Supporting Local Garages – Investment, Growth & Impact
JULY 24th 2025
Over last couple of years, Pen y Cymoedd has supported several local garages across the fund area through Micro Fund and Vision Fund grants. While each business is different, clear themes emerged from their journeys with us — highlighting the value of flexible, friendly support and the direct impact on growth and employment.
Key Themes & Impact
- Investment in Technology: Nearly every garage identified keeping up with diagnostics and MOT standards as a major challenge. Our support helped fund key pieces of equipment like ramps, wheel alignment tools, and diagnostic software.
- Jobs Created: Across the businesses we spoke to, the £50,000 awarded in this group contributed to at least four new jobs (including apprenticeships) — a significant result for micro-businesses.
- Business Growth: From expanding services to storing stock on-site, several garages now have the capacity to serve more customers, more efficiently — in one case, the owner anticipates business could double once improvements are implemented.
- Accessible Support: Business owners consistently praised Pen y Cymoedd for being approachable and efficient — with some saying we were easier to deal with than other funders. In at least one case, we encouraged a more ambitious application to better match the business’s growth plans.
The auto service sector is under constant pressure to modernise. Equipment upgrades, rising costs, and the difficulty of finding trained staff were common concerns. Most businesses had not received other funding, underscoring the importance of Pen y Cymoedd’s role but also the importance of raising awareness of other funds and trying to leverage more in from other funding bodies.
The Fund was established by energy company Vattenfall to benefit the communities hosting the Pen y Cymoedd wind farm across the upper Neath, Afan, Rhondda and Cynon Valleys. It exists to support local people, groups and organisations to invest in themselves, their ideas and their communities.
The Community Fund has a substantial annual budget that is index-linked, meaning it increases in line with inflation. As an example, this equated to around £2.5 million in 2025. The Fund will continue to support communities until 2043, creating long-term opportunities for growth, resilience and positive change.
The Fund is managed by an independent, locally based not-for-profit Community Interest Company. It is overseen by a Board of Directors with strong local connections and delivered by a small but dedicated staff team with extensive community engagement experience. We are here to help ensure the Fund delivers on the vision and priorities of local communities.
Over the next 10 years, the Fund is focusing on investment in people, places and businesses — helping the Valleys to thrive, driving bold ideas, supporting transformation and creating lasting impact for current and future generations.