CARDIFF, Wales 15 May 2025: As poverty continues to impact the lives of roughly 1 billion children worldwide, Save the Children has partnered with Urdd Gobaith Cymru, Wales’ largest youth organisation, to send a powerful message to children in all corners of the globe on ending child poverty.
With recent figures showing that a third (31%) of children are now living in poverty in Wales and a staggering 4.5 million children, or nine in every classroom of 30, across the UK, this year’s Urdd’s Peace and Goodwill Message will focus on this important issue.
For more than 100 years the annual peace message - which was first shared in 1922 in Morse code - has amplified the voices of young people on what matters most to them. Recent themes have included climate change, gender equality and addressing racism while past messages have gained support from UN Women, Greenpeace International and Michael Sheen. Last year’s was shared in over 50 languages to 47 countries and reached over 10 million on social media alone.
Written by a group of the Urdd’s members and students from Coleg y Cymoedd higher education college in south Wales and inspired by a workshop facilitated by Save the Children Cymru, this year’s plea resonates worldwide: “It takes a village to raise a child… Be our village.”
A short film in which the message is read by its young authors will be released on the Urdd’s social media platforms at 7:00am BST today (15 May). The message will also be broadcast live on BBC Radio Wales and BBC Radio Cymru.
People around the globe are urged to share the message using #Heddwch2025 – with heddwch meaning peace in the Welsh language.
Tia-Louise Griffiths, one of the young people who created this year’s Peace and Goodwill Message, said: “We’re all in the same boat . . . we can work towards gaining a better understanding of what small steps we can take to make a difference.’’
Siân Lewis, the Urdd’s Chief Executive said: “As this year’s powerful message shows, young people in Wales can articulate perfectly the injustice of poverty, its effects on them and their communities. The recent statistics around child poverty in Wales shame us all, and we sincerely hope this year’s message will inspire meaningful change. The Urdd have made many such commitments, for example our Fund for All. But there is more to do – and today we invite the world to help us share that call to come together to eradicate child poverty.”
Melanie Simmonds, Head of Save the Children Cymru said: “When we speak to children and young people about their experiences of living in poverty, they tell us that families need more money to be able to afford necessities and how growing up in areas of high deprivation can affect their mental health and wellbeing. They also mention hope – a hope that their future will be different. This is why we all need to work together to ensure that every child can thrive. We’re delighted to have played a part in sending this powerful message from the youth of Wales to the wider world; we must end child poverty.”
The Peace and Goodwill Message is the brainchild of Reverand Gwilym Davies who grew up in a mining community in the south Wales valleys and later became an influential figure in the creation of the Welsh League of Nations Union to support the international work of the League of Nations and its successor, the United Nations.
Gwilym Davies also greatly influenced the creation of UNESCO, an agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. This year’s Message will become the first ever project from Wales to receive Patronage from the UK National Commission for UNESCO.
Anna Nsubuga, UK’s Ambassador and Permanent Delegate Designate to UNESCO said: “The UK National Commission for UNESCO’s patronage of the Urdd's Peace and Goodwill Message is a profound recognition of Wales's peace heritage and the UK’s commitment to youth empowerment.
“This patronage not only honours the legacy of visionaries like Gwilym Davies, who played a key role in founding both UNESCO and the Peace Message, but also reinforces the National Commission’s dedication to fostering dialogue among young people and championing their power to drive positive change globally.”
ENDS