A six-year battle over a community hall in Monmouthshire officially came to an end on Tuesday after the Princess Royal cut the ribbon on the new building.

About 400 people living in Llandogo, near Monmouth, turned out to see Princess Anne open the hall during her visit to the area.

Princess Anne officially opened the hall

The premises was built on council owned land using lottery funding and cash from the sale of the old venue and other grants.

The princess also opened a recently built sports court in the village.

Primary school teacher Simon Davies, who campaigned for the new hall, said both of the developments would benefit the community.

"The old hall was build just after World War II and was in a pretty bad state," he said.

"There was a lot of renovation work needed on it and we just didn't have the money for the repairs.

"About six years ago we tried for a grant to build a new hall which was rejected.

"We were all disappointed and it was a bit of a set back, but we decided to try again.

"On the second time around, we came up with a better design and were successful.

It is a beautiful design and offers so much to the community Simon Davies, campaigner

"We sold off the old hall and used the money to help with the cost of the project.

"We were also lucky enough to get help from the council who agreed to lease land next to the village primary school for the hall to be built on.

"Three months into building the hall, our builders were bankrupted, which was another major set back.

"Luckily though, we found another firm of builders who were willing to take on the job and we were back on track again.

"It is a beautiful design and offers so much to the community - everybody uses it and it is the only venue in the village where things can be held," he added.

School children

Mr Davies said that the nearby sports court also added to the facilities in the village.

"They are both close to the school and people of all ages regularly use them - they really bring people together," he said.

"We are so glad that Princess Anne was able to attend the official opening.

"It really marks the occasion and all the school children were excited about it because they had all had an input in the design of the hall's weather vane," he added.

As well as visiting Llandogo, Princess Anne's visit to the area included visiting the flood alleviation scheme in Chepstow and opening Caldicot Leisure Centre.