Residents, community leaders and business owners in Llanelli are being invited to help steer a £20m investment in the town over the next decade.
The money comes through the UK Government’s Pride in Place programme, and Carmarthenshire County Council is now setting up a Neighbourhood Board to decide how it is spent.
The board will focus on the Llanelli town area, covering parts of the Bigyn, Elli, Lliedi, Tyisha and Glanymor wards.
The aim is for the board to be community-led, made up of people who know the area and want a say in how it changes over the coming years.
Stephen Donoghue has been appointed as the board’s independent chair.
Llanelli is the latest area in the region to set up a board under the programme, which is being rolled out across the country.
A similar £20m drive in Swansea will see a homelessness charity boss chair the board overseeing communities north of the railway station.
In Neath Port Talbot, a former council chief executive is leading the £20m revival of the Upper Afan Valley.
Carmarthenshire’s cabinet member for regeneration, leisure and tourism, Cllr Hazel Evans, said the programme was a major investment in the town’s future and a chance for local people to shape how their communities grow.
She said the council wanted to hear directly from residents, businesses and organisations who knew the area best, and encouraged anyone passionate about Llanelli to put themselves forward.
Stephen Donoghue said it was a privilege to chair the board, describing the programme as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to bring lasting change.
He said he was committed to a board that was representative and inclusive, bringing together residents, businesses, public services and voluntary groups as equal partners to shape a shared vision for the town.
Dame Nia Griffith, the Labour MP for Llanelli, was blunt about the kind of people being sought.
“We want doers not talkers, people who can lead subcommittees and can galvanise and harness all the enthusiasm and good ideas that are coming forward and help us turn them into a coherent plan, and above all who are passionate about Llanelli,” she said.
People wanting to apply can request an application pack by emailing prideinplace@carmarthenshire.gov.uk.
The deadline for applications is midday on 6 July.
