More than a decade ago, the team created A Queer Christmas, an interactive multigenerational promenade performance with and for the queer community of Swansea. As time passed, the call and desire to co-create new work, with and of that community grew; and so with support from funders and partners, Mess Up the Mess brought together Bethan Marlow (writer of A Queer Christmas) and original participant Cerian Hedd, who is now an interdisciplinary artist, to develop a new project.

And so Queertawe was born, a participant-led project with a queer heart and creative focus; celebrating queer history, present and future across Swansea.

Funded by Arts Council Wales

This project used the power of the arts to connect children and young people in Pontardawe with their local heritage. It featured three interlinked strands of creative activity:

Summer Taster Workshops – These workshops introduced filmmaking and a variety of other art forms, inspiring participants to get involved with the main film project.

Autumn Filmmaking Programme – Taking place during evenings and weekends, this hands-on programme saw young people exploring and creatively interpreting the heritage of Pontardawe, including the Pontardawe Heritage Trail and the Arts Centre. Participants received expert training from a professional filmmaker, writer/researcher, musician/sound designer, and visual artist. Using the skills they developed, they created their own original film celebrating local heritage.

School-Based Arts Workshops – Poetry, storytelling, and visual art workshops delivered in local schools engaged more children and young people in exploring Pontardawe’s heritage. 

The final film screening and celebration event took place at Pontardawe Arts Centre in December 2025, accompanied by an exhibition of project materials, including artworks from the school workshops. The film is also available online, and shared with the Pontardawe Arts Centre and the Heritage Centre.

Funded by UKSPF and Neath Port Talbot Council. The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) is part of the UK government’s commitment to empowering communities and driving economic growth across the country. You can find out more on the UKSPF website.

The three groups involved represent different areas of South Wales. Point, a Youth group based in North Pembrokeshire who provide opportunities to 11 to 25 year olds and help with any obstacles they may face. Ty Hafan, a charity that provided help and support for children with life limiting conditions and their families. And lastly, young people from Ammanford who attend Mess Up The Mess.

We have been able to create, creative pieces of art that makes a difference through the Yfory project. We asked young people what they want to change or nurture from today for their future.

With the Dreamers project – Oasis lead by Ali from Yellobrick, the young people chose to nurture food for their future as a way to celebrate and share their culture. They created films which share recipes of their comfort foods from their home countries. During the sharing event, these films were shown but also offered samples of those foods to share with the audience.

With Roots Foundation, the young people created a spoken word/rap short film asking for consistency in the future especially with ever changing social workers, for young people and children in care. During the sharing event they shared their film, they created an immersive experience of what it can feel like to be in the care system. We are super excited to share that Swansea Council really heard the voices of the young people and excited to see how with the young people they can make a difference.

With Mess Up the Mess, the young people created a theatre piece sharing the issues around the freedom of play without worry. The short play co-written with Hefin Robinson and the young people on the stage of Brynamman public hall; the young people urged parents of today and parents of the future to be brave enough to support access to unsupervised outside play.

Funded by National Lottery Fund