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News & Projects

Catch up with 4theRegion’s activities across all our impact areas, from local food, to procurement, and from community changemakers to business start-ups – in Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea & Neath Port Talbot.  Simply browse or search our news, events, projects, reports and podcasts!

Wellbeing Region May 2022 Sector Forum

Wellbeing Region May 2022 Sector Forum

4theRegion members met with businesses and organisations across South West Wales to explore the range of ways that young people are being supported to create flourishing futures for themselves ...
22. Starting Up In The Region

22. Starting Up In The Region

As a region we need to do what we can to support start ups and entrepreneurs and encourage them to stay within South West Wales. The increasing number of schemes and projects available to help ...
May Regional Round-Up

May Regional Round-Up

We’ve kept up with the headlines from across South West Wales this month, to bring you the best regional news for Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire, Neath Port Talbot and Swansea! Our goal is to ...
21. Innovative Active Buildings with Joanna Clarke

21. Innovative Active Buildings with Joanna Clarke

This week we speak to Joanna Clarke, Design Manager of Swansea University's SPECIFIC project. SPECIFIC focuses on energy technologies and systems, from the fundamental science of materials and ...
How do we feed ourselves?

How do we feed ourselves?

The food and farming sector is different from every other sector because it’s vital for our survival. We need food for our health, continued life, and continued participation in our ...
20. Digital Skills

20. Digital Skills

If there's one sector that may have been resilient throughout the pandemic, it would be the digital sector. For other sectors, those who quickly embraced technology, digital skills and remote ...
Regional Food Conference April 2022 Follow Up

Regional Food Conference April 2022 Follow Up

A Major Conversation about our Regional Food System, brought to you by Swansea Environmental Forum, Grwp Resilience and 4theRegion.
19. Inspiring Entrepreneurs with Rachael Flanagan

19. Inspiring Entrepreneurs with Rachael Flanagan

Rachael Flanagan founded Mrs Buckét Cleaning Services at the age of 18, starting with a mop and £20 of promotional flyers. Rachael has worked hard over 15 years to grow her business and today ...
April Regional Round-Up

April Regional Round-Up

We’ve kept up with the headlines from across South West Wales this month, to bring you the best regional news for Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire, Neath Port Talbot and Swansea! Our goal is to ...
18. Wellbeing at Work

18. Wellbeing at Work

Taking care of our physical and mental wellbeing is even more important than ever. In this episode, we're having an interesting conversation about how organisations across South West Wales have ...
Swansea City Centre Conference 2022

Swansea City Centre Conference 2022

Thank you to everyone who attended, exhibited or spoke at the Swansea City Centre Conference on 17th March in the brand new Swansea Arena!
17. Manifesto for the Future with Sophie Howe

17. Manifesto for the Future with Sophie Howe

With less than 200 days to go until the Senedd Election, Future Generations Commissioner for Wales Sophie Howe is proud to have launched her ‘Manifesto for the Future’, providing key ...
Everybody’s Business

Everybody’s Business

At 4theRegion we want to ensure South West Wales is a welcoming and safe region where everyone has the opportunity to thrive and progress fulfilling careers. Building cohesive communities is ...
16. Renewable Energy

16. Renewable Energy

Renewable energy is a key growth sector for our region, with ideal locations across Wales, such as the coastline and mountains allowing for tidal and wind to generate our power.
How do we get there?

How do we get there?

Last week 4theRegion hosted our City Centre Conference. We’re so proud to have been the first major exhibitor at the new Swansea Arena - which looks amazing! We had over a hundred and twenty ...
15. Room to Grow with Ange Bettany

15. Room to Grow with Ange Bettany

Room to Grow is a permaculture project dedicated to self-sufficiency and community unity and aims to turn concrete jungles into edible oases.
March Regional Round-Up

March Regional Round-Up

We’ve kept up with the headlines from across South West Wales this month, to bring you the best regional news for Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire, Neath Port Talbot and Swansea! Our goal is to ...
14. Business and Community Collaboration with Julie Jones

14. Business and Community Collaboration with Julie Jones

This week, we speak to 4theRegion member Julie Jones, co-director of Gower Gas & Oil, about how businesses can benefit community cohesion in order to create a positive relationship between ...
Tribe

Tribe

Subscribe to our good news round-up of the region's best headlines, delivered straight to your inbox.Every month, we pull together the region's top headlines to create your Good News Update from ...
Making Hope Happen

Making Hope Happen

At 4theRegion our mission is to co-create a happier, healthier South West Wales with a thriving economy. And what do we mean by ‘thriving’? For us, in the truest sense of the word, thriving is ...
13. South West Wales Community Rail Partnership

13. South West Wales Community Rail Partnership

South West Wales Connected is a new Community Rail Partnership established by Transport for Wales and hosted by 4theRegion. We speak to Jennifer Barfoot, who was appointed as Community Rail ...
February Regional Round-Up

February Regional Round-Up

Our roundup of the month’s regional news headlines from across South West Wales – to help you speak more positively and more knowledgeably about what’s happening in our region!
12. Connecting to Kindness with Wyndham Williams

12. Connecting to Kindness with Wyndham Williams

Dawn speaks to Wyndham Williams about the Connect to Kindness campaign, set up to encourage kindness in the workplace, at home and throughout the community. Wyndham also shares his Tinman ...
What is green recovery?

