Blow for walkers as public path set to be diverted away from ‘unique’ castle

Nicholas Thomas Local Democracy Reporter

Walkers hoping to catch a glimpse of the “unique” and “special” Ruperra Castle have been dealt a blow, after a Caerphilly Council committee approved the rerouting of a footpath further away from the monument.

Located south of Draethen, the site is home to one of the UK’s only pageant castles – meaning it was built for decoration rather than defence.

A council report describes the privately-owned castle as “in a poor state of repair” and considered “dangerous” by the local authority and Welsh heritage agency Cadw.

Subsequently, landowner Hyder Al-Khafaji has applied for a public right of way at the site to be moved outside a so-called “topple zone”.

“A dream”

Speaking before Caerphilly Council’s rights of way committee, on Thursday March 27, he said he had no knowledge of the path when he bought the site in 2013, “with a dream to build a family home and then restore the castle”.

“We would not have proceeded with that purchase if we had been aware of that path,” he added.

Mr Al-Khafaji said he was “committed to a… fair solution for all” but added the path was currently closed for safety reasons.

His proposed rerouting is “the only sensible and reasonable option”, he claimed.

But campaigners for better access to the castle said the existing footpath had historic precedent and should be preserved.

The Ruperra Castle Preservation Trust has long called for it to be operated as “a heritage site for public benefit”.

Inconvenience

As supporters including former Caerphilly MS Jeff Cuthbert watched on from the gallery, trustee Charlotte Rogers challenged a lack of detail around plans for the castle, and said moving the path could “obscure views of this scheduled monument” and make it more difficult for walkers to enjoy it.

She contended that if a road was considered dangerous, it was “unlikely a council would divert it” – and questioned why that solution was acceptable for a footpath.

Maggie Thomas, from the Open Spaces Society, said the proposed new path would be “nowhere as convenient” for walkers.

Machen and Rudry ward councillor Amanda McConnell, who is also a trustee of the preservation trust, said Caerphilly residents were “so lucky” to have the castle in the county borough.

She also noted a nearly 7,500-strong petition to the Senedd in 2023, which called for better conservation of Ruperra Castle.

The footpath was “clearly on Caerphilly’s definitive map” of public rights of way, she added.

Vow

Alison Williamson, an agent for Mr Al-Khafaji, warned the restoration of Ruperra Castle “is likely to take many, many years – if not decades”.

She suggested that if the landowner’s application failed, he could apply for a traffic regulation order, under which the path could “remain closed indefinitely”.

Ultimately, the committee decided to grant Mr Al-Khafaji’s request to reroute the right of way further from the castle.

Campaigners have vowed to fight on, however, and suggested the matter could be decided at a national level.

Speaking after the meeting, Ms Rogers said: “We’re sure the public will be very disappointed that the council supported the right of way being diverted.

“We know there will be objections as part of a public consultation, and we look forward to engaging with the Welsh Government as part of the process, which could result in a public inquiry.”