A grant of £4900 was won by IAITH through the Arian i Bawb scheme to work with a community of older people who speak Welsh.


The project was delivered under the banner of one of IAITH's schemes, Estyn Llaw. The project’s original aim was to hold a series of workshops to increase the group's skills in terms of engagement within their communities.

Watch the work here

However, based on discussions locally in the Treuddyn area, and on the basis of a focus group held in early July 2018, a project was created to bring the different generations within the village together. A group of Welsh speakers from the older generation of the village were invited to the focus group. It became clear that they wished to come into closer contact with young families in the village. There were several reasons for this:

·    To improve intergenerational relationships in the village

·    To lessen isolation amongst older people and young parents

·    To share information about the village and its history, and

·    Intergenerational transmission of Welsh

A series of 8 sessions were organised during the summer with all but one taking place at the Hafan Deg centre in Treuddyn. The sessions were open to individuals from the village who were over the age of 60 and parents wishing to introduce Welsh to their children. The ideas for the activities carried out originated from the focus group. Sessions included:

·    A play session where the older people had the opportunity to share memories of their childhood

·    Arts and crafts - Welsh card making

·    A dance session

·    The history of the area

·    A story session

·    A trip to Theatr Clwyd for a special concert

At the end of each session the crew sang Welsh songs and nursery rhymes together.

With each session the villagers built a relationship with each other, with the young parents enjoying a little break and the older people delighted to have the opportunity to help and to raise the babies and toddlers.

IAITH visited the crew on several occasions to measure the success and evaluate the project. The following comments were gathered during informal conversations with attendees:

 

Mothers

“It’s a great reason to get out of the house with the baby. I hadn’t really thought about the Welsh side of things until I met these people. It’s definitely made me think about why it’s important and how it could benefit us.”

“I’ve made new friends, young and old. I hope that we’ll keep in touch. It’s made me feel supported.”

“It’s just lovely to meet someone from the village that I didn’t know before. I saw **** on the street the other day and she came over to speak to me. It felt really comfortable and friendly.”

“It’s given me a bit of confidence to use Welsh actually.  The songs we’ve learned and some words here and there. It’s made me want to learn more.”

“It would be great if this could be extended to other areas too. It’s a valuable experience for us and them. I hope! Bringing generations together, it seems like common sense really.”

“It’s given me the confidence to sing in Welsh with the baby. I’d like to keep that up. Can we have more of these sessions?”

 

Older people

“We've been sharing the history of the village and the Welsh language. They don't see that world until they come to a group like this. It's important that we talk to them, or otherwise they can’t be expected to consider Welsh.”

“The companionship is the best thing and meeting young people who really appreciate the opportunity to talk to us. It makes me feel like I have something to give.”

“If we don't have the older people introducing Welsh to them – there’s no hope is there? And it's nice to have a cwtch too. It brings back fond memories.”

“A reason to come out for a walk and meet new people. If I wasn’t here, I guess I would be at home.”

“The dancing was the best thing. Everyone joined in and the kids loved it too. Practical activities that encourage us to chat and encourage them to hear the language.”