Christmas and New Year Opening Hours 2023

For the latest news and information follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook 

Christmas and New Year Opening Hours 2023

The Council, including the customer contact centre will be CLOSED from 4pm on Friday 22nd December until 8.30am Tuesday 2nd January 2024 – this applies to ALL major services aside from out-of-hours emergencies and limited vital services.

If the service area you are looking for is not highlighted below, please see individual pages or websites for details of their opening hours over the festive period. 

You can still access a wide range of online services during this period, however residents are reminded that the request may not be processed until 'offices' re-open at 9am on Tuesday 2nd January 2024.

Bins and Recycling

Your Recycling and Waste collections WILL CHANGE this festive period please leave your items at your normal collection point on your revised collection day. This applies to ALL recycling collections, including nappies, food and CLEAR bag recycling.

FULL details can be found on these pages

W/C Monday 25th December Collections 

Collections due on Monday 25th December will be collected on Wednesday 27th December and will skip 2 days all week - Monday to Wednesday, Tuesday to Thursday, Wednesday to Friday, Thursday to Saturday, Friday to Sunday.

All refuse and recycling (which includes CLEAR bag, nappies and food waste recycling) should be placed at its collection point by 7am on your revised collection day.

W/C Monday 1st January 2024 Collections 

All collections will skip just 1 day – so Monday’s collection will be collected on Tuesday etc. This applies to ALL your scheduled collections for recycling, food, nappies and black bag waste for the week commencing Monday 1st January (New Year week).

All refuse and recycling (including nappies and food waste recycling) should be placed at its normal collection point by 7am on your normal collection days.

If your refuse/recycling has not been collected as planned, please leave it at the kerbside as we may be working additional hours to meet extra demand. Our crews can work well into the evening during busy periods.

The Community Recycling Centres are open from 8am until 5.30pm every day except for a 3.30pm closure on 24th and 31st December and complete closure on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Day and re-open on Tuesday 2nd January 2024.

The Council is also running its Christmas Tree Recycling Service from 2nd January to 2nd February 2024 and residents can now start booking their time slot within that period.

This information, in greater detail, is available on the Christmas recycling pages on this website

Please visit the recycling pages for general recycling information, including find my collection day and the searchable A-Z recycling guide.

Social Care

If you need to contact a member of the Social Care team over the festive period please use the following numbers:

• Out-of-hours Social Care emergencies, including weekends and bank holidays, including the festive period call: 01443 743665.

For people who need to contact their direct service provider over the bank holiday weekend please contact them direct using the contact information they have provided.

Meals on Wheels

The team will support its clients over the festive period and a menu has been provided to all clients to pre-order where needed. 

The Community Meals team will support its service users over the festive period and menu options have been discussed with service users to pre-order where needed. 

More information is available on these pages. 

Homelessness

Information and advice can be found on the homelessness page of this website 

An out of hours emergency service is also available throughout the festive period by calling 01443 425011.

Registrars

General office WILL NOT be open during the festive period – 25^th December to 2nd January 2024 for certificate applications/issue.  

The Register Office, Municipal Buildings, Pontypridd will operate as follows over the Christmas period: 

Cemeteries and Bereavement Service

The main office (Glyntaff) will operate as follows over the Christmas period: 

Full burials will be available on 22^nd December until 2pm - All relevant paperwork must be received no later than Friday 15th December 3pm.

There will be no availability for full burials or for cremated remains at full depth at our cemeteries between Wednesday 27th December and Tuesday 2nd January 2024.

Interments scheduled for 4^th January should submit completed documents no later than 3pm on 21^st December 2023.

Our services will resume in full on 4^th January 2024.  

There are currently no changes in place for Cemetery grounds over the festive period.

Cemetery grounds will be open every day from 9am until 4pm even on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New year’s day. 

• View Cemetery opening hours.

There are sometimes exceptional circumstances when we have to close the cemeteries to vehicles at short notice.  

If it is necessary to close a cemetery to vehicles, a notice is placed on the Cemetery gates advising the public. As soon as it is safe to do so the Cemetery gates are opened to vehicles.  

