“Hi Jess_82

It is great to hear people supporting Swansea's businesses and communities however as an area of historic high unemployment and with many being on such low wages that they require state subsidisation (working tax credit), £10 for a night out is simply too much for a lot of people. I love cafe culture yet I know that I am lucky to be able to afford to buy a cup of tea in a cafe now, I haven't always been able to and I remember clearly how excluded I felt during those long years when I couldn't. There is a reason why the law has traditionally turned a blind eye to squatting of empty buildings in the UK- the cost to society of high levels of homelessness and the cost to local economies of ghost towns and willfully neglected buildings is far higher than that of the inconvenience of small groups of people discreetly setting up home (or publicly in the cases of social centres like Cwtch)

There will always be an ignorant minority who misinterpret the law and think that they can move into a house when someone has been out for ten minutes. Sadly the right wing press has sought out such cases (not squatting!!!) and sensationalised the whole issue, meanwhile the desperate have been further misled which will only increase the chances of a rise in the number of such cases. Very sad for both the property owners and ordinary squatters who take the time to identify genuinely abandoned buildings that would benefit from some repairs and an active presence in order to prevent them from becoming an eyesore and a health hazard for the whole community. The Cwtch cafe seems to be providing some relief and warmth to a good number of Swansea folk and they seem a very well intentioned and considerate group. Grants are drying up and bureaucracy takes time. It is not easy to set up a social project 'officially'. I commend these people for doing something NOW to help the Swansea community.

I would like to hear about the social projects of those who criticise 'Cwtch' so that we can all learn how they do it better.”

“I'm sorry that my comments made Wyn Perkins 'laugh his ass off'.

Your response though seems to suggest that you have misread my comment. I refer to venues in Swansea supporting 'the arts' not simply 'art' and so your comment that 'monkey folk don't care about art' doesn't seem to make any sense in the context I was referring to. 'The arts' refer to visual, literary and performing arts - including music, theatre, performance. And so again I would argue that venues such as 'monkey' do support 'the arts'. Last year they hosted 'Stratch that itch' events upstairs -(http://tinyurl.com/72j6k5h) - which served as a platform to performers and writers to show work that is in the early stages of development.

I'm sorry that you find the prices at Noah's Yard expensive. But they do have a space upstairs which is available for hire and has been used for various events. Last year I went to 'The One Eyed Man' at Noah's which was a Social Experiment held upstairs and was nothing to do with Noah. Tickets were £3 and there was no expectation that I had to buy a drink. Although I did have a couple of glasses of wine and still managed an alternative night out all for under a tenner.

For anyone interested 'The One Eyed Man' is back with further shows but this time at Volcano's great new space @229 High Street.

http://tinyurl.com/825c8tc”

“@Jess_82, lmao, Noas Yard? Even the rich people I know wont go in there, 6 quid a pint? The only art I have seen there is Banksy behind glass, Brunswick show good art, Monkey folk don't care about art”

“There are other venues in Swansea which support the arts and could do with genuine business and trade. There are new spaces being opened and finished on High Street that will be official community spaces. Noah's Yard, The Junction, Monkey all support alternative forms of performance etc. Some of the articles and quotes in relation to the aims of the squatters seem to suggest that Swansea is devoid of community spirit, culture and the space to come together. I don't think this is true and I fear that it will undervalue the hard work of others who are following the legal and correct ways to provide sustainable venues for art, culture and community events in Swansea.”

“Don't worry, Chelsea, they're bringing people into town and those people are probably spending money in the surrounding businesses. It feels, to me, like they're going to make things better.”

“Can someone tell me how these people can afford to run such a building or are the people of Swansea paying?? The law on squatters right needs to be reviewed but it seems the current tennant is not bothered. At the minute these people seem friendly enough but what are they going to be like when they have to leave the building legally? Until then good luck to them.”

“GET THE SCRUFFS OUT NOW, IF THEY ARE NOT OUT WITHIN 24 HOURS WE SHOULD ALL STOP PAYING OUR RATES, YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED”