Welsh – your fundraising tool

Charities in Wales raise money by visiting events or organisations that operate in Welsh. These locations and organisations can vary, and include local agricultural shows, the National Eisteddfod, and evenings with groups such as Merched y Wawr. Welsh is the natural language of many of these events and organisations, so it’s essential that Welsh speakers are available to attend. These speakers, or those individuals that visit events, can be members of staff or volunteers. 

• Visiting Welsh speaking organisations is important for Shelter Cymru to fundraise. Several of the organisations that they address hold evenings in Welsh only. Because of this, it’s necessary to ensure that Welsh speakers are available to present information in Welsh. As a result of hosting evenings with organisations in Welsh, Shelter Cymru receives thousands of donations annually. 
• BHF Cymru also recognises the importance of visiting Welsh speaking groups to fundraise and raise awareness of the charities work in Wales. By completing this work in Welsh, members of the public realise that the work BHF Cymru undertakes affects individuals that live locally. Welsh speakers are more prepared to donate their money because of this. Following some of these visits, Merched y Wawr chose BHF Cymru as their charity of the year and approximately £30,000 was raised. After giving a presentation in Welsh to the Farmers’ Union of Wales, around £9,000 was also raised. These significant figures prove that there’s value in using Welsh to engage with organisations in Wales. 
• Tir Dewi is another charity that sees value in visiting Welsh events, such as thanksgiving services and Ffermwyr Ifanc (Young Farmers) club nights. In doing this the charity raised around £30,000 during 2022. Tir Dewi have also visited 70 agricultural shows in the past year. The presence of Welsh speakers is essential at these events to create a relationship with new supporters, and to ensure the loyalty of past supporters. Ultimately, this helps their fundraising cause.
• Visiting the National Eisteddfod is very important to Save the Children, and the charity has fundraised successfully by doing so:

"Historically Save the Children has had a presence at the National Eisteddfod since the programme was established in Wales in the 80s. It's a great way to raise awareness of our work. We have carried out fundraising activities on the stand which includes our 'Sodlau’n Siarad' campaign together with Merched y Wawr in 2011 when hundreds of second-hand shoes were collected and sold on the stand and raised over £10,000 towards the work of the charity. Our volunteers from all over Wales have also organised, coordinated, and ran the stand on our behalf selling bags and jewellery at the Anglesey National Eisteddfod and jewellery at the Ceredigion National Eisteddfod last year. We are very fortunate to have so many dedicated volunteers who are fluent in Welsh to support us in events of the scale of the Eisteddfod" 
Eurgain Haf, Save the Children. 

Can you create a list of all the possible events you could visit this year? It’s also possible to create a list of Welsh speaking organisations that you could address to help with your fundraising efforts. Here are some examples for you to start your list: 

• Urdd Eisteddfod 
• National Eisteddfod 
• Agricultural shows 
• Events organised by the Mentrau Iaith 
• Welsh-medium schools 
• Welsh Language Student Union’s events 
• Merched y Wawr meetings 

Are you looking for Welsh speaking volunteers to help at events or to speak with organisations? Why not look at the Volunteering Framework in Wales to promote the opportunities that are available with your charity. 

Selling goods is an important way of fundraising for many charities in Wales, and this is done online and in shops on the high street. Ensuring that you have a good supply of Welsh goods available helps fundraising efforts and encourages new audiences to support your charity. These goods can vary, and includes items such as: 

• Greeting cards 
• Books 
• Music 
• Calendars 
• Letters from Santa 

Here are examples of what some charities sell. 

• The NSPCC, like many other charities, have sold Welsh Christmas cards annually through their online store in response to demand from members of the public.  
• Selling Christmas cards is a great way to attract customers to any store and is certain to gain their loyalty. Members of the public are disappointed if there aren’t Welsh Christmas cards available in the shops, and this shows the value of ensuring that an adequate supply is available. Customers will return annually to buy these cards.  
• The NSPCC also offered a service to receive a Welsh letter from Santa before Christmas. A donation of £8 is suggested for this service.  
• Two other examples of charities that sell Welsh language goods in their shops are BHF Cymru and Oxfam. These goods include music and various books. Ensuring that the Welsh language can be heard and seen in the shops also secures the loyalty of local customers and encourages new ones to visit and spend on goods. It’s possible to place an appeal for Welsh goods in your local papers, and several charities have experienced success by doing this.  
• Barnardo’s Cymru’s shops on the high street sell most of the charity’s Welsh language products, especially in North Wales. It’s important to them that the shops reflect the language of the area, and by ensuring a bilingual image they’re able to create a relationship with Welsh speakers. The result of this is that more Welsh speakers are encouraged to visit and to spend money. Selling Welsh Christmas cards is also significant for Barnardo’s Cymru and is one of the main Welsh products that they produce. 

According to Barnardo’s Cymru, selling Welsh Christmas cards annually is extremely important: 

“Welsh greetings cards are very popular and if they are not instore, it is noticed by Welsh speaking customers. For example, the Mold store did not have any delivered and we had a few customers ask why we had not stocked them. We transferred some in after this. It is important for the community.” Jessica Jones, Barnardo’s. 

Why don’t you give selling Welsh language goods a go? You could design your own greeting cards, or appeal to the public for donations of books and CDs to sell. Or be creative and think of something unique to sell that is not currently available in Welsh. 

When advertising in Welsh, charities reach new audiences. It’s a great way to raise awareness of their work, and to inform people of how they can donate. It can also be effective in showing where the money is spent, and the people that it helps. When creating an advertisement in Welsh, the public realise that the money is going to help local people, and this often encourages them to donate. 

