On Wednesday, October 24, residents of Llanfeugan and Pencelli came together to mark the unveiling of a new heritage sign that celebrates the life of St Meugan’s church and its surrounding nature.

To help celebrate the occasion, Bishop John of Swansea and Brecon Diocese attended to bless and unveil the sign.

The sign itself was the result of a project funded through the Brecon Beacons Local Nature Partnership as part of the Local Places for Nature funding. The project focused on bringing new life to one of the 13 yew trees that the graveyard features, which in late 2023 had snapped in half. The church community, wanting to preserve both the tree and graves, brainstormed ideas to make the most out of the dead wood.

The project involved local contractors from a 10-mile radius and focused on celebrating the history of the church with information about the famous trees that reside within the grounds.

Simon, a churchwarden at St Meugan’s said: “As churchwardens and close neighbours of the beautiful church of St Meugan, we are absolutely thrilled with the outcome of the fallen yew. We have watched it being carefully removed by the arborists, planked and dried and made into an amazing piece of furniture by a skilled craftsman.

“The very informative and attractive information board has already resulted in visitors and the local community giving positive comments and I'm sure the church will benefit from its creation.”

The newly-erected sign at St Meugan's
The newly-erected sign (Image supplied)

Once the sign was completed with help from the Brecon Beacons Local Nature Partnership, the community commemorated the project with a short service where more than 40 people came together to the sound of the church bells.

Elizabeth Bramley, Vicar of St Meugan’s said: “I was delighted to see so many people there from the local community and beyond. They were all delighted to see such a beautiful board and learn about this project, while the Bishop led our thoughts back over thousands of years to our deep connections, through the yew trees, to our spiritual heritage, which lives on today.

“One person there told friends, who have visited Llanfeugan twice already!’