Grants of £40,000 to £250,000 are available from TWIG which we are delivering in partnership with the Welsh Government. Part of the National Forest for Wales programme, this funding is for organisations creating well-managed, accessible woodlands that local communities can engage with in Wales.

These projects will not only be of great importance for biodiversity but for the local communities that will benefit, enabling better access to our existing woodlands so more people can use and enjoy.”

Julie James, Minister for Climate Change

Three projects receiving funding

These latest grant awards, totalling £657,043, have been given to projects in Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire and Cardiff and follow on from previous grants we announced in February.

Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water is getting £245,860 for the Llys y Fran project in Pembrokeshire to deliver multi-purpose woodlands for recreation, tourism, community engagement and learning opportunities.

Carmarthenshire County Council has been awarded £219,397 for its Coed Ynys Dawela project near Brynamman. Work will include coppicing areas to improve the structure of the woodland and installing approximately 400m of boardwalk over wet areas.

St Fagans National Museum of History’s Gwyrdd Ni project is receiving £191,786 to enhance an existing deciduous woodland on its site outside Cardiff. The project will create a dynamic and interpretative woodland which will be managed not just through the seasons, but as it matures and evolves.

The National Forest programme 

Minister for Climate Change Julie James said: “These projects will not only be of great importance for biodiversity but for the local communities that will benefit, enabling better access to our existing woodlands so more people can use and enjoy. 

“As part of our National Forest programme these projects will help to restore and maintain some of Wales’s irreplaceable ancient woodlands, which in time will form a connected network running throughout Wales, bringing social, economic and environmental benefits.”

Apply for TWIG funding

To be eligible for TWIG funding, organisations must own land or control its management and want to involve the community in creating, maintaining or improving woodland.

There are two remaining rounds of funding through the TWIG programme. The deadlines to submit an expression of interest are:

• 20 April 2023 for round four
• 7 December 2023 for round five