What
Swtan is a restored 17th-century Welsh cottage close to the coastal footpath on the north-west Wales coast of Anglesey. The cottage is owned by the National Trust and leased by a group of local volunteers, Cyfellion Swtan (Friends of Swtan). The land around the cottage is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Opened
In 2000, after extensive restoration achieved through local support.
Collection
“Swtan evokes life in rural Wales at the turn of the 20th century,” says Margaret Owen, the museum’s director. The two-room cottage contains a wide range of 19th-century furnishings and objects that have been donated by locals.
These include an 1840s cooking range and a collection of tools for tasks such as haymaking, rabbit-catching and milking. Children visiting at Christmas can rummage through the extensive store of vintage toys. Venture outside and you’ll find a herb garden, a vegetable patch and an assortment of old varieties of Welsh apple trees.
Help at hand
Three part-time staff. One staff member works at a time, usually supported by a volunteer. There are around 20 volunteers and the local Women’s Institute looks after the herb garden. “It’s a very community-orientated place,” Owen says.
Highlights
Swtan itself: “The cottage has a timeless, peaceful quality and people often just sit in the garden and relax,” Owen says. There’s also a great view over the picturesque Church Bay and surrounding countryside.
Budget
Income comes from admissions (£3.50 adults), membership (£7 per year for adults), donations and special events such as the rural craft weekend in the summer.
Swtan has also received money for restoration from the Welsh government’s Rural Development Programme. Most recently, a £30,000 grant funded the building of a barn that houses an information room and schoolroom for use by visiting school groups.
Visitors
Swtan receives 2,000–2,500 visitors a year, with a particular swell at Christmas when the cottage is decorated with evergreens and ribbons and staff dress up in mobcaps and pinafores.
Sticky moment
Swtan is quintessentially a Welsh cottage, and it aims to preserve the Welsh way of life and culture. Cyfellion Swtan has a Welsh-language policy and it tries to make sure that staff and volunteers can speak it fluently. Owen says that there has been difficulty in attracting Welsh-speaking volunteers to help in the cottage and to manage social media.
Survival tip
“Try to create a space where large parties can spread out for talks and other group events and activities,” Owen says. She also says that good volunteer support is invaluable: “Try to select volunteers with expertise in different areas, such as
finance and business as well as practical skills.”
Future plans
The Swtan team is working to develop services from the new barn extension.
“Because the local council intend to impose charges on the public car park near to Swtan there will be a need for a private car park and access road,” Owen says. The museum’s ultimate dream is for a separate heritage centre detached from the cottage, which will be used to promote cultural and community activities.
Swtan is a restored 17th-century Welsh cottage close to the coastal footpath on the north-west Wales coast of Anglesey. The cottage is owned by the National Trust and leased by a group of local volunteers, Cyfellion Swtan (Friends of Swtan). The land around the cottage is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Opened
In 2000, after extensive restoration achieved through local support.
Collection
“Swtan evokes life in rural Wales at the turn of the 20th century,” says Margaret Owen, the museum’s director. The two-room cottage contains a wide range of 19th-century furnishings and objects that have been donated by locals.
These include an 1840s cooking range and a collection of tools for tasks such as haymaking, rabbit-catching and milking. Children visiting at Christmas can rummage through the extensive store of vintage toys. Venture outside and you’ll find a herb garden, a vegetable patch and an assortment of old varieties of Welsh apple trees.
Help at hand
Three part-time staff. One staff member works at a time, usually supported by a volunteer. There are around 20 volunteers and the local Women’s Institute looks after the herb garden. “It’s a very community-orientated place,” Owen says.
Highlights
Swtan itself: “The cottage has a timeless, peaceful quality and people often just sit in the garden and relax,” Owen says. There’s also a great view over the picturesque Church Bay and surrounding countryside.
Budget
Income comes from admissions (£3.50 adults), membership (£7 per year for adults), donations and special events such as the rural craft weekend in the summer.
Swtan has also received money for restoration from the Welsh government’s Rural Development Programme. Most recently, a £30,000 grant funded the building of a barn that houses an information room and schoolroom for use by visiting school groups.
Visitors
Swtan receives 2,000–2,500 visitors a year, with a particular swell at Christmas when the cottage is decorated with evergreens and ribbons and staff dress up in mobcaps and pinafores.
Sticky moment
Swtan is quintessentially a Welsh cottage, and it aims to preserve the Welsh way of life and culture. Cyfellion Swtan has a Welsh-language policy and it tries to make sure that staff and volunteers can speak it fluently. Owen says that there has been difficulty in attracting Welsh-speaking volunteers to help in the cottage and to manage social media.
Survival tip
“Try to create a space where large parties can spread out for talks and other group events and activities,” Owen says. She also says that good volunteer support is invaluable: “Try to select volunteers with expertise in different areas, such as
finance and business as well as practical skills.”
Future plans
The Swtan team is working to develop services from the new barn extension.
“Because the local council intend to impose charges on the public car park near to Swtan there will be a need for a private car park and access road,” Owen says. The museum’s ultimate dream is for a separate heritage centre detached from the cottage, which will be used to promote cultural and community activities.
