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Future of planned festive events in question after criminal damage to Barry Town Hall

Thursday, 5 November 2026 at 11:59

Barry Town Council has said it must review the viability of planned festive events and activities to ensure they can be delivered safely, following ongoing anti-social behaviour and criminal damage around King Square.

The statement comes after Criminal Damage to the Town Hall on Wednesday, 4th November, with reports of smashed windows and damage to property.

Bro Radio has also been informed that the King Square flagpole has been torn down by young people, meaning the Union Jack flag will not be flying on King Square this Remembrance Sunday.

In recent weeks, Barry Town Council has announced reductions to its opening hours at the Town Hall, following a series of anti-social behaviour incidents in King Square, which included reports of verbal abuse and threats directed at Council staff.

Those reports have been supported by local traders reporting damage to property, bins being set alight and large numbers of young people gathering on King Square.

In a statement provided to Bro Radio, a spokesperson for Barry Town Council said "Barry Town Council condemns in the strongest possible terms the criminal damage carried out at Town Hall overnight by a small minority of individuals. The deliberate and senseless vandalism of around a dozen windows has caused significant damage and has forced the temporary suspension of in-person services from our offices."

"The safety and wellbeing of our staff, visitors and the wider community remains our absolute priority. While the situation remains unresolved, the Council must carefully consider how services are delivered, and review the viability of planned festive events and activities to ensure they can be delivered safely."

"Let us be clear: this behaviour is wholly unacceptable. We will continue to work closely with our partners to identify those responsible and take all appropriate steps to address the ongoing antisocial behaviour affecting the town. Those responsible must be held accountable for their actions."

South Wales Police have confirmed that the incident is under investigation, and that they remain committed to ensuring the Town Centre is a safe space for people to enjoy.

Sergeant Andrew Nealon said:” We were alerted to the criminal damage today at the County Library on King’s Square this morning, and the incident is now under investigation. Officers will be checking CCTV and carrying out forensic work to try to identify who was responsible, and I am urging anybody with information about the incident to contact 101, giving reference 2600361567. Or they can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

"We remain committed to ensuring our town centre is a safe space for people to enjoy, and this type of behaviour won’t be tolerated. We have already taken a range of proactive and reactive measures to tackle it. We have identified many young people in connection with the issue and officer have visited their homes to speak to parents and guardians and are referring individuals through the anti-social behaviour framework. 

"Other measures we are taking include dispersal orders in hot-spot areas, proactive patrols in these areas, and the review of CCTV availability to support any criminal investigations. We are also working in close partnership with the Vale of Glamorgan Council, schools, and Youth Justice Services to tackle the community concerns through a multi-disciplinary approach." 

The Vale of Glamorgan Council have been approached for a comment.

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