Llanelli & Mynydd Mawr Railway gains support for plans to restore and nurture woodland at Cynheidre
The Llanelli & Mynydd Mawr Railway has received support from The Woodland Investment Grant (TWIG) scheme. It is being delivered by The National Lottery Heritage Fund in partnership with the Welsh Government.
A grant of £85,000 has been awarded to help the Llanelli & Mynydd Mawr Railway progress plans to restore the woodlands that surround its site at Cynheidre near Llanelli.
The mixed woodlands at Cynheidre have grown on the site of the old colliery, once one of the largest in South Wales. They are currently overgrown and inaccessible and would have remained so without this grant from TWIG. This project also means that the Cynheidre woodland will become part of the National Forest for Wales in the future.
The TWIG funded project will enable extensive conservation work to take place, restoring vital habitats and helping species to breed and thrive once again.
Volunteers, local groups and schools will be able to take part in the project through events and training opportunities, allowing even more people to enjoy and play a part in Carmarthenshire’s natural heritage. The woodland will also become a useful resource for education with facilities included to offer a hands-on ‘forest school’.
In the long-term, the project will build the skills of woodland volunteers, strengthen the network of groups and organisations working together for the benefit of nature and raise public awareness of the importance of looking after our natural world.
Mark Thomas, chair of the Llanelli & Mynydd Mawr Railway said: “We are thrilled to have received this grant. Thanks to this support from the Welsh Government via the TWIG scheme, we can now develop our plans to protect and restore the woodlands that surround our site at Cynheidre and make them accessible to our visitors’’
Who are the Llanelli & Mynydd Mawr Railway?
The Llanelli & Mynydd Mawr Railway are a charity run totally by volunteers. Its aims are to educate the public about the role Cynheidre played in the industrialisation of South Wales and in particular the coal industry and the transportation of coal from pit to port, and to develop the site into a heritage park and hold regular open days and fundraising events for the benefit of the local community and general public. To create a first class tourist attraction where this history can be celebrated and knowledge shared for the benefit of all.
In order to reach our goals we need more volunteer help in all departments including operational, maintenance and restoration, and administration. If you could spare a few hours for what is a most enjoyable pastime and worthwhile cause do not hesitate to get in touch. For more information or to volunteer please visit our website at https://www.llanellirailway.co.uk or Facebook page at www.facebook.com/llanellirailway
What is the National Forest?
The National Forest for Wales is a venture led by the Welsh Government. It will create a network of publicly accessible woodlands and forests throughout Wales, under high quality management.
The National Forest will stretch the length and breadth of Wales, so that everyone can access it wherever they live. It will include both urban and rural areas – with an early commitment to create 30 new woodlands.
It will deliver a huge range of benefits – called ecosystem services – to the environment, the economy and society:
- playing an important role in protecting nature and addressing biodiversity loss
- increasing locally grown timber production – allowing the local forestry industry to thrive, creating jobs and reducing reliance on imported timber
- supporting the health and wellbeing of communities – a working example of the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act
- The National Forest will bring people together, with the majority of woodland being planted on a voluntary basis by communities, farmers and other landowners across Wales.
About the National Lottery Heritage Fund in Wales
Our vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future. That’s why as the largest funder for the UK’s heritage we are dedicated to supporting projects that connect people and communities to heritage, as set out in our strategic plan,
Heritage 2033. Heritage can be anything from the past that people value and want to pass on to future generations.
We believe in the power of heritage to ignite the imagination, offer joy and inspiration, and to build pride in place and connection to the past. Over the next 10 years, we aim to invest £3.6billion raised for good causes by National Lottery players to make a decisive difference for people, places and communities.
Follow @HeritageFundUK on Twitter/X, Facebook and Instagram and use #HeritageFund #NationalForestWales
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