WHEN MCC decided to rename Llanddewi Rhydderch’s Banal Lane to Panel Road without reason or rhyme, the inhabitants of the sleepy Monmouthshire village were left fuming.

Lifelong resident Kelvin Vater was so incensed he spearheaded a campaign to restore the historic name of the road.

Mr. Vater was backed in his campaign by a petition of signatures, the support of the community council, MP Catherine Fookes, and Senedd member Peter Fox.

He diligently provided MCC with a wealth of historical evidence, such as electoral rolls, diaries of deceased residents, and even a copy of the 1881 Census, which lists the lane as ‘Bannel.’

It is thought that the road was originally called Banadl Lane - banadl being the Welsh word for gorse or broom - and it was later anglicised.

The house at the bottom of the lane was originally named Cae Banadl (Broom Field), and it is believed the lane was once named after the house.

Kelvin told the Chronicle, "It's ridiculous! MCC has renamed it Panel Road – with no local consultation whatsoever. I have lived at this address for 43 years!

"The council will not say where the name Panel Road originated from. It could be someone at the council typed in Banal and the spellcheck auto-corrected it as Panel, and here we are."

Alongside other residents, Mr Vater remained confident that MCC would see sense and hold their hands up to what looks like an administrative mix-up.

He thought wrong!

An email addressed to Mr. Vater from MCC’s Highways Development Manager Mark Davies, reads, “I can confirm that colleagues and I have reviewed the information provided and have discussed the matter with the Head of Highways.

"Following this consideration, our position remains unchanged: we will not be progressing a request to alter the street name. Panel Road is the official street name as recorded on the 1988 List of Streets prepared by Gwent County Council, which was subsequently transferred to Monmouthshire County Council at Local Government Reorganisation in 1996. Monmouthshire County Council has not amended the name since that time.

“We acknowledge the additional information you have supplied; however, we consider this to be circumstantial and unsubstantiated. As such, we must continue to rely on the official List of Streets, which has provided the authoritative record for more than 38 years.

“I trust this clarifies the Council’s position.”

You read it right!

An authoritarian and official body regards the 1881 Census as “circumstantial and unsubstantiated.” And prefers to dismiss the accumulated historic knowledge of local people whose ancestors have lived in the area for generations, in favour of something they refer to as the “List of Streets” which originated in the distant days of 1988.

To paraphrase George Orwell, if you want a vision of the future, imagine the boot of a faceless and bureaucratic body stomping on a human face - forever!

Needless to say, Mr. Vater is not giving up the fight and will now explore other avenues in his bid to protect the history and identity of an area where he was born and bred.