The story of Yma: six years of collaboration in Wales

How a conversation grew into a social enterprise, improving health and care in Wales.

Six years ago, a conversation between clinicians planted the seed for something new in Wales. With early support from Here, that conversation grew into Yma, a social enterprise working to strengthen primary care and create the conditions for better collaboration across the health system.

Today, Yma works across Wales to connect clinicians, leaders and communities, helping turn ideas for improvement into practical change.

Its work includes evaluating services, supporting initiatives such as Health Pathways, and partnering with organisations like the Football Association of Wales to explore new approaches to improving community health.

As Yma celebrates its sixth anniversary, the people who helped shape it reflect on how it began and what it has become.

Before Yma existed, I was living and working at the intersection of three Health Board areas in Wales. I could see good work happening everywhere. Dedicated teams, innovative ideas and people trying to improve care. But so much of it stayed local. The system wasn’t always set up to help those ideas connect or spread.

So I invited a small group of GPs to spend two days together in conversation.

There was no formal agenda and no expectation of outputs. Just space to slow down and ask honest questions: what are we seeing, what do we care about and what really matters for primary care in Wales?

Those conversations became the seed of Yma.

By autumn 2019 a founding group had formed around a shared purpose: creating the conditions where primary care in Wales could thrive. We incorporated Yma on 18 March 2020.

A week later the country went into lockdown.

Looking back, that moment shaped us. We didn’t begin with a detailed roadmap. We began with values: listening, connecting people and responding to what matters.

Bringing people together and growing Yma.

In the early days Yma grew through relationships. People across Wales began turning to us when they needed someone who could bring people together and help navigate complexity.

During the pandemic we supported work across primary care and helped partners stay connected at a time when collaboration was more important than ever. As the All Wales Community HealthPathways programme developed, we helped bring partners together and create spaces where people could engage and shape the work.

Yma’s impact.

Six years on, Yma’s impact can be felt across Wales.

We have created meaningful jobs in mid and west Wales, supported collaboration across the health system and helped bring frontline insight into conversations about change.

But what I am most proud of is something simpler. People now see Yma as a trusted partner. An organisation that shows up with curiosity, humility and a genuine commitment to helping the system work better for the communities it serves.

I had just moved my family to mid Wales from England and before long I had a laptop, a desk with a view of the forest and a long list of things to learn.

My background was in materials science, so working in health was completely new. But I quickly realised there were surprising connections between the systems thinking I had used before and the work we do in health improvement.

One of the things I love about Yma is the mix of people in the team.

We now have eight people working together across Wales. Our backgrounds range from lifeboat crew and PhDs to actors and cricketers. It is an eclectic mix, but it works.

What we have learnt is that everyone brings something different. Sometimes we do not realise we need what someone offers until they arrive.
We have created a working environment I am really proud of. Walking meetings are common. Part time and full time roles complement each other. There is also a genuine sense of people supporting each other every day.

It still feels like we are building something. I am excited to see where we will be in another five years.

A different approach to improving health and care

Sarah Bartholomew, Deputy CEO, Here; former Company Director, Yma
“Yma looks at the system through a different lens.”

My connection with Yma goes back to working with Sam at Practice Unbound. At that time we were collaborating closely with general practice to understand the challenges it faced and to develop solutions together.

Sam recognised very early on that Welshness matters deeply to people in Wales. Being based there, understanding the context and building relationships locally was critical.

Yma was founded with the intention of creating the conditions where primary care in Wales could thrive, both now and in the future. That meant listening to what matters to people working in primary care, co creating solutions with them and standing side by side as change happens.

What makes Yma distinctive is the lens through which it approaches its work. It advocates from the grassroots. It is not tied to the status quo. It actively looks for new ways for the system to work.

Another thing I feel particularly proud of is the impact Yma has had locally. In Aberystwyth Sam has created meaningful employment for local people. Talented individuals can now work in innovative roles while staying rooted in their own community. That feels really important.

From start-up to trusted social enterprise

Helen Curr, CEO, Here
“Yma is small but mighty.”

From my perspective, Yma’s story is about the power of people who care deeply about the places they live.

Sam was part of the Here team before she moved to Wales, and she became increasingly passionate about building something meaningful there.
You can see that connection to place very clearly in Yma.

Yma is a relatively small organisation, but its reach and influence are remarkable. Small but mighty is probably the best way to describe it.
One of the things I admire most is how Sam connects people. She joins the dots between leaders, organisations and communities across Wales. Those connections become the glue that allows new ideas to take shape.

Over time, our relationship with Yma has naturally evolved. In the early days the organisation leaned on Here’s experience and infrastructure while it established itself. As Sam built strong networks across Wales and the team grew in confidence, Yma increasingly found its own voice.

What we see today is the next stage in that journey. Yma has grown into a sustainable organisation in its own right, deeply connected and valued across Wales.

Yma’s story is still unfolding, and I’m excited to see what the next chapter brings as we continue working together to improve health and care for the communities we serve.

The future of Yma and social enterprise in healthcare

Six years on, Yma has grown from a conversation into a trusted partner working across Wales.

Its story is a reminder that meaningful change rarely begins with grand plans. More often it starts with curiosity, collaboration and the courage to do things differently.

For Here, Yma’s journey reflects something we believe strongly. Social enterprises can create the conditions for new ideas, new organisations and new ways of working to emerge.

Sometimes that means supporting something new to take root.

Sometimes it means stepping back as that organisation grows into its own.

Yma’s story is still unfolding and we are proud to have been part of the beginning.

Next month we will share more about how Yma was created and what this partnership tells us about the role social enterprise can play in building stronger health systems and communities.