WALES and West Housing has confirmed it now owns the Cardigan Memorial Hospital site.

And the housing provider says it is looking to explore options for the redevelopment of the Pontycleifion site to include, if at all possible, the restoration of the John Nash-designed part of the original building.

Wales and West Housing (WWH) held a drop-in session at Cardigan Guildhall back in February when local residents, councillors and civic leaders had the opportunity to discuss the future of the site.

The feedback made clear the importance of the area in terms of its prominence, its location and its historical significance to the town and its residents.

Following the purchase of the site from Hywel Dda Health Board in May, WWH has made the buildings secure while it carries out assessments and investigations of the buildings to inform the redevelopment.

WWH group deputy chief executive, Shayne Hembrow, is now writing to local town and county councillors, AMs, MPs, civic leaders and local historians with an update and summary of the feedback from the meeting.

He said: “We remain committed to relocating our offices to the site and providing new high-quality older persons housing. We will now seek to appoint an architect who can do justice to the site and we will be inviting proposals from suitably experienced practices.

“We want our architects to be creative in developing options to achieve our aims, and if at all possible, for some or all of the John Nash house to be an integral part of the regeneration of the site.

“Our plans are by no means fully formed or settled but have evolved in light of the feedback and from us being able to view the building.

“It was clear from the comments made at the drop-in session that the site is very important to the people of Cardigan. There were lots of good ideas put forward for possible uses for parts of the site.

"We are better placed to undertake the necessary assessments and evaluation of the building’s condition and what would be necessary to bring it back into some form of use.

“It is clear the works would be considerable, as would the cost, and the coming months will provide a great opportunity to work with experienced architects and explore that in more detail as well as some of the funding options that may be available.”