Joyce Watson: I thank you for that answer, and the Welsh Government has made keeping children in schools one of its top priorities. And reflecting on the first wave of the pandemic, the Education Policy Institute commended Wales for leading the way in the UK in terms of providing IT and online learning and for supporting families eligible for free school meals in particular. But, sadly, disruption to...
Joyce Watson: ...that mandatory, and I'm really, really pleased that that is happening. Many of you here will know that I have campaigned for years about what a healthy relationship looks like. I have approached schools right across Wales to join me, even providing materials from the White Ribbon campaign, and I've had some success where schools have done that, but not much. And the reason being is trying...
Joyce Watson: Trefnydd, or leader of the house, last week, I'm sure you were as appalled as I was about the reports in the media about children being refused school dinners simply because the dinner payment card hadn't been topped up in time. In fact, there was a report about one child who had acquired their school dinner, gone to the till to find out that there was no money available for that individual...
Joyce Watson: I thank you for that answer, and it really is a good investment in the well-being of young people. But there was a report by the Children, Young People and Education Committee in 2018, and it reviewed school-based counselling and found that the service was indeed making a significant contribution to building an emotionally resilient population of young people. But there was one area of...
Joyce Watson: Thank you, Minister, for that answer, and I do welcome the Welsh Government's commitment to putting sustainability at the forefront of education policies and their commitment to closely involving pupils in designing their learning environment. I had the honour of seeing first hand how engaged pupils become when they are involved in projects that directly impact their learning environment,...
Joyce Watson: It’s really hard for us to think here that, in 2017, young girls across the UK, and possibly in Wales, are actually missing school because they can’t afford the sanitary protection that they need. And it is quite clear that this is an issue of poverty. So, I ask you, Cabinet Secretary—or Minister—if it’s possible for you to assess the prospect of working with schools, through...
Joyce Watson: ..., Listen and Play campaign that was launched last week by Welsh Government. We all know that helping children have an early grasp of language is hugely important not only as they progress through school, but through life and into the workplace. I really am a huge supporter of this programme, because I think that initiatives like this, which help children to learn through what they regard...
Joyce Watson: ...the Welsh Government have agreed to adopt Estyn's definition of sexual harassment, as recommended in the report. As the report points out, peer-on-peer sexual harassment is so prevalent amongst school-age children and young people that it has become normalised. That is extremely worrying. Many children and young people may not even realise that what they're experiencing is sexual...
Joyce Watson: ...has been a year of progress and achievement for children's rights in Wales, but also to look ahead to the challenges of what remains to be done. I was pleased to see that safety in the community, school and home is one of the six priority areas for the commissioner. Children have an absolute right to feel safe in their schools, in their communities and at home. Bullying can and does have...
Joyce Watson: Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I certainly welcome this announcement today. I think you're right to put education at the forefront of environmental sustainability, because it's a generational change that's needed. There are examples of children being very much involved in the RainScape project in Llanelli schools, and the children are fascinated by it and they learn maths from it and lots about...
Joyce Watson: ...census—it identified over 11,500 young carers in Wales offering ongoing care and emotional support to their family members. Young carers often experience isolation, bullying, and they struggle educationally, and they can miss out on those opportunities that other children enjoy when it comes to play and learning. They’re often too frightened to ask for help, as they’re worried about...
Joyce Watson: ...Secretary, for your statement today on such an important issue, and all of those individuals who have been involved in bringing this report to fruition. Some of you will know that I already go into schools and ask them to take part in the White Ribbon campaign, and many schools have done that. That's talking about ending violence against women and girls. I've asked schools to come up with,...
Joyce Watson: I also want to talk about tourism but first of all, I want to mention Sir Thomas Picton School. Two of my children went to Thomas Picton school, and were never, ever told, nothing ever came home to say about the name, the person behind the name, and there was certainly no education that informed either pupils, parents or the community about the person whose name that school bore. It doesn't...
Joyce Watson: ...series of White Ribbon campaign events to raise awareness against domestic abuse, and the big focus for me is engaging with young people by linking that to healthy relationships that are taught at school. The only fears we're born with The only fears we're born with are of heights and loud noises. Everything else is learned behaviour. In other words, children are innately tolerant. It's...
Joyce Watson: Trefnydd, I'd like to hear from the education Minister about what is being done to address misogynistic ideology in the classroom. The case of Andrew Tate has lifted the lid on a pervasive, toxic and dangerous culture that is targeting vulnerable boys in particular. And it's endemic. I must confess I'd not heard of him until the current legal case, because I'm not on the platforms or...
Joyce Watson: ...10 years, women suffered significantly from that choice. One of the areas that we are investing in, improving women's lives, is the £3.1 million towards period dignity for free period products in schools and further education, which will allow 140,000 pupils and 53,000 students to access free products. This is unthinkable, that we have to invest Government money, which we do quite...
Joyce Watson: Minister, there's been significant interest in the reported consultation on school uniforms, and the First Minister spoke about this yesterday. The Welsh Government, of course, has extended the pupil development grant to support more families with the cost of uniforms and school kit to the extent of £200, but the Children's Society have said that the average cost of school uniform is still...
Joyce Watson: Diolch. I know Cosheston school well; I went there. But I do have a longer memory than the Member for Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire. As a Pembrokeshire councillor from 1995, I saw the transformational impact of unprecedented investment in our schools by the successive Welsh Governments. And today, despite more than a decade of Tory cuts to Welsh budgets, I think I'm right in saying...
Joyce Watson: First of all, I'd like to thank Jenny for raising what is an extremely important issue, particularly about the availability of water to pupils. I'm going to talk about vegan school meals. I think that school meals can play an important role in our children's health, development and their future choices. Building on that, I believe schools should regularly offer plant-based options without...
Joyce Watson: Research has shown that many children simply opt out of getting their free school dinner—there’s been a lot of work done on that—and that’s because they face stigma from their peers. But this policy, this universal free school meal policy, removes that stigma, and that is really something to be proud of. We know that children like to fit in, and I believe that having universal free...
