2. Guidance Documents

Critical Success Factors (CSFs) are essential tools for evaluating, prioritising, and managing investment proposals within the Mid Wales Growth Deal portfolio.  They will support strategic and consistent decisions, aligned with regional objectives:

• Ensure proposals directly support the Growth Deal's goals — including transformational change, inclusive growth, and sectoral development.
• Provide a standardised framework for assessing diverse projects, enabling fair and transparent decision-making across stakeholders.

A. Strategic Value

A1. Strategic Alignment to MWGD

The degree to which the proposal supports the strategic objectives of the MWGD:

• Clear contribution to MWGD strategic aims.
• Alignment with priority sectors (e.g. agri-food, energy, digital).
• Drive inclusive growth and regional resilience.

A2. Transformational Impact on Region

The potential for the project to deliver significant and lasting change:

• Demonstrates potential for economic, social, or environmental transformation.
• Goes beyond incremental improvements to deliver long-term regional value.

A3. Value for Money

The efficiency and effectiveness of public investment:

• Strong economic case with projected job creation and GVA uplift.
• Demonstrates efficient use of public funds.
• Potential for leveraging additional funding and wider economic impact.

B. Mobilisation

B4. Affordability

The financial feasibility and funding readiness of the proposal:

• Capital costs are understood and proportionate.
• MWGD intervention level is defined.
• Match funding is secured or well-progressed, with evidence of private sector leverage.
• Revenue funding for development and delivery phases is confirmed or planned.

B5. Complexity

There is consideration of the delivery complexity and associated risks:

• Planning requirements and external dependencies are identified and manageable.
• Project phasing is understood (sequential, modular, or adaptive).
• Delivery complexity is categorised to inform risk and resource planning.

B6. Timeliness

The readiness to mobilise and deliver within a defined timeframe:

• Project can be mobilised within 6 months.
• Governance and resources are in place or clearly planned.
• Timeline for completing the 5-Case Business Model is defined and achievable.
• Delivery milestones are realistic; completion guaranteed before 2032.

B7. Management

The strength of project management arrangements:

• Project is appropriately resourced with effective governance structures.
• Evidence of sound project planning principles.
• Robust and proactive approach to RAID (Risks, Assumptions, Issues, Dependencies) management.
• Methodology for tracking progress, reporting, and evaluating impact is understood.

According to HM Treasury's Better Business Case guidance, the purpose of the Strategic Assessment is to establish the strategic context for a project and demonstrate how it aligns with wider organisational, regional, and national priorities.

A project is most effectively initiated when it is grounded in a clear business strategy that outlines:

• Where you are now.
• Where you want to be.
• How you will get there.
• How success will be measured.

Completing a Strategic Assessment provides an early opportunity for the organisation, the MWGD team, and key stakeholders to:

• Influence the direction, scope, and content of the project.
• Confirm the project's strategic fit within the MWGD portfolio.
• Ensure the project is well-structured, resourced, and governed for successful delivery.

Your Strategic Assessment Should:

• Demonstrate how the project supports national, regional, local, or organisational policies and targets aligned with the MWGD.
• Show how the project fits within your organisation's business strategy and delivery plans.
• Provide a clear understanding of the critical path for delivery, including:
  • Anticipated outcomes and outputs
  • Key milestones and timescales
  • Expected benefits and associated risks
• Validate that the project is:
  • Organised and funded appropriately
  • Supported by the necessary governance, standards, resources, and capabilities
• Clearly articulate the business needs and service opportunities the project aims to address.

The Strategic Assessment Form is designed to guide you through this process. While largely self-explanatory, the following additional guidance will support you in completing it effectively.

Please complete the following fields in the Strategic Application Form. These details help assess your project's strategic fit, readiness, and financial structure.

Project Details

• Project Title:  A clear and concise name for your project.
• Lead Organisation:  The organisation responsible for leading the development and delivery of the project.
• Senior Responsible Owner (SRO):  The senior individual within the lead organisation accountable for the successful delivery of the project.
• Project Manager:  The person responsible for day-to-day project development and coordination.
• External Project Capacity:  Indicate if any external professional project management support is being used.
• Key Stakeholders:  List other organisations actively involved in developing or supporting the project.

