Increasing the use of the Welsh language in the post-16 sectors: government response

Report title

Increasing the use of the Welsh language in the post-16 sectors: evaluating the effectiveness of Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol Welsh-medium and bilingual training schemes for the Further Education and Apprenticeships sector.

Overview

The thematic report was commissioned by the Cymraeg 2050 Division, Education, Culture and Welsh Language Group to inform Welsh Government on:

• the effectiveness of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol's Welsh-medium and bilingual training schemes for staff in the further education and apprenticeships sector and the factors that enable or hinder the success of these schemes
• the strategic and practical guidance and support available to institutions from the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and how the College evaluates and measures the impact of these plans and decides on improvement actions where necessary
• examples of good practice that exist and are worth sharing across sectors
• recommendations regarding the best ways to provide such training to staff which in turn would lay the groundwork for increasing the number of learners/students who wish to study either partially or wholly through the medium of Welsh

The report recognises that the Coleg Cymraeg’s schemes have a positive effect on the practitioners who take advantage of them. However the schemes are more effective in terms of targeting staff with low level language skills and who are at the start of their journey along the language continuum.

There is very little effect on developing practitioners’ language skills beyond the initial levels and this limits opportunities for students and apprentices to use the Welsh language consistently in their learning.

Examples of good practice were found across the Coleg’s schemes.

The impact was found to be at its best when:

• leaders at all levels are clear about the strategic importance of increasing the use of the Welsh language
• training is targeted at staff who already have strong language skills
• colleges provide appropriate time for staff to complete training as part of their allocated learning hours
• leaders recognise the Welsh language as a skill and, as a result, provide financial remuneration for practitioners who have advanced bilingual pedagogy skills
• staff efforts to develop their teaching practices as they move up the language pyramid or curriculum are recognised professionally
• there are clear guidelines for staff on how to increase their use of the Welsh language
• the provider’s own observation and quality assurance procedures are robust and focus on the Welsh language and bilingual pedagogy
• provision and training are adapted in line with staff needs

There are strong and supportive relationships between Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and individual colleges and providers. However, the Coleg does not have sufficiently robust procedures in place to ensure that arrangements for forward planning, quality assurance and monitoring the effect of training are consistent across individual providers and nationally.

Recommendations for the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol

Recommendation 1

Sharpen guidance and challenge to colleges and apprenticeship providers to increase the language levels of practitioners and the offer for students and apprentices in line with the pyramid, particularly at the higher levels.

Recommendation 2

Work with relevant partners to extend the Sgiliaith offer to Welsh speakers by creating intensive bilingual pedagogy training that leads to a recognised professional qualification.

Recommendation 3

Work strategically with colleges, apprenticeship providers and other relevant partners to mainstream innovative initiatives to recognise the value of the Welsh language as an additional skill that is recognised both practically and financially.

Recommendation 4

Work with the National Centre for Learning Welsh to ensure that Work Welsh provision for practitioners is consistent with the standards of the Learn Welsh sector.

Welsh Government response

These recommendations are for the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and we agree with their content. The Coleg has been asked to develop an action plan to take forward the recommendations in the report. The National Centre for Learning Welsh is responsible for funding Work Welsh provision in the post-16 sector and has been asked to work with the Coleg on the development of the action plan.

Welsh Government officials will hold regular meetings with the Coleg and the National Centre to discuss the progress of the action plan and to monitor performance against targets once the plan is published.

Recommendations for colleges and apprenticeship providers

Recommendation 5

Work with Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol to ensure consistency in support and overcome the barriers to practitioners attending training regularly.

Recommendation 6

Refine their professional development offer to increase practitioners’ Welsh language skills and bilingual pedagogy at the highest levels of the pyramid.

Welsh Government response

Recommendations 5 and 6 are for further education colleges and apprenticeship providers and we agree with their content. Colleges and providers will be encouraged to work with the Coleg to take forward the recommendations.

We will circulate the report to colleges and apprenticeship providers and make them aware of the recommendations. The report will be also discussed at a future meeting of the Coleg Cymraeg’s Post-16 Strategic Board, which is attended by representatives from the colleges and apprenticeship providers.

Medr published its Strategic Plan on 12 March in which it set out the following commitments:

• We will work with stakeholders, including Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and Qualifications Wales, to develop and implement a national plan for the Welsh language across the entire tertiary education sector.
• We will work with providers and partners to better understand the Welsh language skills of the tertiary education workforce, to improve the recruitment and retention of Welsh speaking staff, and to promote professional learning so that more staff are confident to teach through the medium of Welsh.

Medr is convening a working group of key stakeholders to develop the National Plan for the Welsh Language, and this group will be convened in the coming weeks to begin taking forward these commitments, primarily the development of the National Plan.

Recommendations for Welsh Government and Medr

Recommendation 7

Work with the further education and apprenticeships sectors to review and ensure consistency in reporting on language provision categories.

Welsh Government response

The Welsh Government accepts this recommendation.

We will work closely with Medr to identify the best approaches to review and ensure consistency in the reporting on Welsh-medium and bilingual delivery.

This work will be built into the development of Medr’s National Plan for the Welsh language referred to under 'recommendations for colleges and apprenticeship providers' above.

The report was published on 27 March 2025 and can be accessed on Estyn’s website.