- New focus on delivery after years of talking about ambition
- Half of Wales's children to begin their journey in
Welsh-medium education by 2050
- Work has already begun in first 100 days to strengthen the
language in areas with a higher density of Welsh speakers
The Welsh Government is turning ambition into action to secure a
stronger future for the Welsh language, the Cabinet Minister for
Education and the Welsh Language told the Senedd today.
From the early years through to post-16 education, the Welsh
Government will build an integrated Welsh-medium pathway across
the education system.
The Welsh Language and Education Act will be fully implemented to
ensure that every child has a fair opportunity to become an
independent and confident Welsh speaker. An urgent review of
Welsh in Education Strategic Plans is already under way. The
findings of the review will inform a national framework to ensure
that half of Wales's children begin their journey in Welsh-medium
education by 2050.
The Welsh language will be a central part of the transformational
childcare offer of 20 hours of funded childcare per week for
every child aged between nine months and four years. Welsh-medium
opportunities for post-16 learners will also be expanded,
enabling more young people to continue learning, working and
living through the medium of Welsh.
Work has already begun to work in partnership with local
authorities to determine how communities with a higher density of
Welsh speakers should be designated to help strengthen the use of
the language within those communities. At the same time, urgent
action is being taken through the use of existing powers, and
work is under way to explore all the legislative and
non-legislative measures required to support their long-term
sustainability.
The Welsh language must also thrive in parts of Wales where there
is currently a medium or lower density of speakers. Work is
taking place across government in response to the second phase of
the Commission for Welsh Communities.
The whole Cabinet has a responsibility for the Welsh language.
From housing and health to transport, the economy, housing and
local government, to culture and sport, every portfolio has a
role to play in achieving the target of one million Welsh
speakers.
The Cabinet Minister also outlined measures to strengthen the
infrastructure that supports the Welsh language. Welsh language
standards will be extended to new sectors, including UK
Government bodies. The Cabinet Minister is also writing to big
technology companies to ensure that digital developments support
the Welsh language. Work is also taking place to standardise and
record Welsh place-names, while options for protecting them
through legislation are being explored.
The Cabinet Minister for Education and the Welsh
Language, , said:
People from all parts of Wales are proud of our language and want
to see it thrive. Cymraeg belongs to us all, and we should move
away from seeing ourselves as Welsh-speaking' and
non-Welsh-speaking' Welsh people. We are all somewhere on the
same journey and we all belong.
The existing goodwill and ambition provide us with a strong
foundation, but the challenges are real and the coming years will
be critical. Our focus now is on turning ambition into action and
securing the strongest possible future for the Welsh language in
our schools, our communities and our workplaces. We have already
started this work within our first 100 days.
The future of the Welsh language depends on people as well as
policy. I encourage everyone to use whatever Welsh they have, to
support one another in learning and using the language, and to
play their part in building a Wales where the Welsh language
belongs to us all.
