ARFOR

ARFOR Strategic Objectives

1. Create opportunities for young people and families (≤ 35 years old) to stay in or return to their indigenous communities - supporting them to succeed locally by engaging in enterprise or developing a career and ensuring a livelihood that fulfils their aspirations.
2. Create enterprising communities within Welsh-speaking areas - by supporting commercial and community enterprises that aim to preserve and increase local wealth by taking advantage of the identity and unique qualities of their areas.
3. Maximize the benefit of collaborative activity - by establishing a mindset of learning by doing and continuous improvement, learning from an activity within individual areas and then extending it, but tailoring it to local circumstances.
4. Strengthen the identity of communities with a high density of Welsh speakers – by supporting the use and visibility of the Welsh language, encouraging a sense of place and local loyalty, together with increasing awareness of what is common across the region.

Llwyddo'n Lleol 2050

Llwyddo'n Lleol 2050 is one of the ARFOR Programme's projects. With the emigration of families and young people being recognised as one of the main reasons for the decline in the number of Welsh speakers in these strongholds. Llwyddo'n Lleol 2050's aim is to persuade young people and families who are at risk of leaving, or have already left, that having a bright future is possible, with a good job within an exciting field in their native community.

For more information go to Llwyddo'n Lleol 2050

ARFOR Challenge Fund

The Ambition of the ARFOR Programme’s Challenge fund was to explore Solutions that strengthen the relationshp between the Welsh Language and Economy, and were looking for schemes that offered to test the following:

1. The Welsh language boosts the economy
2. The Welsh language provides new employment opportunities for employers and staff
3. Using the Welsh language can help create a brand and an attraction for businesses
4. Using the Welsh language can ignite a sense of pride, including feeling a sense of belonging to a community

the ARFOR Challenge Fund was open to collaborative applications between individuals, organisations, Community groups or businesses who were prepared to demonstrate an innovate solution to a challenge that exists in their local Community.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning

ARFOR Programme have commissioned the social and economic research company, Wavehill, Ltd. to prepare the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning from ARFOR 2.

The monitoring and evaluation are considered a key part of the programme:

• firstly, by ensuring the programme has appropriate processes in place to capture its impact;
• secondly, to enable the programme team to demonstrate the impact the work streams have had on the economy and its connectivity with the language;
• and thirdly, the evaluation is being undertaken during the programme period and will help to inform ongoing delivery.

Learning and dissemination are further key elements with the programme seeking to learn more about the connectivity between the Economy and Language. The Arsyllfa_Rural Observatory (a rural think tank looking at the issues facing the Welsh countryside, the rural economy and the communities that form it) acts as the main platform for sharing the learning. Key articles, blogs and research items from the Arsyllfa website can be found here: https://www.arsyllfa.cymru/category/arfor/

Enterprising Communities - The ARFOR Programme Support Fund

The fund targeted commercial, social and cooperative enterprises that aim to retain and increase local wealth in areas considered strongholds of the Welsh language, namely Anglesey, Gwynedd, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire (the ARFOR region).

The Fund is administered by the County Councils.

What's available:

• Funding to support both revenue and capital costs.
• Financial support for up to 70% of project cost.
• Grants from £5,000 up to £75,000.

The Fund has supported projects that:

• Create opportunities to innovate and develop new enterprises in line with local resources, landscape and environment.
• Create or expand contemporary employment opportunities (e.g. in media, the digital sector, research, professional services).
• Retain wealth within the region (e.g. through areas such as energy production and efficiency, and supply chains in foundational sectors).

ARFOR's first phase

In 2019, following a budget agreement between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru, £2 million was provided to Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Gwynedd and Anglesey Councils to trial innovative ways of supporting the economy the heartlands of the Welsh language until March 2021.

Activities included:

• providing financial assistance to support businesses to establish and develop;
• mentoring young people and supporting them through Llwyddo'n Lleol 2050;
• promoting and sharing success stories from the area;
• supporting businesses to access, cutting edge equipment; and,
• supporting social enterprises to establish and develop to retain important resources within the heartlands of the Welsh language.

Among the results of the Programme's first phase:

• 154 businesses were supported;
• 238 full time equivalent posts and 89 part time posts were created; and,
• 226 jobs were safeguarded.

More information on the activities and results is available from:

Executive Summary ARFOR Programme Evaluation - Wavehill Ltd., October 2021

Evaluation, Conclusions and Recommendations of the Arfor Programme - Wavehill Ltd., October 2021

Interim report: Developing a strategy for the future - Wavehill Ltd., February 2021

Business Pledges

1. It is expected that anyone receiving support considers signing up to the Green Growth Pledge
2. It is expected that anyone receiving support considers signing up to the Code of Practice on Ethical Employment in Supply Chains
3. It is expected that anyone receiving support considers signing up to the Equality Pledge | Business Wales (gov.wales)

Get in touch!

gwybodaeth@rhaglenarfor.cymru