Young people in mid-Wales are to be given the opportunity to develop a range of countryside and land management skills as part of a project co-funded by Forestry Commission Wales (FCW).

The Branching Out/Egin initiative will be delivered by Tir Coed, a charity established in 1999 by a group of countryside organisations to advocate the benefits of woodland areas throughout Wales. Disadvantaged young people between the ages of 16 and 25 years old will be given the chance to work at local nature reserves and community woodlands in Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire.

Taking first thinings, fencing, ditching and the maintenance of footpaths are among the skills that can be learned, as well as installing bridges, boardwalks and other facilities to improve access and attract visitors. FCW's Woodlands for People policy advisor, Roz Owen, said: "Wales' woodlands offer a stimulating outdoor learning environment for people to develop practical new skills."

Tir Coed development officer Gwyneth Davies added: "With a growing recognition of the need for more vocational training programmes, there has never been a better time to introduce young people to the benefits of learning in and about the natural environment." The programme is expected to benefit 120 young people between 2010 and 2013, while Tir Coed is looking to expand the initiative to the Heads of the Valleys Strategic Regeneration Area in the coming months.

Image: Branching Out/Egin participants (from left) Wesley Rigby, Aaron Simpson, Ash George and Tom Quinn at Teifi Marshes Reserve - courtesy of Tir Coed