CYNEFIN

Simone Lowthe-Thomas

Cynefin Programme Manager Head of Community Energy

Severn Wye Energy Agency

Content

Background

Structure

Location

Activities

Role

Progress to date

Key Learning

Questions

Background Department for Natural Resources

Tackling poverty through using local

resources

Testing a new way of working for WG:

Place – approach and delivery - wellbeing

Process – flexible, opportunistic, collaborative

Policy – local and nation, barrier and drivers

Cross departmental – Wales We Want, Communities First, Planning & Environment

Bill

Structure 9 Place co-ordinators (11 soon), April 2013

Urban focus initially then expanded

Employed by: Severn Wye (6), KWT (1), NRW (1) & Environment Wales (1)

Hosted by the Local Authority

Managed by Severn Wye and WG team

Advisory Group – policy leads/organisations

Leadership Group - place research

Evaluation – Independent framework

created

Locations: Anglesey – Seriol ward & Newborough

Cardiff – Plasnewydd and Cathays

Carmarthenshire - Llanelli

Merthyr

Newport – Maindee

NPT – Fairyland and Melin

RCT

Swansea – Perderry ward

Wrexham – Caia park & Cefn Mawr

Activities - Start

Induction – policies, funding, who’s who

Introduction and welcome into their host local

authority

Initial engagement with key stakeholders

Early thoughts on selection of places – opportunities and challenges approach

Early stakeholder events – visioning

Thematic and place groups established

Work plan developed – short term targets first

year now mid/long term objectives

The Role Facilitating – rather than doing (mostly!)

Linking – ideas, people and resources to place

Inspiring – learning from elsewhere and sharing

Engaging – across sectors and at all levels

Collaborating – working together (co-pro?)

Pioneering – trying new ideas/methods

Adding value but never duplicating or replicating

Challenging the norm and being bold

This can happen because the role comes without

funding or restrictive targets – allows a tailored

response to the challenges, resources of each area

– so what we end up doing is really varied….

Progress to Date –themes... Energy – fuel poverty, renewables, energy

efficiency (NEST). Links with housing (RSLs) and with waste. e.g. Wrexham hydro and wind / energy group / Ynni’r Fro

Food – access to food, local food, growing, cooking, skills. Links with access to green space (Newport), health (Merthyr) and education (NPT)

Flooding - Newport, Llanelli, RCT. Community planning and emergency response models

Supporting Social Enterprise – tourism (Wrexham , Anglesey, RCT), supporting job creation (Wrexham), engagement/ links to services (Swansea)

Wrexham:

Energy Group – wind, hydro and PV

Working with the LA and SPICE on time banking

Social enterprise Cefn Mawr - Caia crafts

Links to University – research

Toursim and Heritage

– Cefn Mawr

Cardiff:

Creating a sense of community

Active Travel – street signs and bike racks

Food and Growing – food festival and herbs

Arts – 101m graffiti wall

Waste - linking with the Uni and students

Links to University – research

Longer term:

Supporting businesses

High street regeneration

Linking with services (LA)

Llanelli:

Emergency Planning

- linking service providers and community

- town council – practitioners network

- Creating and testing emergency plans

- Winter planning and Llanelli we want

- Street buddies with Communities First

Merthyr:

GP Health Referral

- Support for social enterprises and voluntary

organisations to provide outdoor activities

- community access to outdoors

- Engagement with Health practitioners

- Pilot and monitor

Capturing and Sharing the

Learning

Management groups share at policy level

PC’s using learning histories techniques to capture softer learning as well as milestones

and cross-cutting indicators

Facilitated Action Learning sessions

Independent Evaluation exercise

Advisory group, leadership group, seminars

Website, social media etc.

Some facts and figures…

NB. These are indicative + based on first year

>£100,000 secured by communities

100 new relationships between communities

and service provides created

>1,000 organisations & individuals engaged

40 working groups created

70 local delivery plans

6,000 hours contributed (across all sectors)

2 new place coordinators from Jan –

Llandrindod Wells and Tredegar

One last thing…

Severn Wye with a consortium of local social enterprises (EcoDyfi, AAT etc.) have just won the tender to deliver:

Welsh Government (Resource Efficiency Wales) Client Manager for Domestic and Community

Contact us for support on any ideas you have for energy efficiency or renewables projects in your area – ideally community buildings or domestic (able to pay).

Pick up a card from me at lunch/break