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    18 October, 2006

    Pit to Port Prize

    Back in May I joined pupils of Porth County Community School and Hafod Primary to launch the Pit to Port mosaic at Trehafod station.

    TREHAFOD STATION MOSAIC RECOGNISED AT UK RAILWAY AWARDS

    A station mosaic created by young artists from Trehafod and Porth has won a certificate of excellence at a major UK railway awards ceremony.

    The artistic talent of youngsters from Porth County Community School, Hafod Primary School and Trehafod Youth Club was recognised at the Association of Community Rail Partnership Awards with the project being awarded second place overall in the ‘Community Art Schemes’ category.

    Local youngsters completed the mosaic, which is on display at Trehafod Railway Station, in April (2006). The 24ft long mosaic depicts the journey of coal by train from the Rhondda Valleys to Cardiff and is part of a ‘Pit to Port’ project to illustrate local culture and history and how the hard working people of the Rhondda helped to shape the prosperous Cardiff docks area.

    The artwork positions a traditional mining scene, with coal carried by steam engine, alongside a modern day Cardiff Bay and diesel trains that link valley communities with the Capital.

    Rhian Forsey, of Porth County Community School, said: “We are thrilled with this award and it’s wonderful to see the pupil’s hard work being recognised in this way. Our schools have a long history of community projects and in particular mural work on railway stations. We constantly strive to maximise the potential of our students and this project has taught them new skills and has certainly lifted their self esteem.”

    She continued: “By placing the mosaic at the station the work of our students has been seen by thousands of motorists and rail passengers entering and leaving the Rhondda Valley. We hope it will prompt them to think about their heritage and culture.”

    Wayne Cresswell, station manager for Arriva Trains Wales, said: “The mosaic has made a huge difference to the appearance of the station and it’s great to see the project being rewarded in this way. The mosaic fought off strong competition from similar art projects from across the UK and the award is a credit to the young artist’s hard work and enthusiasm.”

    The project was supervised by community artists Ceri Walters and Chris Partridge of the Mobile Arts Project who worked with pupils at after school clubs. The project was supported by Communities First and the Heritage Lottery Fund.

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    Promoted by Leighton Andrews AM, National Assembly for Wales, Cardiff CF99 1NA.

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