THE PRINCE OF WALES WILL VISIT WREXHAM TO MARK ST. DAVID’S DAY
Friday 1st March 2024
The Prince of Wales will visit Wrexham on St. David’s Day to celebrate Welsh culture and the city’s vibrant community spirit.
His Royal Highness will firstly travel to the Turf pub next to Wrexham AFC to hear about the positive impact the venue and the club has had on the local community. Following this, the Prince will visit a local school to engage with its St. David’s Day celebrations and hear about the work pupils have been carrying out to learn about Welsh history and culture.
Whilst in Wrexham, the Prince will also visit the memorial of the Gresford Mining Disaster, one of the most serious disasters in British coal mining history, to recognise those who lost their lives ninety years ago.
Engagement 1:
The first engagement of the day will see His Royal Highness visit the Turf pub next to Wrexham AFC – the oldest public house at any sports stadium around the world.
During the visit, the Prince will meet staff, members of the local community and representatives of charitable organisations to hear about how it plays a key role as a hub for the local area, and the support it provides to local causes.
The Prince will then visit the pitch at the stadium to hear about the club’s redevelopment and historic rise over the past three years since the takeover by Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, and meet with staff and players.
Engagement 2:
The Prince of Wales will then visit Ysgol Yr Holl Saint/All Saint’s School to see how the school is celebrating St David’s Day and hear about how its teaching its pupils about local Welsh history and cultural traditions. During the visit His Royal Highness will meet pupils taking part in activities including Dawnsio Gwerin – traditional Welsh folk dancing – and baking Bara Brith, a Welsh tea bread flavoured with dried fruits and spices.
The Prince will then hear how the school is supporting its pupils to take part in innovative, forward- looking projects by meeting those who have made it through to the UK Finals of the Formula 1 in Schools competition. The competition sees students from across the UK create their own version of an F1 team, with each team member taking on different roles such as designing the car, manufacturing, branding or becoming the team principal.
Finally, the Prince will meet Year 6 pupils who have been learning about the history of the Gresford Mining Disaster and the impact this had on Wrexham and the surrounding areas. The pupils have worked closely with the Miners’ Rescue Station in Wrexham to co-create a meaningful project to commemorate the tragedy and educate others about its history.
Engagement 3:
The final engagement of the day will see the Prince visit the memorial of the Gresford mining disaster. This year marks the 90th anniversary of the tragic event which saw 266 men die following an explosion in the Gresford Colliery.
More than 500 men were trapped underground following the explosion in the early hours of the morning, with the number of workers on site much larger than usual as many had doubled their shifts so they could watch a Wrexham football match later that day.
During the visit, the Prince will meet relatives of those who were killed in the disaster and hear from committee members who have been key in setting up the memorial and preserving the history of the colliery.
Finally, His Royal Highness will meet members from the Wrexham Miners’ Rescue Station which opened in 1913 to train rescuers on various techniques on how to save miners. In 1934, many of those who trained at the station helped in the mission to save workers trapped as a result of the Gresford disaster, with three rescue workers losing their lives.
