted by Bridgend County Labour councillors.

Mr Beveridge wrote to the council’s Labour leader John Spanswick, stating: “I have today seen a video online that has me in it, where I’m in discussion with [a named planning officer], and not agreeing with the master plan and questioning him on various aspects, from contaminated land, traffic and parking modelling etc, and at no point do I agree with this master plan: it is better, however still not what is required for Porthcawl. The other discussions with people show them agreeing with the master plan, thus indicating that I may also be doing so.

“When my wife and I entered the Hi Tide, we were requested to sign in. I asked what it was for and was told that it was nothing to worry about and only to capture the number of attendees and where they live. We did not give an agreement to be used in a Labour video, as I would definitely not side with Labour on any aspect.

“Therefore I hereby request that I’ am removed from the video asap with notification on when this is done, failure to do so, will result in the reporting of this to the [council’s] monitoring officer.”

Cllr Spanswick responded: “Thanks for letting me know and I will endeavour to arrange for the video to be edited accordingly. My apologies for this oversight as it was a public meeting open to all but accept the point you are making.”

Key features

Key features of the Porthcawl regeneration plan are:

* Leisure and heritage: A new open-air lido and a new funfair are planned to celebrate the town's seaside heritage and create new landmarks.

* Housing: The number of homes has been reduced to approximately 980, with a goal of up to 50% being affordable housing to prioritize local residents. Building heights have been lowered.

* Public spaces: Griffin Park will be expanded, and a new coastal park and boardwalk will connect the waterfront. There will be a focus on creating more public open space and community facilities.

* Sandy Bay Beach: The beach will be returned to public ownership to host events like surf lessons, outdoor fitness, and markets.

* Connectivity and parking: New walking and cycling routes are part of the plan. Solutions for parking concerns include a refurbished open-air car park and new public parking areas.

* Community input: The masterplan has been developed with community feedback in mind, with ongoing opportunities for public input.

The first phase of the Porthcawl Waterfront regeneration is expected to begin in spring 2027.

The video, which no longer has a shot of Mr Beveridge, includes interviews with a number of residents, all of whom are positive about the regeneration plan.

Regeneration

A man says: “Well I think the plans are great. This area has needed regeneration for so long. I’ve lived just next door, next to the fairground for about 26 years.I was born in Porthcawl in Mary Street, and I think it’s about time that something was done. I think it will enhance the town because there’s going to 2,500, maybe 3,000 new residents with kids.

"All the businesses are going to actually thrive off that. I’ve been to a lot of consultations and I think the council has done its best to incorporate things now. Who’d have thought we’d be having a lido? It’s amazing - I can’t wait to go on there.”

A woman says: “It’s nice to see there’s so much for the youngsters, because I think Porthcawl’s really missing facilities for our young children, and that's why we’re here. It’s for them, isn’t it? And also it’s nice to see that the height of the buildings has been reduced significantly. We were upset, we felt quite gutted really when we came to the last one. It wasn’t the seaside town we wanted it to be. This is much more positive - we’re really happy.”