Shrewsbury Ambassadors take to the streets to help visitors
A new team of ambassadors have taken to the streets of Shrewsbury helping visitors to get the best of what the town has to offer.
In a first for the town, the ambassadors were out and about at the weekend guiding tourists to places of interest and answering questions by drawing on their extensive local knowledge.
Shrewsbury Business Improvement District (BID) launched the scheme in partnership with Shrewsbury Tourism Association and said they had a good response from people volunteering to become ambassadors - but were still keen to hear from anyone else wanting to take part.
Dilwyn Jones, a Shrewsbury BID director and project champion for the Original Shrewsbury Ambassadors, said: “We are up and running now and our first ambassadors received an excellent reception - it was a very successful start.
“It’s all about creating the best possible visitor experience. The ambassador scheme is something we feel will enhance that experience and the reputation of the town.
“Shrewsbury plays host to many thousands of visitors every year, it’s such a wonderful town and we want to make sure they get the most from their trip, seeing everything on their wish list and much more besides.
“Our volunteer ambassadors will be on hand in pairs on Saturdays and/or Sundays from about 10am to 2pm at various locations around the town throughout the summer.
“They will be a first point of contact in many cases with visitors so our ambassadors need to be bright, cheerful and helpful.”
Stephanie Mansell-Jones, business liaison at Shrewsbury BID, said: “Things went off really well over the weekend, we’ve made a good start and are looking to build it up over the coming months by taking on more volunteers willing to fill the role.
“Ideally, we are looking for more people to come forward and commit to the scheme for one or two days a week on Saturday or Sunday, although any time people can volunteer is appreciated.
“We also have two fantastic Ambassador Coordinators, Maggie Love and Beverley Baker, in place to oversee the scheme and provide training to make sure everything is running smoothly.
“The ambassadors need a good knowledge of the town, its history and attractions. It’s an important role and the right person is going to play a major role in visitors deciding to return to Shrewsbury again in the future.”
Shrewsbury Tourism Association are supporting the ambassador scheme alongside Shrewsbury BID.
