by Halyna Soltys | 27th Feb 2024
2023 was a busy year at ProMo Cymru – we worked on lots of different projects during the year. We hope that we are able to continue this great work in 2024 and positively impact our stakeholders and the communities we serve.
Ebbw Vale Institute
It’s been an incredible year for Ebbw Vale Institute (EVI), ProMo’s Community and Cultural Centre based in the heart of Ebbw Vale, with the launch of our UKSPF project.
We launched the EVI Community Pantry and Repair Cafe projects in February 2023. By the end of 2023, over 200 households were supported by the Community Pantry in Blaenau Gwent, cutting their grocery bills and reducing food waste. The Repair Cafe has saved over 140 items from landfill.
During Christmas 2023, EVI staff and volunteers delivered hampers in the community after teaming up with MP Nick Smith for #EveryoneDeservesAChristmas.
We couldn’t have done this work without EVI’s dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers. A huge diolch yn fawr to the 54 volunteers who have contributed to EVI’s many projects during the year.
Digital Projects: Third Sector Digital Support & Newid
We’ve been busy working on two new projects, Newid and Third Sector Digital Support.
Both projects aim to help the third sector in Wales improve the services they deliver through better use of digital approaches and tools. In 2023, we have supported over 100 third-sector organisations. Some highlights include:
– Launching DigiCymru, a service offering free, short, 1-1 support to third sector organisations in Wales
– Launching the Newid website, full of digital resources and support
– Trained, mentored and supported organisations to rethink their services using digital approaches through the Designing Digital Services Course
– Hosting webinars on TikTok, Canva and AI
This year, AI has become the topic of many conversations. We’ve delivered introductory webinars aimed at helping organisations better understand AI.
ERYICA Podcast
We worked with ERYICA (the European Youth Information and Counselling Agency) to create and produce ERYICAst, a podcast exploring the impact of digital on youth work.
Speaking to practitioners, academics and young people worldwide about how services adapt in response to new technology, we created six podcast episodes.
Episodes include Media Literacy, Algorithms, AI, the Metaverse and more. Have a listen!
Meic Helpline
The advisers on the Meic helpline have worked tirelessly once again to provide information, advice and support to thousands of children and young people in Wales. Hundreds of individual advocacy interventions have been completed. We’ve had lots of positive feedback about the service from children, young people, family members, and professionals over the year.
“I really do appreciate the advice. There’s some light for me at the end of the tunnel now.”
Family Member
“Thank you for the swift response. It’s a fantastic service that I want to promote”
Professional Working with Young People
“Thank you for being so kind and not judging. It’s nice to be heard”
Young Person
A number of blogs have been posted on the Meic website on a range of subjects. We’ve also posted lots of content on our social media channels. This year, we ran three awareness campaigns:
– Exam Campaign
– No Shame No Secrets: Sexual Health and Wellbeing Campaign
– Living With Loss: Grief Campaign
We also developed a new Getting Help section on the Meic website to make it easier for young people to find the information they’re looking for. Searching for a category, they will quickly find information, links to services that can help, and a list of blogs.
In 2024, we will launch a new WhatsApp service on Meic, a new point of contact for our callers! A lot of the preparation for this happened behind the scenes in 2023.
Mind Our Future Gwent
Mind our Future Gwent (MoFG) is a National Lottery Community Funded project by ProMo Cymru and Newport Mind.
We enlisted 10 Peer Researchers aged 16-24. They consulted with 203 young people (11-27) in Gwent to gather insights on mental health.
Following analysis, we held a two-night residential, resulting in the creation of a discovery report with seven key insights. It’s well worth the read!
In the next phases of the project, we will collaborate with partners to address challenges and enhance mental health services in Gwent.
Join the stakeholder list for this project.
Our Minds Our Future
Our Minds Our Future (OMOF) Wales is part of a five year project with partners in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland. The aim is to empower young voices for meaningful change in mental health services.
ProMo Cymru and our partner Adferiad Recovery hosted an online conference exploring inpatient care, early intervention, prevention care, and the role of social media in mental health. Over 30 professionals attended, praising the conference as the “best online conference” they’ve been to.
Another participant shared, “I loved hearing directly from the young people. This was so powerful and engaging. I was amazed at their confidence and eloquence on such challenging and personal subject matter. Really well done on your work engaging with them; they clearly trust you and feel empowered!”.
Media Production
Our media team has had a busy 2023, creating many videos, branding and designs for several organisations. One of the standout projects was making videos for Children’s Legal Centre Wales.
These videos aimed to guide young asylum seekers through their first steps upon arriving in Wales. We created a series of four short videos translated into 14 different languages (a total of 56 videos).
The project was co-designed with young people, who provided input on the animation style and storyboard. They also provided voiceovers during recording sessions with interpreters. This project was completed in collaboration with Swansea University and TGP Cymru.
Ofcom
Commissioned by Ofcom, we’ve used a service design methodology to run media literacy workshops for 11 to 14-year-olds in Blaenau Gwent. We discovered a significant gap in young people’s knowledge of social media algorithms and echo chambers during the initial discovery phase.
This insight allowed us to develop workshops that focused on showing young people how they can take control of their online spaces. The report produced details our discovery and has helped us smoothly transition into the next development phase.
In 2024, we’ve been working with three young people to co-design the workshops and help us deliver them to other young people in youth clubs across Blaenau Gwent.
Leading Cynefin
The Leading Cynefin Project is a collaboration between ProMo Cymru, Primary Schools, and TLP Wales. It is supported by the National Academy for Educational Leadership. The aim is to equip teachers and young people with digital, creative, and storytelling skills.
In partnership with Janet Hayward (OBE) and TLP Wales, this pilot project pioneers a blueprint for Curriculum for Wales and Community-Focused Schools in action. It will create the confidence to explore, connect with, and celebrate community treasures and history.
ProMo delivered two digital storytelling workshops for year five teachers and pupils. Their outstanding final pieces, including artwork and digital stories, were showcased at The Pierhead Building in Cardiff Bay in November 2023, with support from Lee Waters MS, Jane Hutt MS, and Alun Davies MS.
TheSprout Campaign: The Future is in Our Hands
In March 2023, TheSprout, Wales’ information and blogging website for 11-25s launched the ‘The Future is in Our Hands’ Campaign.
The campaign aimed to raise awareness of how young people can make sustainable choices in Wales, help reduce waste, and be eco-friendly regarding fashion.
Developed by a group of five young creatives in Cardiff, in collaboration with Bloedd Amgueddfa Cymru, ten blogs were published on TheSprout website and almost 100 social media posts (13 of which were TikToks).
Content included alternatives to fast fashion such as buying second-hand, repairing what’s broken, upcycling and making your own clothes. Read the codesigned campaign.
2024 Projects
During 2024, we are hopeful to work with our previous clients again, and looking forward to the opportunity to work with many more!
To keep up to date with what we’re doing at ProMo Cymru, sign up for our ProMail newsletter to get updates on our projects and opportunities throughout the year. We promise we won’t spam you.
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