Programme for government 2026 to 2030: New ambition for Wales - Chapter 4: Raising standards in our schools, and ensuring the best conditions for learning

“ We will create the conditions to ensure that many more young people leave the education system equipped for the next stage in their journey, whether that is education, training or joining the world of work.”

The skills of our people are amongst our most valuable resources. Built up across every stage of life, they support our public services, fuel our economy and contribute to our own quality of life. Building on the foundation of our funded Childcare Offer, our education system provides a springboard for children and young people to gain knowledge, develop the skills they need throughout life and to be part of the thriving economic future we see for Wales.

Regular school attendance and strong skills are linked to better outcomes helping learners reach their potential whilst also tackling inequality in society. A joined‑up education system, spanning early years, primary, secondary and tertiary education and training gives young people the best chance of achieving the career they want in the future.

Raising literacy and numeracy standards is one of the most urgent challenges our education system faces.

The most recent PISA results again show that too many young people are leaving school without these basic skills. We will create the conditions to ensure that many more young people leave the education system equipped for the next stage in their journey, whether that is education, training or joining the world of work.

We will:

• publish a Literacy and Numeracy Plan and raise standards by establishing national targets, including a baseline assessment for learners entering school. We will support our workforce to develop individual targets for all learners.
• review curriculum and assessment arrangements to simplify and clarify expectations for schools and settings. This will include ensuring clear expectations for knowledge and education about our nation’s culture and history.

The pandemic has had a lasting impact on our young people, many of whom experienced the impact at key developmental points in their lives. This lasting impact on their ability to engage, if not addressed, will affect their ability to live healthy and prosperous lives.

Persistent absence rates, along with behavioural challenges and poor mental health, have left teachers spending too much time managing the learning environment and not enough time teaching. We will support teachers with a multi‑agency holistic approach to behaviour and wellbeing, and share data and best practice locally and nationally.

We will:

• develop a coordinated framework bringing together schools, health and social care, and youth services to address behaviour, attendance, wellbeing and educational inequality. These also reflect wider societal issues, and we will work across government to address them. We will improve professional learning, reporting of incidents and information sharing between schools, and test implementation through our Community Schools Plus pilots.
• strengthen the long‑term sustainability of the Additional Learning Needs system. We will work in partnership, including with health partners, to strengthen system clarity, capacity and workforce confidence to deliver inclusive education in Welsh and English, so that children and young people receive the right support at the right time to meet their needs.

Post compulsory education and training opens opportunities for lifelong skills development and career progression, leading to new career opportunities, higher pay and enhanced wellbeing.

Wales’s colleges and universities facilitate a range of pathways from level 1 and 2 vocational options to internationally recognised academia. We will champion these options, ensuring learners have real choice and clear signposting.

We will:

• develop a tertiary education system with clear and coherent learner pathways, supporting lifelong learning and enabling people of all ages to progress confidently between education, training and employment throughout their lives and to reach their full potential.
• reform Academi Seren, building on its strongest elements to support more learners, including from disadvantaged backgrounds, to fulfil their potential and progress into higher education, training or employment including here in Wales.
• strengthen opportunities for young people to fulfil their potential including increasing access to vocational pathways such as junior apprenticeships and ensuring the contribution of youth work is better valued and understood.

Every child in Wales has the right to become a confident Welsh speaker, and to receive their education through the medium of Welsh. Ensuring accessible and inclusive opportunities for all learners will be a central objective at every level of the education system.

We want to make full use of the powers in the Welsh Language and Education Act. By publishing the new National Framework for Welsh Language Education and Learning Welsh, and the Code to describe Welsh language ability, we will ensure that every child in Wales is on the journey to becoming a confident Welsh speaker by the time they leave school.

We will:

• grow the proportion of children and young people receiving Welsh‑medium education, and improve accessibility to Welsh‑medium education, setting local targets to ensure the steady growth of Welsh‑medium provision in all schools.
• increase the number of students able to access tertiary pathways in Welsh, supporting and developing the work of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and working with the Coleg and Medr to increase opportunities to study Welsh as a subject.
• support an increase in the number of teachers able to teach through the medium of Welsh, promoting and developing the Welsh‑language skills of practitioners and developing new sabbatical opportunities.

We cannot achieve our ambitions for young people without the support of a dedicated and motivated school workforce. Teachers and support staff are the foundation of the education system and are essential partners in delivering the best start for our children.

We will:

• work with our education workforce and social partners to make teaching an attractive, respected and rewarding career.
• improve recruitment and retention by reducing workload, providing more flexibility for planning, preparation and assessment and supporting high‑quality professional development for all teachers, leaders and teaching assistants.
• build on our increase of the Initial Teacher Education Priority Subject Incentive from £15,000 to £20,000 to help attract more teachers into shortage subjects and explore opportunities to increase this further.
• strengthen safeguarding leadership and governance across education by ensuring learners and educators can recognise and report grooming. We will provide comprehensive digital safety and media literacy education, and ensure safeguarding and educational standards are consistently upheld and independently scrutinised.