your comments
Emma, Ebbw Vale
To Don Johnson, Edgbaston: I think that you need a reality check mate. No-one in Ebbw Vale chooses to settle for low paid jobs - it's just that our wonderful government let businesses close without penalising them, as they do in the continent. Maggie Thatcher saw to that with the Tories, then our illustrious new labour did it too. As for drinking excessively, DON'T TAR EVERYONE in Ebbw with the same brush for the majority of ppl living in this town go out and have a few drinks and enjoy themselves. There are a few idiot morons who cant handle their drink cause trouble but there are approx 30,000 living in Ebbw and they are in the minority. I can almost hear you think, "she's never lived out of Ebbw!" But I've Lived in London and Cardiff but still found that the Vallies are best. As Pearce said there's not that much violence and it's quite peaceful here. So don't knock it. I know that you have more trouble in Edgbaston than we do here.
Paige (13) ebbw vale
i think ebbw vale is great i lived her all my life and think its a great place to live lovely locals great shops maybe there are one or two horrible people but aren't there everywhere they make ebbw vale like any other place but we have a lot more spirt I've always lived here always will (til i die) and im proud to live in ebbw vale.
Don Johnson, Edgbaston
One of the main problems of Ebbw Vale is the attitude of people like Pearce, who present a romanticised, sentimental view of a way of life that never actually existed in the first place. Ebbw Valians are seemingly happy to work in low-paid jobs and drink excessively There's a tradition of bravado masking envy and aggression in the valleys - we're just too pleased with ourselves. You can't create a better way of life if you don't know what one is.
DILLWYN FROM CWM
martin from e vale has said it all,being much travelled been there done that leads me to believe the contributors with such a negative view of ebbw are living on another planet,have they sampled the delights of places such as inner london bristol and the like or seen the abject poverty behind the scenes in the u.s.? i am not the homesick type but wherever i go i feel elated when i get back to the good ol vale with all its faults, like a lot of people we dont apreciate it because its there!!
A. Wiseman from Ebbw Vale
What a bunch of moaners they all are, Ebbw Vale is a great place to live and as a resident for 60 years if I want to call it over well, I’m entitled. If anyone lives in a better place then keep it secret because all of these whiners and moaners will all move next door to you.
If you are open minded about living in Ebbw Vale the people are welcoming, warm and genuine, even though over the years successive governments have let the people down they have bounced back. We have always provided high-quality sportsmen, brilliant teachers and public serving politicians. You judge the place were you live by the people there! Not the people who leave.
Many people have started in Ebbw Vale and gone on to excel in many activities. Today the national sport should be nit-picking, and from what I’ve read on this website we’ve exported an assortment of people I don’t want anyway.
To the others who make their own happiness in the places were they live Well done? To those who have left good luck. As for those still here stop complaining, pick up litter, turn down your own music, improve your own environment, and be a Volunteer not a moaner.
Anon. from Ebbw Vale
I think it has its good sides and bad sides. It hosted the last British Garden Festival in 1992, unfortunatly, being destroyed by vandals, it is having a new hospital, wet lands, jobs, restraunts etc on the old steel works sites in the next few years, the crime is not getting any better - so like I said, it has its good and bad sides.
Lewys Young
I am lewys young and I live in Ebbw Vale I was up garlydan and I got attacked by ram (sheep). I realy hurt!
chaz from aberdeen
i think Ebbw Vale is a pretty place to go and visit
Phil Evans Ebbw Vale
Like anywhere else on the planet Ebbw has good and bad sides to it's character. I've lived most of my life here and have known many people.
Ebbw Vale is emerging from a long and arduous industrial history which bred a different type of person, mostly hard drinking but with a sense of fair play and humour.
There are still many who have a blinkered outlook, a result I feel, of a low standard of education and lack of employment prospects.
There is too much drug and alcohol abuse which is leading to a breakdown of society.
The police seem to be incapable of restraining the booze and drug culture and politicians are interested only at election times.
Dirty, littered, depressing and heading for disaster. Could be saved by educationalists, probabley wont be.
Pearce from Ebbw Vale
I grew up in Ebbw Vale, but now live in London. Ebbw Vale has true spirit; the people have survived many miners' nad steelworkers' stikes and still walk around and treat each other with dignity. In comparison people in London will kill for the sake of a mobile phone. At least conflict is honourable in Ebbw Vale; no guns or knives, where real men resolve their conflicts over a few pints and punches, man to man. Everyone born in Ebbw is a winner, that is why the government treats us like muck and sacked all the miners. Come on - scared of another Aneurin Bevan, New Labour - real people have real power! The surrounding hills are also beautiful, a reflection I guess of the people they surround.