What is green recovery?

When the coronavirus pandemic hit global economies, governments pledged to rebuild, create jobs and spark growth. But many people recognised we can’t just go back to doing things the way we did ...
11. Regional Procurement

11. Regional Procurement

This week, we speak to various businesses and organisations from across South West Wales about regional #Procurement. If businesses and organisations in this region buy more from each other, we ...
Buying more from each other

Buying more from each other

What can we do to keep more of our spending in the region? By this we mean both the money we spend as individuals and businesses, and the public money spent by local authorities and major ...
10. Swansea City Bay Deal with Jonathan Burnes

10. Swansea City Bay Deal with Jonathan Burnes

In this episode, we speak to Swansea Bay City Deal Programme Director, Dr. Jonathan Burnes about his new role and what's currently happening in the City Deal office, including the Swansea ...
Planning approval and first occupants announced for Swansea’s City Centre Community Hub

Planning approval and first occupants announced for Swansea’s City Centre Community Hub

Proposals for a new central Swansea location for the city’s main library and other key services have taken a big step forward. Plans for the hub reveal a striking fresh design just ...
09. Skills and the Jobs of the Future

09. Skills and the Jobs of the Future

We spoke to different educational providers throughout the region about how we can help school and college leavers to maximise their experience through work experience, further education and ...
January Regional Round-Up

January Regional Round-Up

Our roundup of the month’s regional news headlines from across South West Wales – to help you speak more positively and more knowledgeably about what’s happening in our region!
08. Reconstructing the Economy with Jeremy Miles

08. Reconstructing the Economy with Jeremy Miles

Dawn speaks to Jeremy Miles MS, Counsel General for Wales and Brexit Minister and Member of the Senedd for Neath, about actions that the Welsh government have been taking during lockdown in ...
UWTSD Library launches new exhibition to celebrate the bicentenary

UWTSD Library launches new exhibition to celebrate the bicentenary

The Library and Learning Resources department at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David has launched a new special collections exhibition both on campus and online to kick start the ...
07. Nature Has Rights Too with Jane Davidson #Futuregen

07. Nature Has Rights Too with Jane Davidson #Futuregen

Anyone who wants to see a greener, more prosperous, lower carbon, more equal and healthier future for Wales, and for the planet, owes a debt of gratitude to Jane Davidson, former Welsh ...
New £4.3million Ysgol Rhys Prichard has it all

New £4.3million Ysgol Rhys Prichard has it all

When children and staff at Ysgol Rhys Prichard moved into their new school, they didn’t just get a school, they got a community hub, leisure facilities, rugby pitch and a swimming pool next door ...
06. What Next For Swansea High Street?

06. What Next For Swansea High Street?

Swansea High Street has been the focus of redevelopment efforts by many creative businesses and organisations. What has been the effect on the High Street as a result of lockdown and how can we ...
Success for UWTSD at the Swansea Open 2021 Art Exhibition

Success for UWTSD at the Swansea Open 2021 Art Exhibition

A graduate and a staff member from the University of Wales Trinity Saint David have been successful at the Swansea Open 2021 art exhibition at the Glynn Vivian Gallery in Swansea. Swansea ...
05. Community Growing and Local Food

05. Community Growing and Local Food

What has been the effect on our shopping habits, priorities and values surrounding food as a result of the lockdown? How do we scale up community growing and local food initiatives, and what ...
Market shoppers enjoy taste of market’s new attraction

Market shoppers enjoy taste of market’s new attraction

City centre shoppers are enjoying a sociable and relaxing new experience in Swansea Market. The iconic venue has just become yet more welcoming. The Market Garden - a new area at the ...
04. Cohesive Communities with Iwan Thomas

04. Cohesive Communities with Iwan Thomas

Pembrokeshire-based PLANED is one of the organisations committed to making a difference across our region, by improving the quality of life of communities through focusing on their ...
Research looks at 4theRegion’s unique approach to community engagement and focus on wellbeing

Research looks at 4theRegion’s unique approach to community engagement and focus on wellbeing

We are delighted to have featured as a case study in a paper exploring wellbeing as the basis for regional development post-Covid. 4theRegion is a movement to co-create a happier, ...
03. The Return to Work

03. The Return to Work

As we begin to reopen the economy, we discussed with businesses and major employers about how we’re going to return to work, and what work looks like now. We explored the possibility of these ...
First look at Carmarthen bus station revamp and ‘green roof’ bus shelter plans

First look at Carmarthen bus station revamp and ‘green roof’ bus shelter plans

People are being given the chance to help shape the revamp of Carmarthen town centre’s bus station. Carmarthenshire County Council, working with transport engineering group Atkins, has ...