Watch our film, Briars where once was greatness, which tells the story of the Castle from the mid-19th century until it was no longer lived in and up for sale, only being used for parties from 1909.

This is because the Statutory Register of Parks and Gardens in Wales of Special Historic Interest came into force. The new register replaced the non-statutory one that was first launched in 1994 in response to the growing awareness of the historic importance of designed landscapes and of their vulnerability to development pressure.

All registered historic parks and gardens that are of special historic interest are graded using a system like that used for listed buildings (I, II* and II). The historic layout, features and architectural ornaments of a park or garden are considered together when determining a grade. 

The deer and landscape park plus the formal garden and pleasure grounds around Ruperra Castle have been recognised as Grade 2: parks and gardens of special interest. These make up around 67 per cent of the total number of registered parks and gardens in Wales. Regardless of their grade, all registered historic parks and gardens are treated equally within the planning system.

The image from Cof Cymru shows Grade 2* Ruperra Castle and surrounding outbuildings. It is also recognised as a Scheduled Ancient Monument, Site of Special Scientific Interest and now Grade 2 deer and landscape park plus formal garden and pleasure grounds.

Each registered historic park and garden is given a record where you can read a description and reason for designation. These can now be seen alongside Listed Buildings, Scheduled Ancient Monuments and World Heritage sites on Cof Cymru — National Historic Assets of Wales on Cadw’s website.

Photo credit: Booker T Photography

​Thank you to everyone that came to see us at one of our events over the last month to engage people in our vision and help us finish our new artwork - a reborn Ruperra Castle and gardens by artist Haf Weighton. 

On 25 May we were sponsored at the Senedd by Hefin David, MS for Caerphilly, and chatted to Members of Senedd and the public. 

On 1 June we held a community event at Rudry Parish Hall and guests were able to either take part in an art workshop or walk to the Castle.

The interest in the Castle was fantastic and it was wonderful to meet so many new people.

Our vision is to protect Ruperra Castle and the environmental surroundings of this historic site from inappropriate development. We want to own the Castle and use a range of funding streams to: 

• repair the Castle as a roofed ruin so that it can be preserved for future generations 
• manage the gardens, grounds and outbuildings with a live-in caretaker 
• use it as a base for heritage, archaeology, gardening, and skills training
• commemorate key periods in its history
• encourage sustainable public access.

Find out more about our vision
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