Funding Update: August 2022
New Application Window - August 2022
You may have seen that we have recently announced that Skills Development will re-open to new applications on 1 August 2022.
Existing Training Agreements cannot be added to at this time. However, there may be an opportunity to do this soon so please keep checking our updates.
If you are a Business with Employees, a Community Woodland Group, or a Woodland Owner, you will be able to apply for funding for new employees or new volunteers, who do not have a Training Agreement.
To do this, please complete a new Skills Evaluation Form here.
Changes to Terms and Conditions
We are in the final stages of securing additional funding from Welsh Government.
As the new funding is not fully finalised, an additional clause in the Terms & Conditions for Training Agreements will be added. “If funding is not secured, we withhold the right to withdraw the training agreement and not provide funding. This clause will be removed once the funding has been fully secured.”
End of Skills Development
Welsh Government has requested that all funding is claimed by Focus on Forestry First Ltd. by March 2023.
To allow enough time to collect evidence from Training Providers, this means that all Skills development courses must be booked by 31 January 2023 and completed by 28 February 2023.
Please can all beneficiaries with existing Training Agreements book their training as soon as possible to ensure this can be delivered before the cut-off dates. There may be competition to book your place with your preferred Training Provider.
To date, only 21% of courses that have funding granted have been booked. We need to see an increase if we are to spend the funding and avoid funds being returned to Welsh Government. We will be in touch with beneficiaries where no training has been booked to discuss this further.
Please Note: We have a smaller team now, as we work part-time and from home, our preferred method of communication is by emailing info@focusonforestryfirst.co.uk.