Cyfarthfa Foundation

The Cyfarthfa Foundation is a new company established to realise a bold 20-year vision for Cyfarthfa Castle and Park at Merthyr Tydfil – a site that has been described as the ‘crucible of the industrial revolution’. The vision – The Cyfarthfa Plan – has been set out in an extensive masterplan produced by a team of internationally-renowned consultants led by Ian Ritchie Architects and landscape architects, Gustafson, Porter and Bowman. The process has also benefitted from the expert input of the Design Commission for Wales. The plan envisages the transformation of the castle and park into a museum and art gallery of national significance set in an enlarged 100-hectare park. The land also encompasses the 260-year-old Cyfarthfa furnaces, once part of the largest ironmaking complex in the world.

The plan is built around the three themes of history and heritage, the natural environment and fostering creativity, and aspires to international quality in all things including an exemplary approach to community engagement. As part of this vision the Foundation is also bidding to be the anchor site for the proposed National Contemporary Arts Gallery for Wales.

The historic assets and park are currently owned by Merthyr Tydfil Council and operated by the Merthyr Tydfil Leisure Trust, but it has been agreed that the ownership and operation of these assets will be transferred to the Foundation, a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity. The Welsh Government is funding the development phase of the project.  Currently, the Foundation has a staff of four, headed by Chief Executive, Anna Baker.

The Foundation is now seeking to make 3 Board appointments, two of which will be to replace retiring trustees and one being an additional trustee. The appointments are intended to cover the following fields:

• Legal expertise;
• Development;
• Museum and gallery leadership, and;
• Marketing and communications.

Alongside these specific skills candidates will be expected to have the general skills require to be an effective non-executive trustee. The board’s membership will also be expected to demonstrate diversity in gender and ethnicity and as such candidates from a range of backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

The Foundation aims to establish an organisation whose sole focus will be the development of Cyfarthfa and other heritage assets in Merthyr to maximise the benefits for the community and the nation – economic, educational, social, environmental and cultural.

Saxton Bampfylde Ltd is acting as an employment agency advisor to the Cyfarthfa Foundation on this appointment. For further information about the role, including details about how to apply, please visit www.saxbam.com/appointments using reference EAPAHB. Alternatively telephone +44 (0)20 7227 0880 (during office hours). Applications should be received by noon on Friday 13^th October 2023.