Promoting social inclusion

Our project aims to support key stakeholders to address the twin challenges that confront the Cardiff Capital Region: economic development and social inclusion.

The Cardiff Capital Region has amongst the highest levels of benefit dependency in the UK. As such, there are significant pockets of deprivation across the Cardiff Capital Region, with particularly significant and long-established economic and social differences between the prosperous coastal zone around Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan, and the more disadvantaged areas of the South Wales Valleys.

A disproportionate share of the most deprived areas in Wales lie within the Heads of the Valleys (the northern areas of Rhondda Cynon Taff, Caerphilly and Torfaen, and all of Merthyr and Blaenau Gwent). However, there are also significant pockets of deprivation within the city of Cardiff, including Ely in the west, through Butetown adjacent to the docks and over to parts of Rumney in the east. Addressing this geography of disadvantage is a particular feature of the Cardiff Capital Region.

Our project will aim to strengthen the University's engagement in projects that contribute towards addressing the challenges of social inclusion and deprivation across the Cardiff Capital Region. A particular focus will be on the development of innovative approaches in collaboration with internal and external parties to support those not in education, employment or training (NEETs).