Newsquest and Books Council of Wales joint statement – Corgi Cymru

The Books Council of Wales and Newsquest have agreed to end the funding and provision of Welsh-language digital news service Corgi Cymru.

Both parties came to a mutual agreement to propose to close Corgi Cymru’s digital channels at the end of October and allow the service to be wound down over the following month.

One full-time and one part-time role are now at risk and a consultation will be held with affected Newsquest staff, starting today, 19 October.

Helgard Krause, Chief Executive of the Books Council, said: “After careful consideration and discussion, the Books Council and Newsquest have agreed that it is in the best interest of both parties to discontinue our funding agreement and close the Corgi Cymru digital news service at the end of October.

“We have been in regular contact with Newsquest over the last few weeks and we are sorry to see Corgi Cymru close, but we do understand that circumstances have changed since the grant was awarded, due to the very challenging current environment. Our thoughts are with the staff who are affected by this decision.”

Gavin Thompson, Regional Editor at Newsquest, said: “We are grateful to the Books Council for its support, which enabled the launch of Corgi Cymru earlier this year. Unfortunately, it became clear that even with Books Council support and given the challenging economic environment, building a new Welsh-language proposition at this time would not be economically sustainable.

“We have been engaged in constructive discussions over the future of the service in recent weeks, following the closure of The National Wales. We will begin a consultation process with affected staff, starting today.”

The Books Council of Wales will announce the process for re-tendering the remainder of the Welsh Language Digital News Service grant funding from 2023 onwards over the coming weeks.

Books Council of Wales joins Welsh Government campaign to ‘take Wales to the World’

As part of Welsh Government’s World Cup Partner Support Fund, the Books Council of Wales is one of 19 organisations getting behind the Wales team as they head for Qatar in November.

Economy Minister Vaughan Gething has announced the projects that will promote and celebrate Wales at the tournament. A total of £1.8 million will be shared among 19 projects which aim to project our nation’s values and work to secure a positive and lasting legacy for Wales and Welsh football.

The Books Council of Wales has been awarded funding to deliver free football-themed books to libraries and food banks across Wales, to bring the magic of football to readers and celebrate the Welsh team’s achievements.

Chief Executive of the Books Council, Helgard Krause, said: “We are delighted to be part of this exciting programme and to use the passion and celebration of Wales’ achievement in the World Cup to ignite a love of reading in young people and help them improve their literacy skills.

Both reading and physical activity have a huge role to play in our health and well-being and Sporting Stories brings both elements together. Whether it’s helping a football fan to discover books they’ll love, or providing some footballing inspiration to encourage participation in football, games and sport, children and young people will be able to choose from a wide selection of football-themed books to enjoy during the World Cup and celebrate Wales’ place in the tournament.”

The Books Council’s Sporting Stories project will provide a selection of recent football-themed books, in both Welsh and English, to local authority libraries and to foodbanks across Wales. The books will be available from the beginning of November and will include a wide range of titles for all reading abilities, from Foundation Phase to adult readers. More information will be available on the Books Council’s website.

In his statement, Vaughan Gething said: “The Welsh Government has established an ambitious and exciting range of activities to make the most of the unique opportunity offered by the Cymru men’s football team’s participation in the FIFA World Cup.

This is the most significant marketing and sports diplomacy opportunity ever presented to the Welsh Government given the profile of the event.

We are determined to capitalise on this historic achievement and deliver real benefits for people here in Wales.”​

Congratulations to our Chief Executive, Helgard Krause, as she joins the Gorsedd of the Bards for services to the arts in Wales.

Originally from Pfalz in Germany and multilingual, Helgard has a wealth of experience in publishing both in the UK and internationally.

She came to Wales in 2005 when she started working for the Books Council of Wales as International Sales Officer. She learnt Welsh in order to become the Council’s Head of Sales & Marketing and became fluent within a few months. From 2010–2017 she was Director of University of Wales Press, before returning to the Books Council in 2017 as Chief Executive.

Helgard said: ‘I feel privileged and deeply moved to receive this honour, joining an illustrious circle of bards, writers and other creatives who have contributed so much to the Welsh language and culture. It is a pleasure to be given a platform to further promote the publishing industry in Wales and highlight the importance of books and reading in general.’

Below the Archdruid, Myrddin ap Dafydd welcomes Helgard at the Gorsedd of the Bards ceremony.