Heledd Fychan Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr

I’m proud to be part of the Plaid Cymru team with Lisbeth McLean and Sara Crowley, representing and supporting the people of Pontypridd, Cynon and Merthyr in our local communities and in our Senedd.   Here you can learn more about one of my colleagues, Lis McLean, her background and what she'd like to achieve in her first terms as a Member of the Senedd

Lisbeth McLean is a community leader with over 20 years’ experience of working with the people of Merthyr Tydfil to promote the Welsh language, community development, and local empowerment. As Chief Officer of Menter Iaith Merthyr Tudful and Managing Director of Canolfan a Theatr Soar, she has played a leading role in creating opportunities for people of all ages to engage with the language and culture in meaningful and practical ways. 

Lisbeth studied Economics at the University of Aberdeen and Swansea University before going on to teach Economics and Business Studies. Her background in education has informed her work in the third sector, bringing a strategic understanding of how to support individuals and communities to grow, thrive, and become more self-reliant. 

Deeply passionate about social justice, equality, and ensuring that all voices are heard, Lisbeth’s work focuses on building partnerships, supporting grassroots initiatives, and strengthening the presence of the Welsh language in everyday life. Her dedication and leadership have made a lasting impact in Merthyr and beyond. 

She continues to champion the idea that sustainable communities are built from the ground up—through language, identity, and a shared vision for a better future. 

I’m proud to be part of the Plaid Cymru team with Lisbeth McLean and Sara Crowley, representing and supporting the people of Pontypridd, Cynon and Merthyr in our local communities and in our Senedd.   Here you can learn more about one of my colleagues, Sera Crowley, her background and what she'd like to achieve in her first terms as a Member of the Senedd.

Born and brought up in the Cynon Valley, she lives there with her family and is proud of her heritage.  Rooted in her community, she understands the realities facing people across the valleys, and the strengths too. 

Her career has focused on standing alongside children and young people, especially those at risk of being overlooked. Sara qualified as a primary school teacher through the medium of Welsh at Trinity College, Carmarthen, before working for a crime prevention charity in secondary schools and prisons, supporting people at challenging points in their lives.  

Before entering politics, she spent a decade in the NHS, where she developed SEREN Connect, a national education programme co-produced with young people to improve support for adolescents living with type 1 diabetes. 

Living with type 1 diabetes from a young age shaped her activism and determination to see systems work better for everyone. Sara believes politics should be compassionate and rooted in people’s everyday lives. She is passionate about amplifying unheard voices, encouraging more women into politics, and challenging the barriers, that hold people back, making sure no one is left behind.  Here we ask her a few questions about her journey to becoming a Senedd Member and what she hopes to achieve during her term.   

I will continue to campaign to better protect the health of the communities affected by the Quarry and am interested to know how living in close proximity affects you and what impact it has on your day to day lives so that we can provide further evidence to the Welsh Government of the impact of the quarry on public health.

Any information you share will be held by my office and will form the basis of an anonymised community report.  The final report will be published and made available on my website.  You can complete the questionnaire online by clicking here: https://tinyurl.com/ycy3tv3d

I hope you will be willing to answer this questionnaire as the more respondents we have, the more comprehensive the evidence. 

I am grateful and honoured to be re-elected as a Member of the Senedd for the new constituency of Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr constituency.

My office in Pontypridd has now re-opened and you can call in for support or advice between 10am and 4pm, Monday to Friday.  Our address is 2 High St, Pontypridd, CF37 1QJ.  Alternatively, you can contact us by emailing [email protected] or calling 01443 853214.

The new constituency includes Pontypridd, the Cynon Valley, the whole of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, and areas around Llantrisant and Llanharan.  You can find out whether you live in the constituency on this page and scroll to Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr section towards the bottom of the page to see the map.

In the last weeks of the Sixth Senedd, I stood in solidarity with Cwm Taf Morgannwg’s health visitors, who have been on strike since the beginning of March.  I also questioned the First Minister on the matter, asking the Welsh Government to intervene.  They deserve fair pay that reflects their qualifications, responsibilities and professional status.  

These are all women and work in some of the most deprived communities in Wales delivering essential public health and support children and their families.  The need to be rewarded correctly for the work that they do and are being denied by a health board not willing to implement what they have already agreed.    

They have showed incredible resilience for well over two years and have been forced to enter another ballot to strike for a second month.   

The health board must deliver on previous commitments, and if they don’t, the Welsh Government must take action. Social partnership should be meaningful.  

Race Equality First have launched their Welsh Government–funded opportunity designed to support confident, credible and well prepared future leaders across Wales.

The Representing Wales leadership programme helps participants develop the skills, resilience and insight needed for political and public life.

It was great to meet members of Glo i Natur Community Interest Company at the Cwm Tips in Beddau on Monday and discuss its importance for wildlife — and the wider value of coal spoil sites across South Wales. We talked about their ongoing work to restore flower-rich grasslands for the Small Blue butterfly and other species, as well as their upcoming volunteer habitat management days and planned visits from local primary schools. 

The Cwm Tips site is an example of the wonderful work that Glo i Natur does in preserving the precious biodiversity at these sites and has a remarkable wealth of unique wildlife, which includes over 600 invertebrate species, and over 50 bee species and rare pollinators.   

The work done also contributes to ensuring the safety of our old sites, so that we safeguard communities across Wales from the threat posed by our mining legacy.