'Heartbroken' caravan owners forced from holiday park

Owners like Gwyn have been told they must remove their caravans by February 2026

Caravan owners at a holiday park overlooking the sea in Porthcawl say they are heartbroken after being told the site will close at the end of October.

They now face having to sell or remove their static caravans from the Happy Valley Caravan Park in Bridgend county or pay £1,000 to have them scrapped.

The caravan owners say they were informed in September that the site would close at the end of October, and that their caravans will have to be removed by the end of February 2026.

Some have been at the site for decades and say the way they have been treated is "disgusting".

The owners of the park, LT management services, have not responded to requests to comment.

Andrea Jones, 64, from Ferndale, Rhondda Cynon Taf has been at the site for 10 years, moving into her caravan every spring and leaving it in late autumn.

She said the site was a community in itself.

"Everybody knows each other and knows everything that's going on. It's absolutely brilliant and it's devastating to see it all go," she said.

A caravan alongside Andrea's has already been removed. She has managed to sell her caravan, but said she lost around £30,000.

Inside the caravan is a mixture of bags and boxes as she packs up her belongings.

Close to tears, she described the way she and the other caravan owners have been treated as "heartless".

Andrea Jones says the way she has been treated is 'heartless'

Around the site there are barren gaps where caravans have already been removed.

People are taking down decking platforms and lifting and removing patio paving stones.

Some are in tears as they load up cars with belongings.

Gwyn Beynon, 76, from Treorchy, Rhondda Cynon Taf loves the site and says he feels terrible.

"It's my home-from-home in the summer and then I go home to my winter residence," he said.

His caravan is being sent abroad to Poland, but he said he was angry and frustrated.

"First of all there was talk and then they wrote a letter telling us the site was closing".

He added: "The way they've gone about it has been disgusting."

John Mason hopes to get a caravan in another site nearby

Some caravan owners like John Mason, 76, from Ton Pentre, Rhondda Cynon Taf are looking at going to other sites.

"This is fantastic, look at it, look at the sea behind you, and there's a great community as well," he said. "We made many friends here over the years, but now it's all gone.

"We don't go out at all at home, but down here we used to go to the club and bingo, but that's all closed now."

John is now looking at moving to Trecco Bay caravan park in Porthcawl but said "it won't be the same".