Agenda and minutes

The Chair welcomed Members and Officers to the meeting of the Welsh Language Cabinet Sub-Committee and apologies for absence were received from County Borough Councillors C. Leyshon and M. Norris.

To receive disclosures of personal interest from Members in accordance with the Code of Conduct.

Note:

1.     Members are requested to identify the item number and subject matter that their interest relates to and signify the nature of the personal interest.

2.     Where Members withdraw from a meeting as a consequence of the disclosure of a prejudicial interest they must notify the Chairman when they leave.

In accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct, there were no Declarations of Interest made pertaining to the agenda.

To receive the minutes of the previous meeting which was held on 8^th December 2021.

It was RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the 8^th December 2021 as an accurate reflection of the meeting.

To receive the report of the Director of Public Health, Protection and Community Services, which provides the Welsh Language Cabinet Sub-committee with a revised copy of the Welsh Language Promotion Strategy as required under Standard 145 of the Compliance Notice issued to Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council under Section 44 of the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011.

The Service Manager for Welsh Language Services provided the Welsh Language Cabinet Sub-committee with a revised copy of the Welsh Language Promotion Strategy as required under Standard 145 of the Compliance Notice issued to Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council under Section 44 of the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011.

The Service Manager then introduced Ms N. Davies, a Specialist Consultant from the language planning group Nico Cyf, who had been commissioned to help formulate the ambitious five-year Strategy. As part of the Strategy, residents had been consulted in October 2021, the results of which could be found at Appendix 2 to the report.

The Consultant advised that the review of the first Strategy provided four main areas of consideration when drafting the new Strategy:

1.    Responding to the Census data regarding Welsh Language in the area (the data was expected to be made available in December 2022 and would form the basis of an action plan);

2.    The ever-changing circumstances;

3.    Importance of partnership; and

4.    Importance of measuring success and the impact the Strategy has on residents.

The Consultant provided Members with context to the new Strategy, which included consideration of the political environment and the effects of the pandemic. Members were then informed of the three key national themes within the new Strategy:

1.    Increasing the number of Welsh speakers;

2.    Increasing the use of Welsh; and

3.    Creating favourable conditions – infrastructure and context.

It was explained that within the Strategy was opportunities to strengthen and promote the Welsh Language through events such as the Eisteddfod, the arts, sports and through surveys with residents.

The Chair thanked both officers for the informative presentation and noted that the work involved covered the Council as a whole and paid tribute to the Council’s Consultation Team for ensuring members of the public, businesses, partner organisations and the third sector were involved.

The Chair was pleased to note that a lot of good practice had come out of the first Strategy and commented that the new Strategy would allow the Local Authority to develop and adapt to the current circumstances to ensure RCT is an encouraging environment to learn and develop the Welsh Language, whether that be at home or through educational or recreational means.

The Chair felt that the Local Authority were ambitious in terms of its Welsh Language targets and paid reference to the Welsh in Education Strategic Plan which strived to increase the year one learners by 10% over the next ten years. The Chair also spoke of the Council’s large capital programme, over recent years and the investment in a number of new builds for Welsh Language schools to appeal to more parents and learners.

The Deputy Leader took the opportunity to praise the new, state of the art school being built in Rhydyfelin for Welsh-Medium education. The Deputy Leader echoed the Chair’s comments regarding the ambitious targets set by the Council and Welsh Government but was hopeful that the areas identified within the Strategy  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.