Bishton Community Council (Welsh : Cyngor Cymuned Trefesgob) covers the three villages of Underwood, Bishton and Wilcrick. Located on the eastern side of the City of Newport, on the border with Monmouthshire, our Community has a mixture of urban and rural characteristics.The area forms part of the Llanwern electoral district (ward) and contains the eastern end of Llanwern Steelworks, the relatively modern Underwood estate and two historic villages of Bishton and Wilcrick. The total population of the community is estimated at about 2200.
Underwood was originally a substantial housing estate built by the local authority in the early 1960s, partly to provide accommodation and services for people working at the newly-opened steelworks at Llanwern. Underwood has a primary school, playing fields and play areas, allotments, a grocery- post office, a pharmacy, other shops, a Baptist church, the Iscoed Tafarn public house, and adjacent health and community centres.
A mile from Underwood is the village of
Bishton whose historic name was “Bishop’s Town”. It is a linear village dating back to the post-Roman period when it was a centre for the Bishops of Llandaff. It has a strong association with Cadwaladr the Blessed, the last Welsh king to claim sovereignty of Britain.
Cadwaladr later became a Welsh Christian Saint and Bishton’s Church is named after him, one of only three in Wales. Key features of Bishton today are St Cadwaladr’s Church, the former Primary School (now the village hall), a number of houses dating from the 17th/18th centuries together with more recent dwellings including several converted from agricultural barns. Its population is about 150.
Wilcrick is now a very small village (population about 30) a mile or so from Bishton and just to the west of Magor. It was formerly a much larger settlement, served by its Church (St Mary the Virgin) located on the lower slope of the former Iron Age hillfort on Wilcrick Hill which is a major local feature.
To read more about these villages, please click here.