James, Ebbw Vale
My friend got beaten up walking through ebbw vale town centre today. Some local kids from a nearby council estate just started punching him.
It's a lovely place to live.
Paul Cecil from Portsmouth
You have to move away from Ebbw to fully realise what's lacking. Restaurants Theatres, night-clubs, quality pubs all sadly lacking in Ebbw but the norm in most other Towns. Having said that Llangynidr Moor remains a stunning landscape and as a kid when all you want to do is kick a ball around the streets Ebbw was a good place to grow up in.
Brit from Portsmouth
My wife and I lived in Ebbw Vale for over five years we were there when the Garden Festival was on. Ebbw is a great town and we found the people very kind and cheerful we made lots of wonderful friends it was a great community. We still keep in touch and really miss the place.
Anonymous Ebbw Vale
A few points in response to the people who have already posted.
Firstly, I repsect all of your opinions.
Secondly, I have lived in Ebbw Vale all of my life and have experienced the town pretty fully.
1. The weather is not the worst thing about ebbw vale. Voted the Chav capital of wales by a welsh news paper it is home to chronic drug abuse, a deep-seeded culture of violence and "close-knit community" gangs.
2. As for entertainment; generally, the only entertainment to be found in ebbw vale is alcohol and drug abuse. Which, by the way, is tearing the town apart. No monuments, no "things to do" places.
3. Objectively, it's not that beautiful. A labyrinth of terraced houses, council estates and very little town-history. There are possible one or two slighlty beautiful buildings. If you want welsh countryside viside the Brecon Beacons. Ebbw Vale's is tarnished.
4. A lot of the people are nice. A lot of others are not. I would not describe Ebbw Vale as a safe town. I will not go into detail so as not to offend the readers but there is definitely a lot of violence and not enough police protection in this community.
Overall, I have not found it to be a pleasant or even safe place to grow up. I cannot go to school without being threatened in Ebbw Vale.
Yet, I do not doubt that the BBC will not publish my comment as it would probably impede the nostalgia of ex-residents.
David England, Arizona
I 'escaped' from Ebbw in 1974 when I went off to Salford Uni. Back then, Ebbw was still vibrant and not yet heading to the 'pits' that it surely went at the closing of the works. I remember having a lot of fun, whether it was playing '9-card Don' at the Level,or having a pint (illegally at 16) down at the Welfare, RTBs, Beaufort Arms or the Bridgend. Even the crazy climbs up to the Morning Star and downing that first pint in a matter of seconds were great! Yes, most of the entertainment in some way involved a pint. I do remember the South African Springboks coming to play the Ebbw-Aber combined team (when Ebbw rugby was a driving force in Wales). I particularly remember this game as I had to endure the cane and 4 weeks of detention because RC Smith (EVGS headmaster) had banned anyone from attending. A few of us went to the game having bought our tickets from the Sports teacher (Nancarrow) at the school!
Simone from Hamburg(Germany)
I spent 5 month in Ebbw Vale and I have to admit that while I was living there it could get depressing because it rained a lot, it is much too small and there isn't a lot to do for people of my age(21).
Now that I am back in Germany for quite a few month I really miss it. I miss the people I used to spend time with and I actually miss the nature and the countryside.
You really can enjoy and even like Ebbw Vale if you try to.
There are a lot of bad things around that area(unemployment etc.) but you only need those great people up there and you'll love it!!!
Rhoda (nee Howell) from California
My father's father came to the U.S. with his 2 brothers from Ebbw Vale. They mined coal and gold here. My father said that the Welsh look alike, and all of them can sing.
dawn (13)
well to be honest it is not the best place ive been to but hey it still is great
Martin from Ebbw Vale
It really does sadden me to see so many people who were ex-residents expressing comments of such a negative nature. To begin with, you obviously have become far too used to the Ebbw Vale surroundings to see that Ebbw Vale is one of the most beautiful areas on earth! With such a beautiful landscape and wildlife, it invigorates me everytime I see it!!! You only realise how much you love something when its taken away from you. I go on holiday to Florida regularly. Although the US is a brilliant place, nothing is quite like putting your head out of the car window and smelling the homely Valleys air while admiring such a beautiful place. Here there is plenty to do, as long as you make the effort to find it. I can't imagine ever growing anywhere else. I pity those of you who are genuinely narrow-minded!
