Haverfordwest Racecourse Public Park Trust (HRPPT)
The Haverfordwest Racecoure Public Park Trust came into existence in 1974 and it assumed responsibility for the 57 acres that are known as ‘the Upper Racecourse’.
Up until that time, this area could only be considered poor quality farm land fit only for sheep to graze on. All of the land inside the ‘horse shoe’ was closed off from public use.
In 1974 the Portfield Recreation Committee (PRC) decided to put this land up for sale. This decision met with a public outcry that resulted in a petition carrying over four thousand signatures being presented to the Secretary of State for Wales. Faced with such opposition it was decided not to proceed with the sale.
The Portfield Recreation Committee suggested that a properly constituted public body could rent the land for £600 per annum as long as it developed it for recreational purposes.
So the Haverfordwest Racecourse Public Park Trust was born.
By 1985 (the 150th anniversary of the formation of the Racecourse) the HRPPT had transformed the whole of the Upper Racecourse from being rough land that was closed to the public into the Public Park it is today.
It did this with the help of such bodies as the Town Council, the Bridge Meadow Trust, Pembrokeshire County Council and the Haverfordwest Cricket Club.
The Upper Racecourse now accommodates two cricket pitches, three football pitches, one and a quarter miles of all weather walkways, many acres of woodland and many more acres of grassland on which people enjoy exercise at their free will and pleasure.
This gem is maintained by the voluntary body known as the Haverfordwest Racecourse Public Park Trust and that body is heavily reliant on the public for its support.
How far is it to walk round?
A walk round the inner tarmacked path will take you about 1.25 miles. Around the outer “horseshoe” grassed area will be about 1.3 miles and this rises to about 1.75 miles if you cross the road and walk around the lower racecourse (not part of our Trust) as well.
Historical accounts of the original racecourse can be found under the History sub-tabs as Racecourse History 1 and Racecourse History 2