Riverside, Cardiff

Riverside electoral ward of Cardiff

This former synagogue is now an office block, and is on Cathedral Road.

Riverside (Welsh: Glan yr Afon) is an inner-city southern area of Cardiff, capital of Wales. Riverside is also the name of the electoral ward, which can be split into two very different parts, Riverside and Pontcanna. These two areas have noticeably different demographics and are divided by Cowbridge Road East, with Pontcanna located to the north.

Riverside-proper, south of Cowbridge Road East, consists mainly of terraced houses and is a focus for much of the city's ethnic minority population, with sizeable communities of Bangladeshis, Sikh and Chinese, particularly around Tudor Street which has a strongly ethnic feel to it.

Although one of Cardiff's poorer areas, Riverside has much to offer with many Chinese, Halal, Indian, and West Indian shops selling a range of foods. The Riverside Community Market Association has also made great strides in recent years by gradually building up a weekly Sunday Farmers' market.

Public art at the site of the Riverside Farmers Market

Other signs of regeneration include the area becoming the focus for Cardiff's rapidly expanding budget accommodation with three backpacking hostels in close proximity to each other.

Pontcanna on the other hand, is a very well to do area of wide tree-lined streets and large houses. It is a gentrified "media Village" with a cafe culture-lifestyle centred around Pontcanna Street and Cathedral Road. It is interesting demographically due to both its large English born population and large Welsh language speaking political and media class.

Sophia Gardens is home to the Glamorgan County Cricket Club, and the Sport Wales National Centre.

Government

The Riverside electoral ward falls into the parliamentary constituency of Cardiff West. It is bounded by the wards of Gabalfa to the north; Cathays to the east; Grangetown to the south; and Canton and Llandaff to the west.

Local Organisations

The Cardiff & District Branch of The Samaritans is situated on the Riverside end of Cowbridge Road East.

Famous people

• Ivor Novello composer, singer, actor

External links

• www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Riverside and surrounding area
• Riverside Market