Huge Response to Eisteddfod Call for Volunteers

With just over three weeks since organisers launched this year’s volunteering portal, over 1350 individual volunteering sessions have already been filled for the week, breaking all records!

Michael Strain, Chair of the Executive Committee has been volunteering as part of the Eisteddfod team since work began in Llŷn and Eifionydd almost four years ago, and he’s been encouraging people from all over the region and beyond to come and help during the week. He said, "We’re delighted with the response to the appeal for volunteers to come and join us in Boduan in August, and we’re very grateful to everyone who’ve already signed up to help.

"Attracting volunteers is an essential part of the Eisteddfod's mission every year, and I’m pleased to see so many local people joining our team, with lots coming to help for the first time. This year is our chance to hold our national festival in Llŷn and Eifionydd, and it’s great that we’ll have so many local people helping around the Maes, offering everyone a warm and friendly local welcome.”

The Eisteddfod also attracts volunteers from all parts of Wales and beyond, and Jeremy Miles MS, Welsh Government Minister for Education and the Welsh Language says that the chance to volunteer in Welsh is an important part of the festival's appeal. He says, "The National Eisteddfod’s success depends on the support and help of hundreds of volunteers, not only during the week but throughout the year, to prepare for the festival itself, and we’re grateful to everyone involved in the team.

"The fact that lots of new Welsh speakers volunteer at the Eisteddfod to gain more confidence to use our language their community is very powerful, and we welcome the work the Eisteddfod does locally and nationally to provide these opportunities. I'm looking forward to chatting with volunteers on the Maes in Boduan in August, to thank them for supporting our language and culture in such a practical way."

Creating a volunteering legacy at the end of the Eisteddfod project is also an important part of the festival's vision, with organisers working closely with Menter Iaith Gwynedd over the past few months on the 'Tyrd i Helpu' project, encouraging local people to volunteer in all kinds of Welsh and bilingual activities across Gwynedd.

Groups and organisations looking for volunteers can now contact Menter Iaith Gwynedd if they need volunteers, and the Menter will share these opportunities with everyone who’s signed up to help. The aim is to attract hundreds of volunteers who are happy to help.  Click here for more information, https://eisteddfod.wales/2023-come-and-help.  

For more information about volunteering at the Llŷn and Eifionydd Eisteddfod, and to join the team, go to https://2023.eisteddfod.wales/volunteering. Volunteering opportunities at the Rhondda Cynon Taf Eisteddfod Proclamation Ceremony have also opened, and if you’d like to be part of the team helping in Aberdare on Saturday 24 June, go to https://eisteddfod.cymru/2024-cyhoeddi.

The Llŷn and Eifionydd National Eisteddfod will be held in Boduan from 5-12 August. For more information go online.