Introduction

The North Merthyr Tydfil Rengeration Partnership is one of seventeen research projects in Wales and hundreds of research projects throughout the European Union, funded by the European Social Fund, under the banner of Equal. It has developed a partnership approach with the local communities of North Merthyr Tydfil, that is Dowlais, Penydarren, Gurnos and Galon Uchaf. It has been assisting local communities to develop their own strategies to issues of social exclusion in their areas, with a particular focus on employment matters. The knowledge and experienced gained through the research is being shared with the local communities and with national service providers in health and employment.

Summary of objectives

1. To undertake participatory and action research methods to identify the roots of socio-economic exclusion

2. Together with beneficiaries develop and test/pilot soft entry strategies into socio-economic inclusion

3. To use the empirical evidence to influence local operational processes used by organisations such as: Job Centre Plus, Local Health Board, Local Authority and North Glamorgan NHS Trust

4. To use the empirical evidence to influence policy through the Welsh Assembly Government’s Employment and Training, Health, Education, Community Regeneration and Social Justice Directorates, as well as the Department for Work and Pensions

Partnership executive summary

The polarisation of employment opportunities betwen prosperous and disadvantaged communities is a primary cause of social exclusion. The North Merthyr Tydfil Regeneration Partnership aims to identify and address the factors that cause a lack of employability amoung residents of electoral wards, which have been dubbed the "sickness capital of Europe", where economic inactivity is endemic.

A series of action research programmes have been developed to engage in soft entry learning and self-development and their participation used to identify the underlying barriers to preventing them from developing the attitudes, qualifications and skills to ensure their employability in the new labour market.

Contact

You can contact the Equal team by writing to us at the following address:

Equal
c/o 3Gs Development Trust
Gurnos Health and Resource Centre
Chestnut Way
Gurnos
Merthyr Tydfil
CF47 9SB
United Kingdom