A church bought by Aberystwyth Town Council for £360,000 is still not ready to be used as a community hub despite a £240,000 renovation budget, and now councillors are discussing moving council meetings away from the venue over capacity and acoustic issues.

Neuadd Gwenfrewi, formerly known as St Winefride’s church, was purchased in early 2021 by Aberystwyth Town Council with the intention of transforming it into their base and a community hub.

The building on Queens Road, bought for £360,000, is the first building to be owned by the town council since 1974.

The council agreed to spend £240,000 on the restoration of a section of the former church building, with the first move to refurbish the former church’s presbytery to provide its offices and meeting spaces.

That work has been completed, but as the Cambrian News reported earlier this year, the building is still far from ready to welcome the public as a community hub.

The town council clerk advised councillors in March against allowing public use “due to the condition of the building”, saying that the building still had no toilets, was not accessible, there are no fire safety measures in place, the electrics had not yet been tested and certified, there was “structural instability to the north transept” and “significant water ingress between the church and entrance porch.”

The clerk told members that “in light of the building’s condition, insurance would likely not cover public use.”

That meeting heard that the council “had purchased the hall for community benefit” but that “progress was needed to bring it into use.”

Now a General Management Committee meeting on 14 September has heard that not only is the building not ready for public use, it now may not be suitable to hold council meetings.

Minutes of the meeting say that councillors “considered options for the future location of Council meetings and discussed measures to improve capacity at Neuadd Gwenfrewi”, while “noting that meeting at external venues was costly.”

Concerns were raised at the meeting regarding acoustics within the church and it was suggested that advice be sought on potential improvements.

Temporary sound dampening installations, such as carpet or fabric panels was suggested.

It was also noted that the installation of a screen in the adjoining meeting room could allow members of the public to view meetings when the main chamber reached capacity.

Members also discussed the temporary use of two rooms for larger meetings.

The meeting considered alternative venues, including St Paul’s Methodist Centre, Merched y Wawr Hall, Plas Antaron and the Salvation Army Hall, “particularly in light of venue costs and accessibility.”

Councillors on the committee recommended that “alternative meeting venues be investigated to try and reduce costs”, and that “the Neuadd Gwenfrewi Working Group consider these in the context of development of the former church.”

Aberystwyth Town Council only moved into the refurbished office and meeting space in its new building in 2024, while the council has previously said the total renovation cost of Neuadd Gwenfrewi will be around £1m.