A Cwmaman councillor has claimed that the refurbishment of Glanaman Workshops could prove a catalyst to kick-start the Amman Valley economy.

Councillor David Jenkins, who represents Glanaman at town and county council level, has long championed the regeneration of the Tabernacle Road facilities and believes that – if made available to small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) - the renovation of the site could create the first stage of a manufacturing base for the region.

“It is extremely important that SMEs are given the chance to develop and grow,” Cllr Jenkins told the Guardian.

“In the past 12 months I have had a number people in the community approaching me asking whether there were any small-scale industrial units available within the area.”

Cllr Jenkins, who has campaigned for the redevelopment of the workshops since standing for the county council in 2011, said one of the key elements of the redevelopment would be ensuring that units were available within a price range accessible to small and start-up businesses.

“One of the major problems of this area is that most people now travel out of the valley each day to work,” he said.

“The valley has become a domiciliary area in that people live here but go elsewhere to work.

“In the past there were 300 people working at the workshops site.”

Recent figures have shown that if all SMEs in Wales employed just one more person, the unemployment problem would be removed in an instant.

Cllr Jenkins believes that giving small firms the opportunity to rent property at reasonable rates had the potential to transform the valley.

“Making units accessible could be the catalyst for developing entrepreneurship and local industry.

“Lots of these companies begin life in someone’s garage and they simply need the opportunity to expand, but they need to be able to make a small step up.

“If priced correctly, the Glanaman workshops could play a vital role in transforming the entire valley.”

Currently plans are underway to renovate one of the two factory-sized units on the site while demolishing the second and replacing it with smaller, more SME-friendly facilities.