Cap From Ebbw Vale
Ebbw Vale is a fun place to live, the people are genuine, and the schools are great. There may not be enough around here for the teenagers to do, but still Ebbw Vale is a close knit community, we all enjoy life to the max.
J R New Zealand
Clocking each other in and out of the steel works, and the great scrap fiddle helped British steel close the works. The workers themselves were also to blame as well as poor management. The town died and only the trapped and the lazy stayed on. Not all change is good but the eyesore that is Ebbw Vale needs change it needs an articulat planner to make the best of what is the gateway to a wonderful moreland. A land that has outlasted the steel mill the pits and will outlast the factories. Most of the people of Ebbw Vale have simple tastes - a pint with friends a regular job, enough cash for a holiday, and for Wales to win at rugby. If they see what a s***house the town has become they don't seem to show it because they are satisfied with what they have and as they contributed to the demise of the works they have contributed to the demise of the town. Take the blinkers off get off your arses get out of the pubs and clubs and clean the place up. Then perhaps the visitors who are not familiar with the years of neglect and bad planning of times past will give it the praise the old place deserves.
Laura from Ebbw Vale
Ebbw Vale is a dump but i love it! There's nothing 2 do but i love it. People are nasty, but hey you get nasty people everywhere!
Nye Hamer from Birmingham,Alabama
Having lived in Alabama for nearly six years,it grieves me to see Ebbw Vale, seemingly on the decline. I came back to Ebbw Vale with my wife, who's an American, about six weeks ago. We stayed in the Park Hotel. As I don't drive, on a Saturday morning we walked from the hotel to Ebbw Vale town centre, via the steelworks road. What a depressing sight, as I pointed out to my wife where the steelworks used to be. It's just a flattened desolate area. Past the works offices, I wanted to show my wife the works club - it is no more. There were very few shoppers in town. It seemed to me that the town I grew up in has deteriorated a lot in these past six years since I've been in the States. Alabama is one of the poorer states, but the standard of living is far higher than in Ebbw Vale, and for that matter, far higher than in Wales. So I have a message for the young lad 'Jac' - after your schooldays are over, try looking to America for work. Anyone who has any skills can earn really good money here, even in Alabama. It may sound depressing writing about my home town like this, but I have lived for over 65 years in Ebbw Vale. As a child during the war,t hen working down the marine colliery for 8 years, then in the steelworks. It's not the ordinary towns people that makes the town so dreary. I find them very friendly. No,it's the decline of the opportunity of finding work.
Yasmine originally from Ebbw Vale
i moved to Australia 6 yrs ago and i miss the place alot i am 13 now and all i can remember is the gr8 times i have had there. Ebbw Vale Wales is the perfect place 2 grow up but i cant imagine myslef livin there wen i am older cause now i am used 2 the sun and not the rainy weather. the good points about Ebbw Vale is weather (when u r wrapped up) cause it rains and snows alot the views and the nice ppl. the only bad points is no beach to surf in and not that many hot days
kay
it's the best place on god's green earth, i wish i was back there.
Roo from Ebbw Vale
Ebbw is a great valley, surrounded by mountains and with the Breacon Beacons national park just 5 mins away....where can u go wrong??? And the home of two great rugby sides and Wednezday Club!!!!
Me from Ebbw
Totally past its sell by date, one-eyed narrow minded people, cant see past cwm, brynmawr or tredegar, theres nicer places in the Port, and thats saying something. As someone said above, this town has been left behind.
Undisclosed from Ebbw Vale
Some people are saying that Ebbw Vale has gone down the toilet, I couldn't agree less. Ebbw Vale like ANY town has its bad points AND its good points and in my opinion the good outweighs the bad in Ebbw Vale. The good points: All you have to do is look around, the mountains, the greenery, the newly redeveloped town centre, the garden festival, two great comprehensive schools, lots of primary schools, two supermarkets, lots of jobs in nearby factories, great transport links, and the promise of a passenger railway before 2009. You see? More good than bad!
So if you live in Ebbw Vale Remember: You live in a GREAT town!
Judith from Ebbw Vale
I find it very sad how some people seem to relish in deriding Ebbw Vale. Many years of industrial rape and false promises may well have taken their toll on the society, but regeneration takes time, effort and money.To the comments from Huw, Dee and Sarah - if you have such a hatred of the people and the place, why take the time out of your wonderfully full and "better" lives to pass such helpful pearls of wisdom to the www? Prior to moving back to E.V in 2001, I've lived in Cardiff and Newport for 10 years. Like everywhere else they have their own problems, but were fairly nice places to live. However there was never any substitute for home. I hope people will visit E.V in the future and not be put off by others' negative comments.
