Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...waiting lists. Finally, the committee welcomes the financial support that has been made to local authorities through the local government hardship fund, which supports initiatives including free school meals, self-isolation payments and an enhancement for social care workers' sick pay. The Minister will be committing an additional £26 million for social care through the hardship fund. We...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...encourage public participation, and we should expand libraries, community centres and sports grounds to offer more zero-carbon activities in local communities. There should be greater support for education and training possibilities for adults so that they can be combined with more free time to boost skills.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: One of these was that the Children's Society recommend that Welsh Government complements its plan for better mental health support in schools through in-reach work from health services, with a strong and consistent community-based offer for those young people, up to the age of 25, who may prefer to receive support outside of education. Community-based support can be delivered through...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...in Wales could do to make things better. This includes a national plan to implement changes from the Armed Forces Act 2006, a commitment to permanently fund the supporting service children in education Wales fund and extending housing priority to cover five years after leaving military service. Having said that, praise should be given when it's due, and Plaid Cymru welcomes the recent...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...rely on the Act have been used in the judicial system on several occasions now, and have been thrown out of court every time for lack of enforceability. Its first attempted use was to challenge a school closure, but the case was dismissed in 2019 by High Court judge Mrs Justice Lambert, who said the Act could not trigger a judicial review. The QC bringing the case, Rhodri Williams, said:...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...gave them opportunities they wouldn't have had otherwise. I'm pleased to say that the future looks rosy for the band as they recently secured a grant to deliver an outreach music programme to local schools. After this fantastic evening, I reflected on the way that music has impacted my life. I was fortunate enough to be taught the violin at school. Even though I didn't do much practising,...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...having enough money to reach affordable food shops or access a nutritionally balanced diet is now a common reality for many people in Wales. This is why I'm proud that Plaid Cymru has secured free school meals for all primary school children as part of the co-operation agreement. The security of a decent nutritious meal made with local produce for all young children in Wales will go some...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: 3. Will the Government provide an update on plans to deliver free school meals to primary school pupils? OQ57510
Peredur Owen Griffiths: Diolch, Weinidog. One of the main parts of the co-operation agreement was the free-school-meals policy, which will benefit so many families. I'm proud that Plaid Cymru has helped to bring this to fruition from September of this year. This policy has major and positive implications for local supply chains and combating child poverty. It will also entail a capital cost to ensure that all...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...for many. The committee notes the Welsh Government’s ongoing efforts to address the crisis, such as the discretionary assistance fund, help with winter fuel bills and the extension of free school meals, although we heard that a range of schemes have a low profile, meaning the most vulnerable people are missing out. The committee urges the Minister to liaise with the Minister for Social...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: At present, the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales regulates and provides funding for higher education, whilst the Welsh Government does so for the other tertiary education sectors. The committee acknowledges that the new commission created by the legislation will combine these activities into one body to try and achieve a coherent learning pathway, and we hope this will achieve...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ..., the regulatory impact assessment fails to outline costs to other bodies arising from the Bill, noting they are 'unknown at present.' However, the Bill is likely to require the post-compulsory education and training sector to alter their activities in certain areas. It is fundamental that an RIA assesses the impact of legislation on both the Welsh Government and other bodies. It is...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...agreement, which has put many of Plaid Cymru's manifesto commitments on the agenda of the Government, there are some rays of sunshine amid a gloomy picture. The commitment to guarantee a free school meal for every primary school pupil in Wales will be truly transformational for thousands of families. The bold steps for tackling Wales's growing housing crisis will also address the...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...well as looking at community-based solutions to this issue, such as community food hubs? These could bring sustainability to local communities, provide food parcels, and be a source of agricultural education.
Peredur Owen Griffiths: 9. How is the Government encouraging children in South Wales East to embark on further education? OQ58221
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...in student loan interest rates, combined with the added pressure brought on by the cost-of-living crisis, to ensure that kids from working class families are not discouraged from entering higher education?
Peredur Owen Griffiths: .... We believe that greater efforts need to be made by the Welsh Government to develop a longer term workforce plan so that these pressures can be mitigated and staff burn-out avoided. On free school meals, I'm pleased that the Minister is bringing forward this policy so that it is available to pupils from September onwards. That said, the committee is aware that individual schools will be...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...public services; creating a greener Wales; improving services for children and young people; and the impact of increases in transport costs across different sectors. In the citizens focus groups, education and children and young people were prioritised most frequently by participants, followed closely by health and social care. From those discussions, we can distil these issues into six...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...priority, with many Members referencing it. We heard from many contributors today, and I'm not going to rehearse the arguments and the comments we heard, but the broad areas were mental health, education, paid and unpaid carers, pay and conditions for public sector workers, infrastructure and capital spend, public transport, access to justice, raising revenue, health and social care and...
Peredur Owen Griffiths: ...the history of devolution, because the cost-of-living crisis will have a brutal and merciless impact on almost everybody, but especially the most vulnerable, without significant state intervention. Education is one of the many places where this crisis will be felt. Some children not covered by our free school meals policy will be going hungry this winter. Have you given any thought to...