The cemeteries can be accessed by pedestrians when closed to vehicles but we would urge people to exercise caution when visiting our cemeteries in adverse weather and to ensure they wear appropriate clothing and footwear to avoid falls and injury.  

Public Conveniences

All public toilets across Rhondda Cynon Taf will operate under the following hours over the festive period:

Full details and locations on these facilities can be found here – Public Toilets

Leisure Centres

Visit the Leisure website or follow the @RCTLeisureService on facebook for details of your local centre's opening hours.

Rhondda Heritage Park Museum

Black Gold Tours are currently closed and will recommence on 16^th January 2024
Caffe Bracchi
Christmas Eve - Open Until 2pm
Caffe Bracchi will be closed over the Christmas and New Year period and re-open on 4^th January 2024

Craft of Hearts will be open until Christmas Eve, classes will resume on 9^th January 2024

National Lido of Wales - Lido Ponty

Visit the Lido Ponty website or follow @LidoPonty on Twitter and facebook for details of activities and opening hours.

Libraries

Libraries will closed from Monday 25th December until Tuesday 2nd January 2024.

View details of Library services

Gartholwg Lifelong Learning Centre will be closed from close of play Friday 22nd December until Tuesday 2nd January 2024 with activities commencing the following week.

One4all Advice Service

One4all offices will be closed from Monday 25th December and will re-open on Tuesday 2nd January 2024.

• Book an appointment for after the Christmas period here

Dare Valley Country Park

The Dare Valley Country Park will operate under the following hours over the festive period:

The park will be open daily but the Visitor Centre is closed from 23^rd December – 2^nd January.
Caffi Cwtsh
Christmas Day – Closed
Boxing Day – Closed
27/12/23 – 31/12/23 - Normal Opening Hours
New Year’s Day  - Closed

Gravity Family Bike Park
Sat 23rd- 9am - 5pm
Christmas Eve- closed
Christmas Day- closed
Boxing Day- closed
27th December  - 30th December  - Open 9am - 5pm
New Year's Eve - 9am - 2:30pm
New Year's Day - Closed 

Theatres

Visit the RCT Theatres website or follow @RCTtheatres on Twitter and @ColiseumTheatreAberdare @ParkandDare on Facebook for details.

School Closures and School Transport

All schools are currently CLOSED from Friday 22nd December (subject to planned inset days) due to Christmas Holidays.

• Schools will re-open on Monday 8th January (subject to any planned inset days after the Christmas break).

Please use the links below for the latest information about school closures, term times and school transport.

• View further information on school term dates, inset days and emergency closures.
• View further information on school transport routes and emergency changes to the service.

Road Closures

For the latest information on Road Closures visit these pages -

• Road Closures

Car Parks

The Council’s Pay and Display Car Parks in Aberdare and Pontypridd are FREE as part of the Council's festive parking initiative in Aberdare and Pontypridd, from 10am each day in December.  

 Please note that Library, Green Street, Duke Street and High Street car parks in Aberdare, and Gas Road car park in Pontypridd, are all short-stay – for a maximum period of four hours. Town centre visitors are also reminded that if you park before 10am each day you must display a ticket up until 10am only. 

Once again, parking charges in Council car parks within the two towns will not apply after 10am each day for the whole month of December – from Friday, December 1, to Sunday, December 31 inclusive. The offer is intended to help encourage residents to do as much of their Christmas shopping locally as possible, which would provide a boost to our fantastic Town Centre traders this time of year. 

Please note those Car Parks which are locked outside of regular charging hours, e.g. Catherine Street Multi Storey Car Park in Pontypridd, are also closed on Sundays and Bank Holidays.

Public Transport

The Council is pleased to announce that a £1 maximum single fare for all bus journeys that start and end in Rhondda Cynon Taf will be applied for the whole of December 2023 – providing cheaper travel this festive period.

Find out more

You are also advised to contact the relevant companies directly for further information with regards to the disruption of services during the festive period and during inclement weather.

• Traveline Cymru
• Transport for Wales
• Stagecoach

Contacting the Council in an Emergency:

All residents are reminded they can contact the Council with an emergency issue on 01443 425011 during the Bank Holiday period and out of hours/inclement weather, which is open 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week.