• BHF Cymru's first Welsh language advertisement was created before the pandemic in 2020. This video is called 'Llew John', and it was shared on all the charity's platforms. The advert was very successful in its aim, which was to give a voice to BHF Cymru. According to the head of BHF Cymru, the charity is often seen as a British one. But this advertisement has made individuals realise that important work is carried out by the charity in Wales too and acts to help individuals like Llew John. As a result, the people of Wales are more willing to donate. BHF Cymru plans to create another Welsh advert after the success of the first one, and these adverts can be used across all of the British Heart Foundation's platforms by adding English subtitles. You can watch the advert by following this link – Hysbyseb Llew John  
• Another charity that has experienced success by creating a Welsh advertisement is Shelter Cymru. The advert was broadcasted on S4C and ITV Cymru, and the amount of donations received increased significantly after it was aired.
• Tir Dewi has also seen success as a result of creating a Welsh advertisement. Their first one was created in 2021 and resulted in a great increase in activity levels donations received. Because of this a new advert has been created, which was broadcast on television at the end of 2022. 

“Certainly, the broadcast of our advert on S4C last year contributed towards the increase in donations. Our appeal was a great success, and the TV advert was central to this success. We received several comments indicating that the advertisement encouraged people to contribute". Gareth Davies, Tir Dewi. 

It's important to remember that creating a TV advert isn't the only option you have. It’s possible to film your own clips to share videos on your website and social media platforms. Short clips are effective in sharing messages, and you can do this for free. You could also ask volunteers and supporters, as well as staff, to be a part of these clips. 

The adverts don't have to be videos either. You could create a Welsh or bilingual advertisement to be placed in magazines, local papers, pamphlets, on posters, or in different places throughout the country. This guide could be helpful when thinking about possible designs.

Creating fundraising packs and templates is a good way to encourage groups to act. By preparing these resources charities encourage Welsh language communities to organise events, and the process of raising money is facilitated. Making an effort to prepare these resources in Welsh gains the public's respect and gives them an additional reason to support. Below are some examples of the types of templates and packs that charities have created. 

• Save the Children have a pack of Welsh resources that’s been created to use annually for Christmas Jumper day. The pack contains all sorts of things to encourage activity, including a quiz, promotional resources, and fundraising leaflets: 

"We created a variety of Welsh resources for our Christmas Jumper Day this year, including fundraising packs for schools and businesses, posters, knitting patterns and templates on how to create banners and a collection box, a totalizer, a sponsorship form, a Christmas quiz and resources for social media. The preparation of Welsh language resources is definitely helpful for us to continue to secure the support of a number of Welsh medium schools and organisations that would be more likely to support if the resources are available bilingually". Eurgain Haf, Save the Children

• Barnardo’s Cymru is another charity that creates fundraising templates in Welsh. According to Barnardo’s Cymru, creating these Welsh language resources encourages Welsh language communities to raise money by organising events. This facilitates the process, and makes people feel that they are contributing to help a local cause.  
• Welsh language fundraising templates created by Macmillan Cymru can be found online at 'BeMacmillan'. These templates are essential for Welsh language groups and organisations as they organise fundraising events such as coffee mornings. Offering a platform where templates in Welsh are available removes one possible obstacle when communities organise fundraising events. 

“Be.macmillan is a website from which people can customise and download materials to promote services or fundraising activities including posters, invitations and certificates for Macmillan Coffee Mornings. It’s important that our supporters can fundraise in their first language, and having these resources on be.macmillan makes things easier for them.”
Kerry-Lynne Doyle, Macmillan

• Welsh speakers appreciate receiving thanks in Welsh. Why not create a template to be able to send a note of appreciation or a certificate in Welsh? Or you can prepare a ‘Thank you’ message to share on social media. Past supporters will be more willing to back you again by doing this.

• If you need someone to check the message, the Hybu team at the Welsh Language Commissioner offers a free proofreading service, up to 1000 words. Contact hybu@cyg-wlc.cymru for more information.

One of the main reasons for engaging with the Welsh language media is to raise awareness of the charity's work, and to connect with new audiences. By connecting with various audiences, the likelihood of receiving donations increases. When hearing or reading about the charity's work in Welsh, some individuals get a better idea of the charity's aim and identify with the work. It’s worth noting here that there are no costs when engaging with the press - this can be done free of charge. If no member of staff is available to speak to the press, why not ask your volunteers? These are examples of how engaging with the Welsh language media has helped charities. 

• Speaking on Radio Cymru and S4C has helped Save the Children to raise money. By doing this, Welsh speakers learn about the charity's campaigns and realise that work takes place locally within their own communities. Realising that so much important work is happening so close to home encourages some to contribute. These Radio and TV programs can vary from the news, to more relaxed ones such as Aled Hughes' radio show or ‘Heno’ on S4C. 
• Heddyr Gregory is responsible for speaking to the press on behalf of Shelter Cymru. She has been interviewed several times on television and radio to raise awareness of the charity's work. By doing this in Welsh, Shelter Cymru engages with new audiences and therefore increases the chance of receiving donations. 
• Talking to Welsh magazine 'Golwg' has been beneficial for Ramblers Cymru. Publishing Welsh articles helps them to reach a new audience, and to raise awareness of their work. In these articles, Ramblers Cymru are able to explain the importance and impact of their work and therefore can encourage more individuals to support the charity. Brân Devey from Ramblers Cymru also writes Welsh language articles for learners in 'Lingo Newydd' magazine, which once again enables them to reach an additional audience to encourage more support. 

More 'traditional' channels can also be used to share information with the public. Why not consider writing a piece to share with the papurau bro (local papers) to draw attention to your work. A list of these papers can be found here.