To thatch or not to thatch - that is the question (From Western Telegraph)

To thatch or not to thatch - that is the question

A FILM COMPANY has unwittingly stirred up a lively debate on the rights and wrongs of thatching houses in the Pembrokeshire countryside.

Abereiddy, a former fishing village on the North Pembrokeshire coast, is being featured in a Welsh period drama.

To set the scene, the roofs of a group of cottages owned by Mair Richards, of The Old Vicarage, Llanhowell, were temporarily covered with grass thatch.

The majority of properties in this tiny village are holiday homes and are let through Coastal Cottages of Pembrokeshire.

The Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority had been notified of the temporary thatching and the grass was removed on Wednesday when filming ended.

But it has raised questions on how appropriate it is to thatch properties in the National Park.

Many of the older buildings in Pembrokeshire would have been thatched before the increased use of slate in the 19th century.

The last building to be thatched in the National Park was a cottage at Tretio, near St Davids, completed recently using the North Pembrokeshire tradition of thatch with a slate underlap.

The most famous thatched cottage in the county is Penrhos, Pembrokeshire County Councils Ty Un Nos in the Preseli Hills. This property, named as such because it was built in one night, is now a museum.

A spokesman for the Park Authority said it welcomes thatching where appropriate. The authority looks upon this as a sustainable material and supports its use in the right context on buildings which were historically thatched.

Master thatcher Alan Jones, of Newport, is witnessing a resurgence of thatching in Ceredigion. He is currently laying fresh thatch on a house at Nebo.

It is far less common in Pembrokeshire, he said, but he will soon be starting work on a house in Eglwyswrw.

Maintenance costs put many people off and some planning authorities object because of the fire risk.

What most people dont realise is that 200 years ago thatch was predominately used as a roof covering in this area, said Alan Jones.