Sharon Smith Ebbw Vale Valley
I am saddened by some of the comments on this site. I have lived and worked in the north of England as well as working in various places throughout South Wales (including Cardiff and the Gurnos Estate in Merthyr) but home has always and will always be where the heart is - the Ebbw Valley. My husband of 27 years has been an engineer in British Steel and in the pit - now obviously gone but not without leaving its human mark on the society (and us) left behind. In my experience the culture of any area can only be deemed as 'friendly' or 'inclusive' as the experiences of, and relationships between the people of that community will tolerate. It would be naive to suggest that all areas of Wales or indeed any other country have uniform experiences with regard to the pressures faced by our communities and society overall. I have two teenage children (one with special needs) who are looking to make a future for themselves and I can only hope that they will not necessarily have to locate to the other side of the world to make this happen - however, judging by the new proposals for the 're-development' of the old steelworks site in Ebbw Vale, this hope certainly seems to be fading. The quality (and related purchase price) of the planned residental areas of the site amount to 'paying a small fortune for a high-rise dog kennel'. If you view this scenario along with the bleak prospects of finding work in the area, however qualified they may become, as well as the ever dimishing government investment in infrastructure, then I can only look forward to one day travelling hundreds or maybe thousands of miles to visit the grandkids. Let's hope it won't come to that and that our elected reprensentatives will start to recognise the needs and culture of the people and area that they serve so that the hearts and home of the next generation will stay in the Ebbw Valley.
frayne from ebbw but i moved 2 london
i use 2 live in ebbw vale did for 10 yrs im only 18 now but it had nothing to ofer me so i had to get away no jobs nothing so i moved to london ebbwvale as got very depressing the town is messy and main thing is i couldnt have a life down there so i moved 2 yrs ago and now im in college got a job and a nice home .
Justin (formerly of Ebbw Vale) Aberdare
Having lived in E.V until I was 23 and still having lots of family and friends in the area, E.V will always live and be part of me. But I am glad I moved away - the place, the people and the culture just drags you down. The situation on the streets as far as drugs are concerned are out of control and the police don't seem to want to know. Everybody seems to work in jobs they hate and at the weekend try to forget about it by going to the same stinking pubs week in week out. The country side around is soaked in natural beauty but stained by fly tipping. But it's not just E.V - it's the whole valleys, the heart has gone out of the heart of Wales. Nobody has any pride anymore, yet who can blame them because there is nothing left for people to be proud of. The valleys have been raped of its pride and what they were born of, INDUSTRY. This is a new dawn for the valleys - let's just hope the people wake up some time soon and make it a bright one.
Sarah in Cardiff
I have the misfortune of working in Ebbw Vale on a temporary contract... but not for much longer. I don't know where people get this idea of "friendly natured people" and "diversity" from. I have never known more bigoted and prejudiced folk than those up here. God forbid you're black or gay up here and your life would not be worth living. Friendly they are only to their own kind. When you're not one of them expect nothing but paranoia and bad attitude. I'm glad to be back again in the land of the civilised soon.
Dee
Life in Ebbw is grey, low paid wages, narrow minded people and dirty pubs. The town centre is so depressing. Get out if you can or move to Beaufort.
Dan Houlding from Glyncoed
This town is as grey as a rotten fruit, however, this begets an extraordinary array of life and lifestyles. Ebbw Vale has become suffocated by negative opinions and, if I may, negative people with a very narrow outlook on life.
There is much more to life than "going to town". I know and love many people from E.V, as well as other areas in the valleys and I will say, without predjudice, that the diversity of individuals within E.V. is, by a wide margin, second to none. Try living in Tredegar!!
Beaufort Scouts
Ebbw Vale is great. It has wild life returning to a post industrial area. The people now can work and live in a clean air enviroment. So let's be positive and stop looking back to the past. The time is now and the future is ahead for everyone.
Jac
Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of opportunities for young people in Ebbw Vale, and so I'm working hard in school so I can get a decent job and move away. I don't know if I want to stay in Wales or move overseas, but either way, I'll always keep Ebbw Vale close to my heart. As some have mentioned, I've had a wonderful childhood and have so far been to two fantastic schools ( Pontygarreg Primary and Glyncoed Comprehensive) and made some of the best friends you could ask for. I would also like to add that there are a lot more worse places to live than in Ebbw Vale, but the lack of opportunities, facilities and the constant rain that we have does make you want to get away from here. P.S - For the Welsh Aussies visiting, just do so for a few days and then explore the rest of Wales, there are some much, much nicer places - so do some research! Hwyl
Peter Russell from Adelaide Australia
Thanks all for your comments. I am visiting Ebbw Vale in August to see where my Grandfather was born. I do wonder what our family would be like if we had stayed (he has 200 descendents in Adelaide now). I hope to meet some of the friendly Valley people mentioned.
