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MAESTEG: Historic hospital faces uncertain future as health board picks new site for Llynfi Valley’s health services

Maesteg Community Hospital has served the Llynfi Valley since it was built in 1914, funded by the communities it has cared for through two world wars and more than a century of change. Now the future of the Edwardian building is uncertain — and local people still don’t know whether they will keep the hospital beds they depend on.

Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board voted at its public board meeting on Wednesday to make Ewenny Road the preferred location for a new health and wellbeing centre in Maesteg — moving services away from the historic hospital building and onto a new site closer to the town centre and railway station.

The decision means the old hospital building has no guaranteed future. The health board says it will “continue to consider” what happens to the site — but has made no commitments, and has not answered the question that matters most to local people: will there be community beds?

Huw Irranca-Davies MS — the Llywydd of the Senedd, speaking in his capacity as the Labour member for Afan Ogwr Rhondda — called the decision deeply disappointing and said the unresolved bed question could not be brushed aside.

Community beds allow patients — often elderly — to recover closer to home rather than in a large district general hospital. Campaigners and elected representatives say the Llynfi Valley is already poorly served compared with other parts of the Cwm Taf Morgannwg area, and that losing beds altogether would leave vulnerable people without vital local support.

Previous consultations on the future of healthcare in Maesteg had included the provision of beds. The health board has since moved away from that position, arguing that prolonged hospital stays can harm older patients and that “hospital at home” services and care home beds are a better alternative. Local representatives strongly disagree.

Mr Irranca-Davies said he and colleagues had repeatedly made clear that community beds were crucial to the healthcare needs of the valley — and that the health board needed to explain how bed provision would be guaranteed going forward.

He said the hospital building itself — stone-built, iconic, and funded by working communities over a century ago — deserved better than an uncertain fate, and called for covenants or other legal protections to be placed on the site to safeguard its future use in the community’s interests.

The health board put a positive gloss on Wednesday’s decision, saying it supported a significant opportunity for investment that would deliver more services for more people, with better access and more integrated care across different organisations.

A spokesperson added that the long-term future of the Maesteg Community Hospital site would continue to be considered, to ensure it continued to serve the community in a meaningful way.

That language did not satisfy Mr Irranca-Davies, who said he would write to the health board — again — demanding it step up its engagement with residents, healthcare staff, GPs, the Friends of Maesteg Hospital and carers organisations.

He also said he would raise the issue directly with Welsh Government ministers, pushing them to back adequate bed provision in Maesteg and to explore whether additional funding could be made available.

Concerns about the hospital’s future have been building since 2023, when the health board began reviewing services under its Healthy Futures programme.

The campaign intensified sharply in May 2025, when structural surveys revealed that redeveloping the 1914 building would cost up to £48 million — far beyond the £25-30 million budget available.

That finding triggered a pivot towards a new build on an alternative site, and a formal Save Maesteg Hospital campaign launched by September 2025.

By January 2026, hundreds of protesters had gathered outside the hospital gates in one of the most visible community campaigns the valley had seen in years.

Earlier this year, the health board confirmed that upgrading the existing hospital site would cost upwards of £42 million — well above the £30 million of Welsh Government funding available — making a new build at Ewenny Road the financially viable option.

The health board has consistently said it has not decided to close or sell Maesteg Hospital, and that any decision on the building’s future will take into account local views and the site’s heritage. But with Ewenny Road now confirmed as the preferred site, the clock is ticking on what comes next for a building that generations of local families regard as their own.

Mr Irranca-Davies warned there would be many difficult conversations ahead — and said the health board would need to face those conversations head-on rather than offer reassurances without substance.

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Maesteg Hospital future still undecided as £30m health centre plans move forward

Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board met with elected representatives and members of the Maesteg Hospital League of Friends last week to discuss the future of healthcare in the Llynfi Valley. The meeting followed growing concern over the hospital’s long-term role and the potential relocation of services.

Huw Irranca‑Davies MS, who requested the meeting, said it was “frank and honest and robust,” with all sides agreeing that the £30m funding available must be spent locally and not lost to the area.

“We made very clear in the meeting that the people of Maesteg and the Llynfi Valley are passionate about improving the healthcare of the area, and they must be part of the way forward,” he said.

The Health Board confirmed that Maesteg Hospital remains open and that no decision has been taken to close or sell the site. However, it warned that the building faces a multi-million pound maintenance backlog and cannot support the expanded services being proposed.

CTM UHB says it wants to deliver more services for more people, including urgent care, outpatient clinics, mental health support, GP provision and diagnostic imaging. These would be housed in a new Llynfi Valley Health and Wellbeing Centre, with a business case due by March 2027.

While the hospital currently offers limited services, the Health Board says its configuration and condition make it unsuitable for modern healthcare delivery. Feasibility studies suggest that upgrading the existing site would cost more than £40m — well above the available budget.

A new site at Ewenny Road is now being considered, with early assessments indicating it could deliver the proposed services within budget. If chosen, Maesteg Hospital would remain open until the new facility is ready.

The Health Board has ruled out building new hospital beds, citing international evidence that prolonged hospital stays can harm older patients. Instead, it plans to expand “hospital at home” services and secure intermediate care beds in local care homes.

CTM UHB said:

“We could not countenance missing out on the potential for £30m to be spent in a community with significant health challenges.”

Local representatives raised concerns about bed provision, transport access, and the need for clearer communication. CTM UHB acknowledged these concerns and committed to more proactive engagement, including in-person events supported by Llais, the independent patient voice body.

A like-for-like comparison of site options is expected by Easter 2026, with further public engagement to follow. The next meeting between the Health Board and elected representatives is scheduled for early March.