NEW £25MILLION COMMUNITIES FIRST FUND PROVIDES ‘A SHOT IN THE ARM’

Efforts to regenerate some of the most disadvantaged communities in the Neath, Dulais and Swansea Valleys have received another shot in the arm today, thanks to a new £25m fund which has been announced by the Labour-led Assembly Government.

Neath AM Gwenda Thomas has welcomed news of the new Communities First ‘Outcomes Fund’, which will be open for bids by Communities First partnerships, including those in Neath, Lower Brynamman and Gwaun Cae Gurwen, Ystalyfera and Godre’rgraig the Dulais Valley, and Pontrhydyfen and Tonmawr.

The partnerships will be able to apply for money from the fund, but will need to demonstrate that their proposals will help deliver key Communities First priorities. They will also need to show that they are working in partnership with local public bodies and have engaged with local people in planning local services.

The Fund, which will be worth at least £25million over three years, is the centrepiece of plans for the next phase of Communities First, the Assembly Government’s flagship community regeneration programme, which Labour launched in the Assembly back in 2001.

Gwenda Thomas AM said:

“The new Outcomes Fund will be a real shot in the arm for every Communities First partnership in my constituency.

“It also shows how the Labour-led Assembly Government is committed to taking the Communities First programme to the next level so that it does even more to regenerate our communities.

“I am pleased to see that the next phase of Communities First will give the programme an even clearer focus on getting practical improvements in place on the ground to tackle poverty, regenerate these areas and improve employability.

“I am looking forward to seeing the Communities First programme going from strength to strength as it enters this next phase and I am sure that it will continue to make a real difference to the lives of so many people in my constituency.”

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Communities First wards in Neath Port Talbot are:

Neath Port Talbot CBC: Cymmer + Gwynfi + Glyncorrwg; Sandfields West + Sandfields East; Onllwyn + Seven Sisters; Ystalyfera + Pantyffynnon, part of Godre’graig; Briton Ferry West + Neath East; Pelenna; Fairyland, part of Neath North; Brynbryddan and Penllyn, part of Bryn and Cwmavon.

£1.9M FACELIFT FOR LOCAL HOUSING RENEWAL AREAS

- AM backs action on local regeneration

REGENERATING communities is at the heart of Welsh Labour’s plan to improve housing and supply more affordable housing in the Upper Amman Valley.

Amman Valley's Labour Assembly Member Gwenda Thomas has welcomed the Assembly Government’s announcement of grants totalling £1.9m to improve the housing and environment in Neath Port Talbot, including in the Housing Renewal Area in Lower Brynaman and Gwaun Cae Gurwen.

The money has been set aside to fund street repairs and the uplifts to houses and shop fronts in these areas with the aim of kick starting local investment and regeneration.

Gwenda Thomas AM said:

"This regeneration money from the Labour-led Assembly Government is great news for Lower Brynaman and Gwaun Cae Gurwen. The money can be used to repair and renovate housing, shop fronts, pavements and gutters or even fund traffic calming measures to make our roads safer.

"The housing renewal scheme is already giving the area a facelift, improving the quality of housing and give local people a sense of pride in their community.

"I would like to thank Cllr's Arwyn Woolcock and Lynda Williams for their hard work to bring housing renewal area status to the Upper Amman Valley, which will dramatically Improve the quality of housing in the area.

Press Release: NEATH AM WELCOMES NEW REGENERATION INITIATIVES IN NEATH

Neath AM Gwenda Thomas has today welcomed the announcement by the Welsh Assembly Government that Communities in Neath will benefit from an extra £582,000 of Communities First funding.

The funding, which was announced by the Deputy Minister for Regeneration, Leighton Andrews AM today, means that three new areas in Neath will now join the the Communities First programme.

The inclusion of these areas follows their identification in the Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation 2005 as being in the 10% most deprived communities in Wales, but currently without Communities First Status.

A new partnership will be created in the Neath North ward covering the town centre area. Similarly a new partnership has been created in Neath South.

The funding will pay for professional staff to work with the community to develop new community projects and to build existing regeneration initiatives.

GWENDA THOMAS AM said:

"I'm very pleased that the Welsh Assembly Government has made this extra money available for regeneration initiatives in Neath town centre and for communities in the Neath south ward. This announcement today, and the £80m regeneration of Neath town centre already announced by Neath Port Talbot council is a significant and welcome boost for the town.

"Excellent examples of how the Communities First initiative has benefited communities in Neath are all too visible in Fairyland and in the Melyn, where people have come together to make a real, lasting and positive difference to their communities.

The Deputy Minister, LEIGHTON ANDREWS AM said:

“The funding I’ve announced will enable Communities First to become established in these areas in preparation for Communities Next – the second phase of the Welsh Assembly Government’s community regeneration programme.”