CONCERNS have been raised about the future of a war memorial, left uncared for and vandalised at the centre of the abandoned Boys' Village in St Athan.

With the centenary of the First World War only months away, Penmark man Gavin Davies raised the issue of what will be done with the St Athan memorial when the site makes way for a planned housing development.

The old Boys' Village was founded by coal magnate David Davies as a holiday camp for the sons of miners.

As well serving as a military base during the Second World War, the village saw many uses over the years and continued to take in holidays until it closed in1990.

At the centre of the now disused site is a memorial to those who died in both World Wars , which has sadly fallen foul of both natural weathering and vandals.

Mr Davies said: "I am sure that none of us in the Vale would be happy that a memorial to those who died so that we could be free has been treated in this way.

"Secondly, I am also certain that we all would be keen to ensure that the council take steps to ensure that the memorial is restored as part of the development of the site."

The site has been earmarked for a five-house development and the Vale of Glamorgan Council confirmed that the preservation of the memorial is foremost of the conditions required of developers.

A council spokeswoman said: "Planning permission has been granted for the conversion or rebuild of the buildings to form five dwellings.

"The planning permissions each contain a condition that requires a scheme for the protection of the memorial to be submitted to and agreed by the local planning authority, the Vale of Glamorgan Council.

"This is to ensure that the memorial is protected during the course of development. It is also our understanding that the applicant is certainly intending to remove any graffiti from the memorial."