Darren Millar AM: So, that £7.5 million, which you've
suggested, you're going to make available primarily to three local
authorities that happen to be Labour authorities in south Wales,
with very little left for the rest of the nation. The reality
is that every single local authority in Wales has young people who
need this sort of support. So, I ask you again: when will you
ensure that there are...Request free
trial
AM: So, that £7.5 million, which
you've suggested, you're going to make available
primarily to three local authorities that happen to be
Labour authorities in south Wales, with very little left
for the rest of the nation. The reality is that
every single local authority in Wales has young people
who need this sort of support. So, I ask you again: when
will you ensure that there are adequate resources
available to each of the local authorities across Wales,
whether they be in north Wales, mid Wales, west Wales or
south Wales, to ensure that they can meet the needs of
not only the Gypsy/Traveller community, but also those
other ethnic minority communities that may need
additional support with their learning?
AM (Cabinet
Secretary for Education): Well,
Darren, as I've said, all local authorities will have
benefited from the contribution of EIG going into RSG. I
have recognised that, for some local authorities, changes
in the distribution formula have had a negative effect.
The reality is, Darren, that those three local
authorities are affected because that is where the
density of the population is, and therefore it is
unsurprising that those authorities would be Cardiff,
Swansea and Newport, because that's where we find the
majority of those students living. On top of that, as
I've said, we will give resources in this financial year
to regional consortia across the piece to be able to
develop policy and support in this area. It is true to
say, for instance, that some of the most successful
interventions are actually already run at a
consortia level or by an individual local authority for
the entire region, but I recognise that for this group of
children, there is more to be done. But let me say: it's
not fair to roll all children from a minority ethnic
background into one particular case. Welsh Chinese
children, Welsh Indian children, Welsh Pakistani
children, Welsh Bangladeshi children all perform at or
above the Welsh average.
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