Taking Tonmawr Forward After Covid – Grant Update and Impact
JANUARY 16th 2023
Back in March last year Dan y Coed Community Association approached the fund with plans to help the community recover post COVID.
They wanted to:
• Host jubilee party for community
• Run a series of taster classes and events with view to finding out what community wants
• Run drop in sessions for community
The fund supported them with a grant of £4,798.30 for equipment, marketing, classes and party costs.
The party was a great success and was a lovely way for people to come together again.
As a result of the grant they were able to pilot and test various classes and as a result the community centre now has three new permanent activities that proved popular, parent & toddler class, yoga and a Judo School (who then went on to apply themselves to PyC and were successful with Micro Fund grant to really establish the class).
“We still have some budget available for drop-in sessions which we will start running, these will help bring people into the community centre and address some loneliness and isolation issues locally. With the funding the biggest impact has being able to offer taster sessions as this has really helped us see what the community want and has resulted in more, permanent activities for local people that are tried and tested and of course that helps bring people and income in to support the community centre. The process of applying to PyC was really good with the help from NPT CVS and PyC team, who are very approachable and helpful.” – Amanda, Dan y Coed Community Association, Tonmawr
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.