The planning committee of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council has given approval for a new police office in Pontypridd town centre, with 106-107 Taff Street to be converted from retail and catering units into a police office. The decision, made on Thursday 13 August, forms part of a partnership between the council and South Wales Police as the force moves away from its current Berw Road premises.
Keeping a visible service in the heart of town
The application describes the Taff Street site as a police office rather than a station: it will not include custody or rapid response facilities. Internally, the existing building will be adapted without any increase to its footprint. Planned work at ground-floor level includes creating a public lobby, private lobby, an open-plan office, interview room and communications room, along with associated sanitary facilities. The first floor will be altered to provide two rooms described in the planning statement as "undefined".
The scheme retains the current entrance from Taff Street and keeps the existing shopfront. The application proposes the site would employ 68 full-time staff and be open to the public from 09:00 to 17:00, seven days a week.
Town-centre vitality and vacant units
Planning officers recommended approval, noting the conversion would bring two vacant units back into beneficial use and maintain an active frontage on the primary retail area. Officers said the proposal supports pedestrian activity within the town centre and helps maintain the vitality and viability of the retail frontage.
"Whilst the proposal does not fully satisfy the marketing requirements of Policy AW11 of the Local Development Plan, it is considered to accord with Policy SSA17 of the Local Development Plan by maintaining the vitality and viability of the primary retail frontage."
The planning report makes clear the change reflects broader shifts in how police services are delivered locally, with the Berw Road premises set to be vacated as part of the council and force partnership. The demolition and redevelopment plans for the Berw Road police station site and associated car park have already prompted traffic management works in the area this month, underlining the wider transformation of the site.
What the changes mean for residents and businesses
- Visible policing: Residents will continue to have a designated, staffed location in the town centre for non-custodial enquiries and public access.
- Town-centre footfall: Returning two vacant units to use is expected to help maintain pedestrian activity on Taff Street, a key shopping frontage.
- Service model change: The facility is not a full police station — custody and rapid response operations will not be based at the site.
For shoppers and businesses on Taff Street, the conversion offers the prospect of a staffed civic presence where there had been empty units. For people needing urgent police attention outside the office hours or for matters requiring custody, arrangements will continue to be handled from other operational sites operated by South Wales Police.
Context: Berw Road and the wider redevelopment
The decision is linked to the force vacating its Berw Road building. That site is subject to demolition and wider redevelopment proposals, and temporary traffic management related to demolition work has already been scheduled in the surrounding area. Council and police leaders have said the new office is needed to ensure Pontypridd retains a town-centre police presence while those plans progress.
While planning officers accepted that the proposal did not fully meet all marketing tests in local policy, they judged the overall effect on town-centre vitality favourable. The approved design keeps the building’s street frontage intact, signalling a balance between civic use and preserving the retail character of Taff Street.
Public access will be during standard daytime hours, and the change in use will be contained within the current building fabric. The planning approval marks a practical step in a period of change across Pontypridd’s civic estate as plans for the former Berw Road station and car park move forward.
