A Swansea charity leader who has spent years helping the city’s most vulnerable people has been handed a central role in deciding how £20m is spent transforming neighbourhoods north of the city centre.
Thom Lynch has been named independent chair of the Neighbourhood Board overseeing Swansea’s £20m Pride in Place funding.
The money is a 10-year investment targeted on the city’s Gateway Communities — a cluster of neighbourhoods just north of Swansea railway station that takes in Brynmelyn, Waun Wen, North Hill, Dyfatty and Hafod.
They are areas long identified as among the most overlooked in the city, despite being passed through daily by thousands of commuters and visitors arriving in Swansea.
The funding can be spent on a wide range of community-led projects, from saving threatened pubs and libraries to improving community safety, reviving local high streets and restoring green spaces — with residents helping to decide where it goes.
Lynch is the co-founder and project leader of Matthew’s House, the High Street charity that provides a base and support for vulnerable people, including those experiencing homelessness.
The charity’s work has been recognised nationally, including with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service.
His appointment followed an open recruitment process, with the role designed as a community-rooted voice at the top of the board rather than a council or government appointee.
Lynch said one of his first tasks would be to build the Neighbourhood Board itself, and he urged local people to step forward.
“I’m honoured to take on this role and grateful for the opportunity to work even more with local people to shape the future of our communities,” he said.
“Pride in Place is about putting residents at the heart of decision-making, and I’m excited to build on the strong community work already happening across these neighbourhoods.”
He added: “I’ll be looking for people from local communities to get involved, share their ideas and help deliver projects that make a real, lasting difference. We’re going to need a real team effort to get this right.”
Swansea West MP Torsten Bell, who secured the funding, described it as a once-in-a-generation chance for the area.
“Pride in Place is a landmark 10-year, £20 million investment in Swansea communities that have too long been overlooked,” he said.
“It is a huge opportunity to make a real difference to people’s lives. Thom is exactly the right person to get as many residents as possible involved in making that happen.”
Council leader Cllr Rob Stewart said the appointment was a major step forward.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for the people of Dyfatty to shape their own future, backed by £20 million of UK Government investment over the next decade,” he said.
“Thom has a proven track record, is well-known in the community and will be an outstanding chair for the Neighbourhood Board.”
Stewart said the money would add to more than £60m of council investment in housing improvements in the area, alongside wider work to create a safer, stronger community.
The regeneration drive comes after a targeted police crackdown on crime and anti-social behaviour in Dyfatty, which saw crime fall 12% and anti-social behaviour drop 69% in its early months — work the longer-term investment is intended to complement.
In neighbouring Neath Port Talbot, a separate £20m Pride in Place award is regenerating the Upper Afan Valley, with former council chief executive Karen Jones chairing that board as a volunteer.
The council has not yet set out which individual projects will receive money, or when residents will see the first changes on the ground.
But with the board now taking shape, decisions on how the £20m is spent are expected to follow in the months ahead.
