Jeremy Miles: Can I thank the Member for that supplementary question and for his use of the Welsh language in his initial question? Flintshire local authority have committed in their draft Welsh in education strategic plan to increase the percentage of learners in Welsh-medium education from the current 6.3 per cent to 15 per cent within the next 10 years. I recently announced, in March, 11 projects that...
Jeremy Miles: Thank you, Jack. To support their plans to grow Welsh-medium education, the council has received approval in principle to establish a new primary school, through Welsh Government capital funding.
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for that question. I don't accept the funding takes money away from the school system; the funding is there in order to support the school improvement programme that we have right across Wales. And the majority of the funding that is made available to the regional consortia is delegated directly to schools, rather than being retained by the consortia themselves. On the...
Jeremy Miles: Yes. Regional consortia support schools to improve, including through professional learning, direct engagement and facilitating school-to-school working. I'll be publishing school improvement guidance next week, setting out how the Welsh Government expects regional consortia to support school improvement under the Curriculum for Wales.
Jeremy Miles: ...to Welsh education—is also important in light of those plans in the future. And I'll want to see an increase in Welsh-language provision when looking jointly at increases in the English-medium schools estate.
Jeremy Miles: Well, it has been a priority for us to ensure that Welsh-medium education is available to those who want to take advantage of it from Ukraine, and we've ensured, in terms of children and adults, that there is access to Welsh language lessons, and we've worked with Parents for Welsh Medium Education to ensure that that is possible, and the resources that are available bilingually ensure that...
Jeremy Miles: ...context—the FE context—in which he frames the question, certainly yesterday and I think he was making the same point today, will, I think, see a step change in the provision of further education through the medium of Welsh. Obviously, one of the challenges has been making sure we have a workforce that is able to do that, and he will be aware, of course, of the plan that we brought...
Jeremy Miles: ...would welcome. Supporting and developing the Welsh language skills of the current workforce and the future workforce is a core part of that, and there will certainly be a role for the medical school in Bangor to play in that.
Jeremy Miles: I thank Sam Rowlands for that. As I said in my answer to Ken Skates, my officials are working with the authority on this site. It has a number of dimensions. School development is one aspect of that. But, there has been good progress on a number of the key elements required for that to progress, which I'm happy to report. I congratulate him on engaging the pupils in his region on the...
Jeremy Miles: ...authority and the developers of the Brymbo site generally. As the Member is obviously very, very well aware, it's a site with a number of dimensions and a number of plans. In different ways, the school plan is one of those proposed developments, and officials are working to secure that comprehensive development of the site. My understanding is that good progress has been made on certain...
Jeremy Miles: The education estate in the area of Clwyd South benefited from an investment of over £20 million during the first wave of funding through the sustainable communities for learning programme, and will continue to benefit with a further £22 million through the current wave of investment. This includes Welsh-medium capital grant funding.
Jeremy Miles: On Monday, I announced plans about the roll-out of the co-operation agreement commitment to deliver universal primary free school meals. From September, children in reception classes will be the first to start receiving a free meal as part of these plans.
Jeremy Miles: ...the kinds of arrangements that he's talking about, rather than put them at risk. I'll speak first, if I may, to the amendment tabled in my name, amendment 76, which removes provision amending the School Standards and Organisation (Wales) Act 2013 that would have enabled the commission to refer any proposals made by a local authority or the governing body of a voluntary or foundation school...
Jeremy Miles: ...the amendments in this group are concerned with consequential changes to existing legislation that are needed due to establishment of the commission and the introduction of the register of tertiary education providers. Amendment 70 makes consequential amendments to section 8(4) of the Employment and Training Act 1973 to adjust the scope of education providers falling within the Welsh...
Jeremy Miles: ...I can't support them as they are not necessary, and they do not add anything to the Bill or the way in which it operates. Amendment 117 adds 'adult community learning' to the definition of tertiary education. This is unnecessary as it is already covered as part of that definition as read with sections 141(2), (4) and (5). Amendments 112, 113 and 115, which I also reject, relate to the...
Jeremy Miles: ...are greater similarities between the institutions in that regard. That has been the objective of the amendments that we've already made to the Bill, and that universities in Wales that are higher education corporations are not substantively disadvantaged when compared to charter universities, where, even in those circumstances, there may need to be a necessary dissolution, subject to the...
Jeremy Miles: I cannot support amendments 103 and 104. The retention of a backstop power to dissolve a higher education corporation is, in fact, necessary to ensure that, in very exceptional circumstances, and subject to safeguards and protections, arrangements can be made to smoothly and at appropriate speed dissolve a HEC and ensure arrangements can be made for the transfer of learners, property, rights...
Jeremy Miles: ...43 has been brought forward to address concerns identified by trade unions about how the commission will address the needs of employees when discharging its duties to secure facilities for further education and training. Currently, section 95 of the Bill requires the commission to have regard, amongst other things, to the requirements of employers in relation to the education and training...
Jeremy Miles: Diolch, Llywydd. Amendments 39, 40 and 41 tabled in my name clarify the descriptions of levels of qualifications for the purposes of the Welsh Ministers' duty to describe relevant education and training for the purposes of the commission's duty to secure proper facilities for further education and training for persons aged 19 and over. The amendments clarify that when the Welsh Ministers...
Jeremy Miles: Diolch, Llywydd. Amendment 33 adjusts the Welsh Ministers’ power under section 91 of the Bill to fund a limited range of higher education courses so as to enable them to provide resources themselves or to make arrangements with other persons, either individually or jointly, to fund the provision of relevant courses in the same manner as currently provided for under the Learning and Skills...
