A total of £148,397.58 has been shared amongst 77 new schemes as part of the “Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd” initiative which aims to stimulate a spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation in Gwynedd’s rural communities.
A year on since launching the “Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd” initiative – the county’s Rural Development Plan projects – and the number of people applying for support to establish a new scheme or help to expand an existing businesses is continuing to grow.
Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd is administered by Gwynedd Council on behalf of the Gwynedd Economic Partnership to promote the rural economy and to work to improving the quality of lives in rural areas. The initiative operates across the county except for the city of Bangor.
Dafydd Iwan, Chairman of the Gwynedd Economic Partnership said:
“In what is a difficult economic period, this is an extremely timely initiative which underlines how important it is to be resourceful in order to develop and prosper. The fact that 77 new and exciting schemes have been established with the support of Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd is testament to the ability and desire of residents and groups in our rural areas to venture into business.
“The aim of Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd is to ensure that Gwynedd’s prospective entrepreneurs can develop schemes which not only suit their rural setting but also play to the strengths of the area.”
The Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd initiative has been tailored to suit the needs of individual businesses, with the support which is available varying from helping individuals to generate an initial business idea, developing business plans, accessing specialist advice, improving skills and providing financial support.
One of those who has benefited from Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd support is Eilir Daniels, from Criccieth with her genealogy holiday scheme. Spotting a gap in the market for genealogy holidays, Eilir and her partner decided to offer a bed and breakfast service in their home.
“We saw that the most important aspect of our scheme was being able to provide genealogy trips or holidays around Gwynedd, as well as offering a separate family history research service. With the increasing interest people have in tracing their family history, we felt that there was a real chance to establish a sustainable business for the future. We are extremely pleased that our dream has received support from the Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd initiative, and we are now making strides to establish the business,” said Eilir.
The ‘Your Welsh Ancestors’ scheme (www.yourwelshancestors.com) has secured financial support from Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd through the Enable Fund: Rural Economy in order to help with the venture’s start-up costs.
An engineer from Pen Llyn has received support through the Innovate fund in order to develop an innovative scheme to ferry visitors to and from Bardsey Island, and which would possibly be transferable to other islands.
Colin Evans, who already runs a business that ferry’s visitors to Bardsey Island said:
“The idea is to design a model of a landing vessel which will include retractable hydraulic wheels. The fact that I’ve secured financial support to undertake the research work is a real boost for the scheme.”
Pre-commercial support has been provided to the scheme in order to commission research work to identify the potential and to identify the market for this innovative proposal.
Another scheme relating to Bardsey Island has also received Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd support. Support from the Innovate project has been given to a Bardsey Trust project, which aims to extend the tourism season and to encourage more visitors by promoting the island as a ‘low carbon’ holiday destination.
For more information, or to discuss an idea for a new business or venture, contact the Llwyddo yng Ngwynedd team on 01286 679774/679628, e-mail: [email protected] or visit: www.gwynedd.gov.uk/rdp
