Rugby 7s girls team taking a picture with their trophy and medals after winning the tournament

Introduction

The Urdd’s activities became more and more popular and the movement prospered during this period. The Urdd National Eisteddfod continued to experiment and develop at the beginning of the 1960s. 25,000 people flocked to the Eisteddfod at Dolgellau in 1960, and a Science Department was established for the first time which ensured that every subject became part of the Urdd’s activities. Non-Welsh speakers were attracted to the Eisteddfod site and a bilingual message board was displayed back stage in the Aberdare Eisteddfod in 1961 and an abbreviated version of the programme was printed in English.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of establishing the Urdd, a musical was performed called ‘Y Weledigaeth Fawr’ (The Great Vision) and an exhibition was set up on the Eisteddfod site to celebrate 50 successful years. During the 1970s the Eisteddfod grew and more and more competitors came to take part. The Urdd concentrated on gaining sponsorship as the festival was developing at a rapid pace, and the standard was also improving from year to year. The Eisteddfod in Rhyl was held for four days instead of three and into the 1970s the appeal of the Eisteddfod grew. In 1975, 65,000 people visited the Eisteddfod.

Residential centres

The residential centres went from strength to strength during this period. After the success of the camps held in Llanuwchlyn, Porth Dinllaen and the permanent centre at Llangrannog, Glan-llyn was established in 1950. At the end of the 1950s the Urdd looked at the possibility of extending the size of the centre and building another house, ‘Glan-llyn Isaf’. During the 1960s facilities and equipment were improved and two gymnasiams were built with a generous grant of £3,800 from the Education Administration Authority. The future looked brighter after the centre succeeded in gaining a long term lease of the site in 1980.

This secured more opportunities for development. In the early 1960s a large sum of money was spent on resources and activities, with the centre offering training in climbing and canoeing. In the 1970s the centre built a sailing hut and a new landing area and by 1980 Glan-llyn also had a swimming pool. During that year a new building that included a swimming pool, gym, and bedrooms for 60 people was opened.

69 courses were held there and over the course of a year 6000 young people enjoyed the various activities at Glan-llyn. In the 1980s a new canteen and multi-purpose sports hall were built to attract more visitors, and by 1992 the centre had its own 10-pin bowling centre. With modern attractions, educational courses and training in activities such as sailing and canoeing, Glan-llyn became a prominent outdoor activity centre for children and young people in Wales by the mid 1990s.

During the same period many developments were made at Llangrannog residential centre. Officers were worried that Glan-llyn was receiving more attention than Llangrannog. The wooden cabins at Llangrannog were looking a bit worse for wear.

1968 was the year when the future of the Urdd at Llangrannog was made secure. After renting the site every year, the owners were persuaded to sell the farm Ty Cwrt to secure the future of the centre. This was the beginning of a new period in the history of the residential centre. At the beginning of the 1970s a new canteen and bedrooms were built with room to accommodate 128 people. As a result 6026 campers came to the centre in 1978 compared to 2722 in 1972.

the 1970s Llangrannog had a large barn, swimming pool, hospital, shop and a new gymnasium. By the beginning of the 1980s, grants from the Welsh Office guaranteed that the centre would be able to extend and build halls, offices, stockrooms, a bike shed and a sleeping block for an extra 80 people. The centre developed effective but cheap activities such as quad bikes, BMX bike courses, an adventure course and rollerblading. The period between the end of the 80s and the beginning of the 90s was a crucial period in the history of the Urdd, and modern activities attracted visitors.A ski slope was built, as well as a swimming pool and a new horse riding track. By the mid 1990s Llangrannog was one of the main residential centres in Wales with resources and activities of the highest possible standard. ‘Hafod’, another sleeping block, and the a canteen were also built.

During the 1970s a residential centre was opened at Blaencwm in the Croesor Valley, and another at Pentre Ifan in Pembrokeshire. The buildings were refurbished to suit young people who wanted to spend their holidays in the countryside.

Grwp o blant yn mwynhau'r trip 'RibRide' yn mae Cerdydd

Conclusion

On the playing field, the Urdd continued to be prominent. In 1960 the Pantyfedwen football cup was re-established for branches and two rugby competitions were organised. From then on, physical exercise activities were numerous. By 1963 there were 203 branches taking part in competitions, including football, rugby, hockey, tennis, netball, darts and snooker. At the end of the 1960s the final rounds for all sports competitions were held on the same day in Aberystwyth. The sporting activities grew at such a rate during that by the 1970s the Urdd had to organise two festivals, one for the under 15s and another for older members.

By the 70s and 80s the magazines were becoming more and more popular. The magazine ‘Cymru’ was adapted, and the content and the name changed to ‘Hamdden’. The distribution rose to 43,850 a month. In 1966 two magazines were published for Welsh learners which were called ‘Bore Da’ for the younger children and ‘Mynd’ for older Welsh learners. With both these colourful magazines, the distribution rose to 46,000 a month. According to R. E. Griffith this was ‘the biggest miracle in the history of Welsh publishing.’ ‘Hamdden’ came to an end because of financial loss and ‘Cymru’r Plant’ and ‘Deryn’ joined together to form ‘Cip’. Three magazines continued to be published, ‘Cip’, ‘Bore Da’ and ‘Mynd’ from 1988. In the 90s ‘Mynd’ changed to ‘iaw!’ and worked with popular BBC Wales’ Education Department for pupils in secondary schools.

Baner Glas yr Urdd yn chwifio o flaen Canolfan y Mileniwm

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