West Wales school embraces Welsh medium education journey

Welsh Language Secretary Mark Drakeford visited a west Wales school, praising its progress toward Welsh-medium education.

He observed Ysgol Henry Richard in Tregaron’s immersion programme that helps learners who are not from Welsh-speaking backgrounds to develop their language skills. He also met with teachers on their own language journeys, including Tom Trevarthen, Head of English and runner-up for Welsh Learner of the Year 2023.

Mr Trevarthen, who moved to Wales from England at age 18, began learning Welsh in 2022 through an intensive summer course. During the visit, he explained how he uses Welsh in his teaching practice.

Bill

Mark Drakeford said: “Meeting dedicated teachers like Mr Trevarthen who embrace Welsh alongside their subject specialism shows the real-life impact of our language policies, ensuring the language thrives inside and outside of the classroom.

“This is exactly how we want to see our schools and teaching workforce embrace the Welsh language, and it’s why we offer free Welsh lessons for all our school staff.”

The visit follows the recent unanimous passing of the Welsh Language and Education Bill, which strengthens Welsh-medium education across Wales.

Immersion

Ceredigion is already leading efforts to increase Welsh-medium provision with five English-medium primary schools set to change their foundation learning language to Welsh-medium by September 2027.

This has already led to a significant increase in the percentage of learners being educated through the medium of Welsh. Further, all secondary schools in the county are also developing plans to increase Welsh-medium provision.

Councillor Catrin M S Davies, Cabinet Member of Ceredigion County Council for Culture, Leisure and Customer Services said: “It was lovely to welcome Minister Mark Drakeford to Ysgol Henry Richard on Monday. It was a pleasure to share the school’s excellent work in immersing and integrating pupils into Welsh education within the bilingual community of Tregaron.

“Useful and productive discussions took place with positive responses from pupils and staff about the opportunities provided by the Welsh Language and Education Bill.”