Update on impact of Vision Fund award of £11,538 to Men’s Shed Tynewydd / Grow Rhondda in 2022.

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“The funding supported a 4 hrs per week funded role for a Grow Rhondda administrator. This role supported all our activities thought the Upper Rhondda. As all our projects remain volunteer led there is a need for this paid parttime administrative role which has supported several activities and programmes during 2022-2024. We have been able to maintain this role since grant ended with support of RCTCBC (Levelling Up Funding). We also used part of the PyC funding for our Grow Garden Pantry project – we were able to pay somebody for 15hrs per week.

 

We have supported training at Tynewydd for staff and volunteers, which the Pen y Cymoedd vision grant has also supported, this training has been essential to the development of our community engagement. Now with the whole of the Tynewydd building coming under Grow Rhondda and with the development of Y Pot Bach Siop Coffi and Food Pantry-Shop both in their first year of operation, we need to consider what longer term funding model looks like.

 

We are creating a business plan to support a long term plan to enable us to grow and develop, we are currently looking at partnerships with local and regional groups and have very exciting plans for a new programme to support the whole of the Treherbert community through health and wellbeing initiatives, this will take time and funding to come to fruition but will have a positive impact in the long term.

 

“The Pen y Cymoedd vision grant also supported a 40 week sessional programme, the support for our food growing space across the area has really benefited from this sessional programme, this also included the creation of street gardening, this new idea of gardening hadn’t been tried before in the area. But has been met with success. Our sessional lead was able to work with a number of volunteers in the community to create an amazing new gardening space in Ty Newydd. This has led to the creation of 2 new roles “Kerb Side Postcode Sessional Gardener “and the “Seed Bank- Sessional Food Grower” both of which have received funding from the RCTCBC Multiple grants, will continue the good work created into 2025, with the possibility of long-term funding for this role being made available.

Lot’s more to do but PyC has really helped us on this journey.” – Dave Harris