Sennybridge Camp replaced an earlier tented camp constructed at Llywel 4 miles west of Sennybridge, and was built from March 1940 (aerial images of its construction in 1941 recently came to light via the Central Registry of Air Photography for Wales; see Driver and Davis 2012, 130). Today it retains the buildings and layout of a Second World War training camp in a substantially complete state. The main camp to north of an east-west minor public road was constructed first, with the second part of camp (stores buildings and workshops) then built to south, between this minor road and the main A40 through Sennybridge village.

The camp was originally designed to accommodate about 2000 soldiers. Originally titled 'RA Practice Camp', the title changed to 'All Arms Training Area' in the early 1960s and to 'Sennybridge Training Area (SENTA) in October 1968. Now called Sennybridge ATFC (Army Field Training Centre) or Sennybridge Camp. The camp serves the wider training area which extends to some 31,000 acres or 12,000 hectares (see record NPRN 401496). Remodelling of camp began in Autumn 2002, following an Integrated Land Management Plan, but did not change the plan to any great extent.

The camp retains rare 1940s murals in the cookhouse painted by Italian Prisoners of War (NPRN 23191), which depict alpine scenes, and are now protected behind Perspex screens. The same PoWs were responsible for building some of the concrete drainage culverts on the training area (see NPRN 304389).

T Driver, RCAHMW, 2004 & 2014.

Bibliography:
AFTC SAS, 2000. AFTC Sennybridge Archaeological Survey, Archaeological Investigations Ltd: Hereford Archaeology Series 450.

Briggs, C. S. 1994. Sennybridge Training Area: A fossil agricultural landscape. Sanctuary, The Ministry of Defence Conservation Magazine, Number 23. 13-14.

Church, R., 1990. 'Sennybridge Training Area 1940-1990', Cardiff.

Davies, W.D.R, 1984. Epynt Without People...and Much More, Talybont: Y Lolfa

Driver, T.G. 1996. `Air Photo Mapping and Record Creation Programme: Results 1995-6?, Archaeology in Wales 36, 49.

Driver, T.G. 1997. Archaeological survey of: Mynydd Epynt (Sennybridge Training Area) Powys, Aberystwyth, Aberystwyth: RCAHMW; AP Mapping Report No 1.

Driver, T. and Silvester, R. 2003. Mynydd Epynt: Rediscovering and Abandoned Farming Landscape, in: Browne, D., and Hughes, S. The Archaeology of the Welsh Uplands, RCAHMW, 87-97.

Driver, T. 1997. Mynydd Epynt (Sennybridge Training Area): RCAHM (W) Air Photo Mapping and Record Creation, Brecknockshire and Carmarthenshire. Archaeology in Wales 37, 27-31.

Driver, T. and Davis, O. 2012. Historic Wales from the Air: Images from the National Monuments Record of Wales, RCAHMW.
Khan, M, 1995. `Sennybridge Training Area?, After The Battle 90, 42-49.

RCAHMW, 1986. Brecknock: The Prehistoric and Roman Monuments, Part II, Hill-forts and Roman Remains, HMSO.

RCAHMW, 1997. Brecknock: Later Prehistoric Monuments and Unenclosed Settlements to 1000AD, HMSO.

Wessex Archaeology, 2003. Crychan Forest, Sennybridge Training Area, Brecon, Archaeological monument condition survey, unpublished archive report 54011.01