Financial Overview

• Total Capital Cost (£):  The full capital cost required to deliver the project (Ranging from £500k - £25m).
• MWGD Ask (£):  The amount of funding requested from MWGD (must not exceed 40% of the total capital cost).
• Match Requirement (£):  The remaining capital funding required (i.e. Total Capital Cost minus MWGD Ask).
• Potential Private Sector Investment (£):  Any anticipated or confirmed private sector contributions toward the match funding.
• Development Revenue Costs (£):  Estimated revenue costs for developing the project.  Note: MWGD cannot fund development revenue costs.
• Indicative Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR):  If known, provide the BCR—a measure comparing the project's expected benefits to its costs.

If ill-informed at this stage, leave blank. Please avoid speculative estimates.

The Proposal

In this section, you should provide a clear and concise description of your project proposal. Your response should cover the following key areas:

• Purpose of the Project

Explain what your project aims to achieve. Describe the core idea, the problem or opportunity it addresses, and the rationale behind its development.

• Evidence of Demand

Provide supporting evidence that demonstrates the need or demand for your project. This could include:

o   Market research or stakeholder engagement

o   Policy or strategy alignment

o   Identified service gaps or economic opportunities

• Anticipated Impact

Outline the expected outcomes and benefits of the project. Consider:

o   Economic impact (e.g. job creation, GVA uplift, investment leverage)

o   Social or environmental benefits

o   Contribution to regional resilience or innovation

• Strategic Fit

Explain how the project aligns with:

o   The priorities of Growing Mid Wales

o   The strategic objectives of the Mid Wales Growth Deal, such as:

Driving innovation and productivity

Supporting decarbonisation and net zero ambitions

Enhancing skills and employment

Improving connectivity

Strengthening the foundational economy

A strong response will clearly demonstrate how the project contributes to regional goals and complements other initiatives within the MWGD portfolio.

The Self-Assessment

As part of the Strategic Application Form, applicants are required to complete a self-assessment, using a scoring scale of 1 to 5, supported by Robust Explanatory Notes.

• Guidance on what constitutes a low (1) or high (5) score is provided within the form.
• Each Robust Explanatory Note must be no more than 150 words and should clearly justify the score given.

Purpose of the Self-Assessment

The self-assessment is a key tool for evaluating how well your project aligns with the Critical Success Factors of the Mid Wales Growth Deal. These factors help ensure:

• Proposals directly support the Growth Deal's goals — including transformational change, inclusive growth, and sectoral development
• A standardised and transparent framework is used to assess diverse projects across all stakeholders

The Critical Success Factors underpin the information requested in the Strategic Assessment Form and are grouped into two key areas:

• Table A: Strategic Value - assesses alignment with regional priorities, policy fit, and potential impact
• Table B: Mobilisation - evaluates readiness to deliver, including planning, governance, and resource capacity

Completing this section thoroughly will strengthen your application and help the Growing Mid Wales team assess your project's fit within the wider portfolio.

Strategic Assessment Summary Matrix

Once you have completed Table A (Strategic Value) and Table B (Mobilisation), you must summarise your results using the Strategic Assessment Summary Matrix.

This matrix provides a visual representation of your project's overall position, helping to inform prioritisation and decision-making.

Mobilisation Summary:  You will need to provide an overall judgement for Table B (Mobilisation), based on the four key aspects assessed:

• Affordability.
• Complexity.
• Timeliness.
• Management.

Judgement descriptors are provided in the form to guide your assessment.

Plot your project on the matrix using the combined outcomes of:

• Strategic Value (from Table A).
• Mobilisation (summarised from Table B).

This will help the Growing Mid Wales team assess the relative strength and readiness of your proposal within the wider portfolio.

To ensure consistency and high standards across the Mid Wales Growth Deal (MWGD) portfolio, the following project management strategies have been agreed. Lead organisations are strongly encouraged to adopt these approaches when developing and delivering their projects.  These strategies are designed to:

• Promote consistency in delivery and reporting.
• Strengthen governance and accountability.
• Support effective risk management and benefits realisation.
• Align with the expectations of the Growing Mid Wales Board and government partners.

Lead organisations should consider these strategies when establishing their internal project management arrangements:

• Governance and Reporting
• Financial Management
• RAID Management
• Benefits Management
• Procurement
• Change Management
• Assurance

The 5-Case Business Model, also known as the 'Better Business Cases' or 'HM Treasury' model, is a framework for evaluating projects that includes the Strategic Case (why?), Economic Case (value for money), Commercial Case (how to procure), Financial Case (affordability), and Management Case (how to deliver).

It is used to ensure projects are well-justified, deliver value, are commercially and financially sound, and are achievable before they begin.