Anne-Marie Pijanka (formerly Griffiths)
Having been born in Australia and spending my high school years in Glyncoed Junior and Ebbw Vale Senior Comprehensive. All I can say was the country side was nice, but the welcome for foregners was not so nice, and having your step father as one of the local bobbies did not help. For me there is no place like home - Adelaide, South Australia. Loved the Welsh countryside and the history.
Undisclosed
Ebbw Vale is getting there, but the original main street going through the village is quite depressing. The houses are very nice painted in different colours and the town has very few places to go. Having said that, the festival park shopping and garden centre are very good, the shops are nice, the greenery is great, and the park is fantastic. As they are situated close to those lovely homes, well it is the up-part of town, but there needs to be more money put in to the area to improve it a bit.
Aubrey Wilson
Ebbw Vale is slowy improving and it's a lot better than many places, such as the estates of Newport of Cardiff. But unemployment sours much good work and is at the heart of all its problems.
Huw from (originally) Ebbw Vale
Move out now, and you may have a chance at a decent life...
TC
I dont know Ebbw Vale anymore! RTB's was the place to go on a saturday night...thats gone. 'The Bridge' pub had character and characters drinking in it that and they are all gone. I long for the good old days.
Lisa (ex Ebbw)
As a shocker for those who used to live there - have you seen house prices lately? There's something on the market now in Ebbw for £250,000 - nope, haven't got the point in the wrong place.
Mark & Anita - Adelaide South Oz
Having left Ebbw Vale several years ago, we think that the grass is a tad greener on the other side, but as Dorothy said - 'there's no place like home'. Would have to agree with Mr Bees (and coming from the same village) family and friends are sorely missed.
L in ebbw
sarah lost your e mail. get in touch. Lx
melanie 24 ex ebbw resident.
The town is beautiful and has lovely scenery. However unemployment is high and the people of Ebbw Vale are very shallow and narrow minded, stuck in a land that time forgot.
Rhian - Ebbw Vale girl
As some one who has lived in and away from Ebbw Vale and travelled to far flung places I feel that Ebbw has a lot to offer that people dont always appreciate on a day to day basis:
Beautiful countryside, good walks & proximity to adventure activity bases, the Black Mountains & Brecon Beacons, beaches and the capital city of Wales - Cardiff ( plus Newport) are some of the things that Ebbw has going for it. Poverty & unemployment are being addressed as the local population become more aware of oppurtunites, are up - skilling and don't relay soley on one or two employers with whom there was job for life. This town is improving all the time & becoming more cosmopolition as it is starting to attract new people from all over the UK - bringing fresh blood& variety , open minds and hopefully tolerance. Things are on the up.....
Neil Bees-Perth Western Australia
After reading the negative comments of other people, I would just like to remind people who are not far away from friends and family, that theres no place like home even if it is a bit dreary. But 300 days of sun gets boring sometimes the grass isnt always greener on the other side. There's no other place in the world where i'd rather have spent my childhood.
Lisa (ex Ebbw) - For Sarah.
Hi Sarah
My advice would be to explore living somewhere like Abergavenny if possible - it's more expensive than Ebbw Vale but there is likely to be more rented accommodation and there's more going on. Plus, it's a lot prettier! For jobs try the local JobCentre - think they do things online now - or try and get a copy of the local paper, the Gwent Gazette. Valleys people are very friendly (more so than in Abergavenny!), so I don't think you will have trouble making friends! What line of work are you in?
Sarah Withell, Auckland, New Zealand
My partner and I may be coming to Ebbw Vale for six months later this year. He already has a job and a few contacts, but I need to know how I can get in touch with people/make some friends/find a job. Can anyone offer me some advice? I am 22. Thank you!!!
Angela from Ebbw Vale
As an Ebbw Vale girl, I moved away when I was 17yrs old. The town is now very depressing everything is closed down that used to keep the town alive. Pity.
John Sullivan Wirral
Whenever I now visit Ebbw Vale it seems dead when compared when I lived in the town. Then there was a lot of social activity, and budding romances. Now there simple prevails a lethargy
Williams from Ebbw Vale
As an Ebbw Vale boy Brynmawr always comes second.
gruffydd jenkins from rhayader
as an ex brynmawr boy ebbw vale always
came second to brynmawr
