17/07/2026
Save Llandovery Sheep Festival 2026
Llandovery Sheep Festival is in serious trouble.
Following a detailed budget meeting on 13 July, we reached the difficult conclusion that unless we can raise approximately £10,000 by mid-August, the festival simply cannot go ahead.
That is why we are asking the people of Llandovery, the surrounding communities and everyone who has visited and enjoyed the festival to help us save it.
A free festival run by volunteers
For more than ten years, Llandovery Sheep Festival has been free for the public to attend and organised largely by volunteers.
It celebrates Llandovery’s sheep heritage, brings the community together, supports local businesses, attracts visitors from across Wales and beyond, and supports Welsh-based musicians and performers by creating paid live music opportunities across venues in Llandovery.
The festival is now being delivered through Llandovery Business Group CIC, with many of the organisers and volunteers also members of the group. This year, Linzi Brown from Bumblebees has taken on the enormous task of organising the redesigned main festival.
Why is the festival at risk?
For the last few years, we have been very fortunate to receive significant funding which helped make the festival possible.
We are extremely grateful for that support and understand that grant funding cannot always be guaranteed. Budgets are tighter and many worthwhile organisations and events also need help.
Unfortunately, this year we have not been able to secure the level of funding required.
The festival has already been redesigned to become smaller, more manageable and more centred within the town. As we are no longer able to use marquees in the same way as in previous years, we are making greater use of Llandovery’s existing venues, streets and spaces.
This has reduced the cost considerably. In recent years, the festival cost more than £35,000 to deliver safely and effectively.
Even after making substantial savings, we are still facing a shortfall of approximately £10,000.
What will the money pay for?
The money raised will go towards essential operational and public-safety costs, including:
first aid and medical cover;
security and professional stewarding;
road closures and traffic management;
event insurance;
licences and permissions;
safety barriers and signage;
waste collection and cleaning;
power and other essential event infrastructure.
These are not optional extras. They are the costs we must meet to hold the festival safely, responsibly and legally.
Why the festival matters to Llandovery
The Sheep Festival is about much more than one weekend of entertainment.
It brings visitors into Llandovery and supports our pubs, hotels, cafes, restaurants, shops, accommodation providers, traders and other local businesses.
Several pubs and hotels have already told us that they are close to being fully booked, with people planning to stay specifically for Sheep Festival weekend.
If the festival is cancelled, many of those bookings may also be cancelled, causing a real loss of income throughout the town.
The festival helps put Llandovery on the map and introduces new visitors to everything our town has to offer.
Remembering Rachel
The loss of our previous Festival Director, Rachel Everett, last October was an enormous shock to everyone involved with the festival and throughout the wider community.
Her loss has made us realise even more just how much work she quietly carried over so many years. She played an enormous part in organising, funding and delivering the festival, and continuing without her has been incredibly difficult.
We want to give the event she worked so hard to support every possible chance of continuing.
Support already received
Llandovery Town Council has generously contributed £1,500, and local businesses are already supporting the festival through donations, sponsorship and practical help.
We are deeply grateful to everyone who has already stepped forward.
However, we now need the wider community to help us close the remaining gap.
Could we simply miss one year?
It was suggested that the festival could skip a year and return in the future.
However, once a long-running event disappears from the calendar, it can lose momentum, volunteers, sponsors, traders and public confidence.
Missing one year could very easily lead to the festival never returning.
After more than ten years, it would be heartbreaking to see Llandovery Sheep Festival disappear.
How you can help
Every donation matters.
Whether you can give £5, £10, £20 or more, your support will make a genuine difference.
Even if you cannot donate, you can still help by sharing this campaign with friends, family, customers, colleagues, former residents and anyone who has enjoyed the festival over the years.
We need to know by mid-August whether enough money has been raised, because suppliers, road closures, safety arrangements and other plans must be confirmed.
This festival has always belonged to Llandovery.
Now Llandovery has the chance to save it.
Please donate, share the campaign and help us save Llandovery Sheep Festival 2026.
DONATE HERE: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/qr/pnA8krjW?utm_campaign=sharemodal&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=shortlink