• Strategic Case:  Justifies the need for the project and aligns it with the organization's objectives. It asks: "Why are we doing this?". 
• Economic Case:  Assesses different options to determine the one that provides the best value for money and return on investment, considering benefits and costs. It answers: "What is the best way of doing it?". 
• Commercial Case:  Outlines how the project will be procured, including how goods and services will be acquired from external suppliers. It asks: "How will we buy the solution?". 
• Financial Case:  Assesses whether the project is affordable and identifies the source of funding. It determines: "How will we pay for it?". 
• Management Case:  Details the project implementation, including the plan, timeline, and governance structure. It addresses: "How will we manage the delivery of the project?". 

The Portfolio Management Office will work with selected projects to adopt the appropriate business case development pathway.  However, please note this is a requirement of the MWGD and lead organisations will need to ensure sufficient resource to complete business case stage together with any supporting processes (eg planning).

The following principles have been agreed by the Growing Mid Wales Board.

The MWGD funding available for projects is only Capital funding, therefore all eligible costs must meet standard accounting definitions of capital expenditure in accordance with IAS16.  For example:

• Feasibility study costs would not be eligible.
• Costs relating to continuing to explore a range of potential options or solutions would not be eligible.
• Speculative and/or abortive costs relating to an option or a solution no longer being pursued would not be eligible.
• Costs that can be directly attributed to either bringing a capital asset into being or enhancing an existing capital asset would be eligible, if there is a clear and definitive objective underpinning this.  This could include Architects fees, Engineering fees, Other Professional fees including direct Project Management costs.
• Costs should be the incremental costs to the entity that would have been avoided had the capital asset not been constructed, enhanced or purchased.
• VAT relating to eligible costs would not normally be an eligible cost, unless it can be evidenced and certified by a qualified accountant that the VAT is irrecoverable from HMRC.

No Project shall be formally awarded MWGD funding until it has successfully reached the Full Business Case (FBC) stage and has subsequently received approval from the Growing Mid Wales Board.  The award of Growth Deal funding for each Project will also be formalised through appropriate documentation e.g. Grant Funding Award letter, Delivery Agreement etc.

Project Development Costs incurred during the OBC and FBC period may be retrospectively claimed towards overall project costs once an award of Growth Deal funding is formally made, provided they meet standard accounting definitions of capital expenditure.

However, no additional funding is available, and the overall funding envelope remains the same.   No Project shall be able to claim Project Development Costs of any sort for any period prior to the Outline Business Case (OBC) stage.

Purpose

We ask that all grant recipients acknowledge the funding support publicly. This helps raise awareness of how public investment through the Mid Wales Growth Deal is backing business and building our regional economy.

If you're planning any publicity (like press releases, media posts, or announcements), just drop us a quick email at growingmidwales@ceredigion.gov.uk beforehand so we can help make sure everything's aligned with the Growth Deal communications approach.

What You Need to Do

• General Materials (e.g. website, leaflets, signage)

o   Include the Growing Mid Wales, UK Government and Welsh Government logos (provided upon grant award), and this statement (in Welsh and English):

"This project is [funded/part-funded] through the Mid Wales Commercial Property Investment Fund, delivered by the Mid Wales Growth Deal as part of Growing Mid Wales."

• Online/Social Media

o   If posting about the project:

o   Tag @GrowingMidWales on LinkedIn or X

o   Use hashtags: #MidWalesGrowthDeal #BargenTwfCanolbarthCymru

• Plaques and Signs

o   For infrastructure projects, install a permanent plaque within 3 months of completion (min. size 250mm x 200mm), with the logo and funding statement.

• If creating a press release

o   Contact us first. We may need to coordinate with UK and Welsh Governments.

• Email: growingmidwales@ceredigion.gov.uk

o   Events (if public-facing)

o   If holding an event relating to the project, use the logos and statement on invites and banners, and let us know.

• Video or visual content

o   Add the logos for 3 seconds at the end and include bilingual subtitles where possible.

• Branding Guidelines:

o   Use the official Growing Mid Wales, UK Government and Welsh Government logos (provided upon grant award).

o   Keep it clear, undistorted, and equally balanced with UKG and WG logos.

o   Don't crop or stretch logos.

o   Place clearly on any public-facing materials.

• Language & Accessibility

o   All publicity must be bilingual (Welsh and English). Translation costs can be included in your grant budget.

• Need Help?

o   We're here to help make this easy. Contact us at growingmidwales@ceredigion.gov.uk with any queries or if you're unsure about your plans.