At the recent National Eisteddfod, RCT’s Education and Inclusion Service hosted a celebration event, featuring a variety of guest speakers who reflected on Welsh medium education achievements and Welsh language developments in the County.
The Council also launched it’s ‘Taith Iaith’ Welsh medium promotional video; and the event provided the perfect opportunity to also thank our headteachers, governors, and various other stakeholders, who have provided invaluable support in pursuit of our shared aspiration to improve Welsh language education and investment in the sector.
The Welsh in Education Strategic Plan (WESP 2022-2032) provides the overarching plan for strategic developments, and effective partnership working is integral to its success and continued improvement. The WESP focuses on increasing the number of learners in Year 1 accessing Welsh medium education by 10% over a 10-year period and increasing the number of nursery and 5-year-olds receiving Welsh medium education has been a particular focus. In recent years, the Council has invested circa £6m in childcare and early years settings across 8 school sites. The newly established Welsh Language Immersion Service also provides support for learners in years 2-6, to support latecomers to access Welsh medium education.
Over £50M has also been invested into the Welsh medium sector, through our school modernisation programme and Welsh Government’s Sustainable Communities for Learning programme. This has included investment in two new Welsh medium schools for Ysgol Awel Taf and Ysgol Llyn Y Forwyn, with further plans afoot to consult on opening a new Welsh medium in Llanilid in September 2024.
The Education team shared a stand with four Welsh medium clusters from across the County, and Central South Consortium and this provided opportunities for families to speak directly with education officers and school staff, whilst also celebrating the successes of our 19 Welsh medium schools, with many past and present pupils and staff visiting across the week.
Rhuanedd Richards, Director of BBC Cymru attended for a Q&A session, highlighting the importance of her Welsh language background and how this has led her to her role within BBC Cymru. A Q&A session was also held with Alan Saunders, who has recently translated the ‘Heartstopper’ books into Welsh. Gwasg Rily Publications – who had the rights to translate the book – invited Ysgol Llanhari to launch the new ‘Curaid Coll 2’ (second series of ‘Heartstopper’) book at the stand and quiz Alun Saunders on the book. Ysgol Llanhari also celebrated its recent 50 years of Welsh education on the stand, inviting past and present pupils and staff to join in on the celebrations.
The Council’s Music Service also played an active part throughout the Eisteddfod, with involvement in competitions and performances during the week. Menter Iaith and the Music Service worked with the four Welsh secondary schools prior to the Eisteddfod to form Welsh bands, which performed at Caffi Maes B during the week. Many RCT schools competed and performed on the various stages, which reflected the tremendous talent that exists within our schools, communities and beyond.
Councillor Rhys Lewis, Cabinet Member for Education, Inclusion and Welsh Language, said:
“It was a fantastic opportunity for our Education Directorate and our schools to demonstrate many positive developments in the Council and across our schools during the National Eisteddfod and to delve deeper into the workings of the Welsh in Education Strategic Plan. It is very important to us that we highlight the importance of Welsh Education and the language. The Eisteddfod has provided an excellent opportunity to highlight the talent that exists within our schools and communities, and I’m very proud of all the pupils and teachers who performed and represented our schools in RCT and our shared love of the Welsh language.”
Gaynor Davies, Director of Education, and Inclusion Services for Rhondda Cynon Taf Council said:
“The Council is committed to growing the number of learners accessing Welsh medium education and to growing the Welsh language, and there has been significant investment in the sector in pursuit of this aspiration. The Council has benefited significantly from various external grant funding streams. We are extremely grateful to Welsh Government and the Council’s Cabinet for supporting these investments through the Welsh education sector. The Council has a highly ambitious school modernisation programme and recent investments have provided a solid foundation on which to build upon as we continue on our journey to increase the number of learners receiving Welsh medium education, in support of Welsh Government’s aim of securing one million Welsh speakers by 2050.”
