A SERIES of sculptures will branch out over the banks of the Western Cleddau in Haverfordwest, following approval by Pembrokeshire County Council planners.

The three public artworks will take the form of bronze tree-like shapes supporting woven willow features in their branches, and could be installed by June 2018 on land in the public ownership.

The first will be just south of the Old Bridge on the edge of the Riverside Shopping Centre; the second will be just south of the New Bridge; and the third will be just north of the weir, opposite county hall.

Planning permission was also granted for a fourth sculpture.

The sculptures will have a minimum lifespan of 10 years, and both the bronze cast and the willow fixtures are designed to be demountable, allowing for easy replacement of the willow with the opportunity of other artwork in the future.

The sculptures are part of a wider project which aims to use the arts to regenerate the town centre organised by Confluence, a partnership between Pembrokeshire County Council, PLANED, spacetocreate, iDeA Architects and Transition Haverfordwest.

PCC submitted the application to the planning authority on behalf of Confluence.

An architecture practice called Studio Weave was chosen to design the sculptures after meeting regularly with the community and Confluence to discuss ideas.

The sculptures are the final part of a three-year arts programme which has taken place thanks to £450,000 funding from Arts Council Wales’ Places, People, Ideas scheme.

The combined cost of the sculptures and their installation is £80,000, with Pembrokeshire County Council contributing £8,000 towards the project.

This has come via 10% match funding (£45,000) the council gave towards the original Arts Council Wales grant.

A spokesperson for PCC said: “The Ideas, People, Places Arts Council Wales funding which has enabled the public artworks to be commissioned came from lottery funding as opposed to public funding from taxation.

“Lottery funding of this nature cannot be used for other purposes such as social services, health, education etc.

“So if the Confluence partnership had not applied for the funding, the investment would simply have gone to another town in Wales for them to deliver arts-based economic regeneration activity instead of Haverfordwest benefiting.

“This work forms part of a much wider strategy underpinned by the Haverfordwest Master Plan which seeks to regenerate the town centre, promoting the river corridor and riverside promenade.

“This work should therefore be seen in its wider context alongside other projects such as the new flagship County library, exhibition gallery in partnership with the National Library of Wales, and Visitor Information Centre which is set to open later this year.”

For more information about Studio Weave and to view the design and access statement please see thelabhaverfordwest.org