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Demolition work is underway at the oldest building in Trethomas.

Known locally as the ‘Pyke’, the Ty yn y Pwll pub used to be the toll house where tolls were charged for the use of the road between Caerphilly and Newport.

Plans to build a 25-unit, three-storey block of flats – which would accommodate people over the age of 55 – were approved by Caerphilly County Borough Council’s Planning Committee in January.

The flats, which will be developed and managed by Caerphilly-based United Welsh housing association, will be built on the site.

Speaking in a council meeting in January, Jon Hurley, director of Asbri Planning, which is behind the plans, said the proposals are an “opportunity to bring back into use this prominent site.”

He also said the plans were in a “highly sustainable location” and “will go some way to meeting the affordable housing need in Caerphilly”.

Mr Hurley said the plans include space on the ground floor for a “community hub”.

In 2016, the council’s planning committee approved an application from Pontcanna Development Ltd to demolish the pub, which is on Newport Road, to make way for a 32-bed care home.

A previous plan to turn the disused pub into a community centre collapsed after the charity behind the scheme could not secure funding. Connections Community Hub (CCH) agreed to purchase the building in 2014 and had plans to transform it into a café with a difference – a multi-functional hub for the whole community to use, access services and develop ideas.