Bettws
| |
|---|---|
 Parish church of St David | |
  Bettws Location withinNewport | |
| Population | 7,978 (2019 census)[1] |
| OS grid reference | ST289905 |
| Principal area | |
| Preserved county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | NEWPORT |
| Postcode district | NP20 |
| Dialling code | 01633 |
| Police | Gwent |
| Fire | South Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
51°36′32″N3°01′41″W / 51.609°N 03.028°W /51.609; -03.028  Map of the community | |
Bettws (Welsh:Betws) is a large modernhousing estate,electoral ward and coterminouscommunity (parish) of the city ofNewport,South Wales.
The name of the village comes from theMiddle English wordbedhus, meaning "prayer house", which becamebetws inWelsh.[2]
The housing estate was built in the 1960s, and the large majority of houses are identical in plan and design. The roads in the estate are all named after rivers. 51.8% of housing is privately owned, and 42.6% is rented from eitherNewport City Council or localhousing associations, such as Charter Housing. In 2009 Newport City Council transferred ownership of its social housing and most of the land it owned in the area to Newport City Homes, a housing association.
The estate was built around the 17th-centuryparish church ofSt David in Bettws, which is the likely origin of the name 'Bettws', a place of prayer or private chapel.[citation needed] St David's is a grade twolisted building and is currently in need of a £40,000 renovation.[citation needed]John Frost, who ledChartist protests in Newport for universal suffrage in the 1830s (theNewport Rising), is alleged to have married Mary Geach at the church.[3]
The ward is bounded byMalpas to the east, the city boundary withTorfaen to the north,Rogerstone to the west, and theM4 motorway andAllt-yr-yn to the south.
In recent years it has benefited greatly from the introduction of sporting facilities such as new football pitches.Bettws RFC is arugby union team playing in theWRU Division Five East. Malpas Civil Service F.C. is afootball team located in Bettws playing in theGwent County Football League, Division 1. Malpas Cricket Club is also situated on Bettws Lane in Bettws.[citation needed]
In the2012 Police and Crime Commissioner election, held on 15 November 2012, a polling station at Malpas Cricket Club recorded no votes from the 8,737 voters.[3]
Bettws is an electoral ward toNewport City Council.
