Junior Up Helly Aa 2024

The Junior Up Helly Aa Committee has worked tirelessly over the past few years to improve Junior Up Helly Aa to all its participants. The festival currently supports 132 participants and other young people that choose to attend the hop.

The festival is run by a small voluntary committee, alongside support from the wider community and  we are actively looking to increase funding options due to increasing costs, to continue the positive development over the past couple of years. Currently, we get in kind support from the senior festival, a small amount of income from funds raised through our partnership to welcome cruise liners to Shetland and other media engagement.

The Junior Committee provides a framework for the Junior Jarls Squad to become involved with activities such as Galley building & painting, torch making, musical performance and an Up Helly Aa-themed quiz night to name but a few. The aim is that this will feed through into the senior festival and today’s Peerie Guizers will become tomorrow’s custodians of Up Helly Aa.

The Junior Jarls Squad are being asked to undertake an increasing number of engagements outside of Up Helly Aa Day itself as the profile of the Juniors becomes greater. Few in Lerwick could’ve missed their cheering on the pier at the cruise ships this summer!

Many items of the Junior Jarl Squad suits are handed down from one squad to the next in order to save on time and expense for families. This is particularly relevant in the current cost of living crisis and we try our utmost to ensure every family has the chance to become involved in Up Helly Aa. The increased use of the suits through the year inevitably means greater wear and tear and the Junior Committee is finding itself having to repair and renew suits more frequently to keep the Junior Squad looking its best.

We also provide opportunities for junior squads to form from across Shetland, and participate in the procession. This provides groups of peers to come together, form a squad around a theme and carry a torch in the junior procession. 

Furthermore all young people in P7-S2 are invited to the Junior Up Helly Aa Hop, which usually takes place the following week after Up Helly Aa at Sound Hall in Lerwick. Last year we had nearly 200 young people dancing the night away - oh they do love a Dashing White Sergean

We are looking for the support of individuals to make a contribution / donation to the festival so we can continue to provide enriching, fun, intergenerational learning opportunities for young people living in our community. Funds raised could go towards items including, but not limited to:

Tools for building the galley, materials for maintaining the viking suits which get handed down to future participants, clothing for the musicians, the junior hop and the festival itself.

All donations are gratefully received and will ensure the continued success of the festival.