A TIRED old bus stop in Letterston has been transformed into a vibrant hang out for the youth of the village.

Local PCSOs and youth workers teamed up with Letterston Youth Club to create a colourful graffiti mural in the building on the St Davids Road junction.

Senior youth worker Sharron Taylor said: “It’s quite a big bus shelter and this project is about making it nicer for the youngsters who hang out there and for the community.

“We’ve had about 15 youngsters come down today (Thursday, April 2) to help paint and the result is amazing.”

PCSO Jude Parr has been heavily involved in the project and is a regular visitor to Letterston Youth Club.

She said: “We've had quite a few problems with criminal damage and anti social behaviour in the area.

“I had a chat with the children and they decided a graffiti mural was something they would like to do. Now that it’s done, I hope they enjoy using it and look after it.”

Helping to create the mural was local graffiti artist Lloyd Roberts, who held a design session with the youngsters to discuss ideas.

He said: “The children wanted to paint stuff that’s important to them, like skateboarding and football. They also wanted to include a fairground because Letterston used to have the biggest one in all of Pembrokeshire.

“I marked it all out and the children have done what’s like a giant paint by numbers. They’ve been a really good team.”

Among the youths taking part were Ellen Smee and Anya Thomas, both 11 years-old from Letterston.

Ellen said: “It was really good fun. It’s a really colourful design. I worked on the fairground and a little bit on the grass.

Anya added: “It’s something that we can be proud of.”

Inspecting the children’s work was Dyfed-Powys Police and Crime Commissioner, Christopher Salmon, who provided funding for the project.

He said: “This is funding that’s come from the Commissioner’s Fund, which takes the ill-gotten gains of crime and gives it back to communities to prevent crime.

“Local PCSOs have identified a possibility for diverting young people away from crime and giving them something to do, and it’s great to see them here fully engaged and building strong relationships with the police.”

Letterston Youth Club meets in Letterston Memorial Hall every Wednesday from 7pm -9pm. A warm welcome is extended to all.