Norwegian Church Arts Centre in Cardiff Bay faces privatisation

The Norwegian Church and Roald Dahl

The land was gifted in 1869 by the Marquis of Bute to set up the church and had heavy involvement from Roald Dahl during his lifetime.

The author was born in Llandaff in 1916 to Norwegian parents and was christened at the church, worshipping there often with his family.

In 1987, he set up a charity to help raise money to save the building and became the first president of the Norwegian Church Preservation Trust. He stayed in this position until his death in 1990.

The Norway-Cardiff link

During the 1800s, there was a coal boom in contemporary society. Over 70,000 Scandinavian sailors were arriving in Cardiff Bay per year aboard merchant ships.

Welsh mines used Norwegian wood as pit props to hold the mines up. In turn, the Norwegian fleets transported the Welsh coal around the world.

The Norwegian Church was established to provide a social space for the sailors and their families, acting as a home-from-home.

The Welsh Norwegian Society

The society was formed in 1995 with the aim of bringing people with family connections to Norway and those with an interest in Norwegian culture together. They wanted to create a greater cultural understanding between the people of Wales and of Norway, and to celebrate the long-standing relationship between the two nations.

Anyone can join the society and they run Norwegian coffee and cake gatherings at the Arts Centre once a month, alongside other events.

On 24 November they are running a Christmas tree decorating session also at the Norwegian Church Arts Centre.

You can find the Welsh Norwegian Society on Facebook and Twitter.

What’s on at the Norwegian Church Arts Centre?

The church hosts dementia and Alzheimer’s support groups on a Monday evening, an equal access dramatic society also on a Monday and has also held performances during the Hand in Hand festival, a celebration of LGBT+ choirs from around the country. Their website has a full list of classes and events including yoga, craft fayres and Christmas tree lightings.

You can find the Norwegian Church Arts Centre on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

The gift shop can also be found on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

The sun shines behind the Norwegian Church Arts Centre

The church has been open for 150 years but Cardiff Council wish to privatise it for commercial gain in the Bay

Almost 6,000 people have signed a petition to save the Norwegian Church Arts Centre in Cardiff Bay from privatisation. The council have not yet clarified exactly what this will mean for the cultural hub.

In May, the council announced they were considering privatising the church due to its commercial potential.

A small scale model of the Norwegian Church sits in front of an old picture of the building, inside a glass case — Small exhibitions showing the building’s history are dotted around the Roald Dahl Gallery

The church on Harbour Way has charity status and is owned by the Norwegian Church Preservation Trust. In 2006, Cardiff Council became the sole named trustee.

The Norwegian Church Arts Centre attracts local and overseas visitors, acting as a cultural hub of Cardiff.

Upstairs in the Roald Dahl Gallery sits an arts and crafts gift shop full of employees eager to tell visitors about the history of Cardiff and its links to Norway. The employees direct visitors to other local areas to show what the country has to offer.

A wall feature displays a timeline of Roald Dahl's life and links to Cardiff — Roald Dahl was instrumental in the maintenance of the building, and the church holds a commemoration day every year on 13 September, the author’s birthday

Paula Davies-Ball of Barry said the building was iconic. “It sits as a feature like a beacon in the bay,” she said. Paula is a crafter-in-residence in the church’s gift shop which has been a permanent fixture for the last two years.

Speaking of the council’s plans for the building, she said it would be a shame to see the church go or not be used as intended.

Vases of wax roses sit behind a visitor book on a wooden table. The book contains scrawled comments from visitors to the Norwegian Church Arts Centre — The visitor book is signed by local residents but also visitors from Italy – someone described the centre as having a great atmosphere, saying it is “good for the soul”

The privatisation of the church could mean that the 70 businesses currently trading from the premises will no longer be able to use this space.

The council’s plans for the building are not finalised. If the charity was to be dissolved the assets would need to be put towards similar activities of cultural education.

A collection of Roald Dahl's work in both English and Norwegian is displayed in a glass cabinet — Roald Dahl’s works in both English and Norwegian are displayed around the gallery

Benjamin Drury, 37, is the organiser of craft fayres in the church. He said the Norwegian Church Arts Centre has been a home for people for the last 150 years and spoke of the importance to preserve the knowledge for others to benefit from in the future.

He said, “It is an important place of history that regrettably hasn’t had the care and attention that a charity deserves.”