Chance to be an ambassador
A TEAM of Welsh speakers have become the latest Bridgend Ambassadors – a group of volunteers who are sharing knowledge of the area with tourists.
Around 30 Bridgend ambassadors are helping to give visitors an extrawarm welcome, with nine Welsh speakers having had their first major outing at May’s Urdd Eisteddfod in Pencoed.
Extra recruits are always welcome to join the group and help support local tourism. Potential ambassadors need to have an interest in learning more about the area’s culture, wildlife, history, arts and food, and be willing to volunteer some of their spare time.
Involvement may vary from meeting and greeting at events, writing blogs, helping groups plan a visit and generally doing what they can to raise the profile of the region.
Training is free and is a time commitment of two days in a workshop setting, exploring the treasures of the county borough.
Among the bilingual Bridgend Ambassadors are Amanda Evans and Marged Thomas, who both also work for Menter Bro Ogwr.
Amanda said: “I was delighted to have the opportunity to learn more about our heritage, meet new people and create a team of friends that is able to spread this information to visitors and local people.”
Marged added: “Training to become a Welshspeaking ambassador was a great experience and I learned so much about our local area. There is so much history and so many interesting things to do on our doorstep.”
This training is supported by Bridgend council’s Reach Rural Development Team, in conjunction with Bridgend Tourism Association.
The project has received funding through the Welsh Government Rural Communities – Rural Development Programme 2014-20, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural De- velopment and the Welsh Government.
If you are interested in becoming a Bridgend Ambassador, contact Roz or John at ambassadors@ bridgendtourism.co.uk