Siân Gwenllian: Thank you very much. There's no doubt that the childcare funding legislation was very contentious from the outset, for the reason that it didn't include every child. Children whose parents were in education or training or who were unemployed didn't qualify. Therefore, Plaid Cymru voted against the legislation. We felt that it was entirely unfair that families earning up to £200,000 per annum...
Siân Gwenllian: The target of a million Welsh speakers will never be achieved, of course, unless we create a revolution within the Welsh-medium education system. At the moment it is entirely deficient, despite great growth in demand, as we have seen in Merthyr this week, where there is no Welsh-medium secondary school despite the demand. And then one sees the situation with Bridgend council, which is...
Siân Gwenllian: ...you paint of the situation in terms of the UK, it’s the responsibility of the Government here to set priorities within its own budget. And you will be aware that the Children, Young People and Education Committee suggested strongly that there needs to be a balance of expenditure towards preventative spend, with education and schools as a central part of that. Otherwise, we will continue...
Siân Gwenllian: ...to that last comment and the fact that you had said, David Rowlands, before the whole Assembly today that your mum indeed had suffered as a result of the historic issues that were happening in our schools, where people were punished physically for speaking Welsh. I’m still incensed about that, but one turns that anger into constructive action and I’m very pleased at the innovative work...
Siân Gwenllian: ...on this issue, not because we are sitting on the fence in terms of these regulations, but as a signal of our dissatisfaction with the process. The regulations do scrap the statutory need for schools to set particular targets, because the circumstances have changed. That is sensible, and we do agree with that change, and the move away from that narrow focus on borderline grades, which is...
Siân Gwenllian: The Government in London is about to announce that schools in England will receive £3 billion in addition. Therefore, can we have a statement explaining what discussions your Government and the education Minister have been having with the Treasury in London on this issue—namely, from the point of view of the Barnett consequential? If schools in England are to receive more funding, then...
Siân Gwenllian: ..., is named in a list of subjects that are to be taught under the title ‘humanities’, which is one of the areas of learning and experience. Now, humanities includes geography, history, religious education, sociology, and so on. They are intertwined, and so the Donaldson curriculum doesn’t set out any basis for teaching the history of Wales. And so what concerns me about this—not...
Siân Gwenllian: Constituents have been in touch with me and they’re concerned about the destructive impact of possible cuts at the school of education at Bangor University and particularly the implications of losing experienced Welsh speaking staff and replacing them with an ad hoc strategy that intends to bring in teachers from schools in order to train and mentor students. I would be grateful for a...
Siân Gwenllian: ...collected but also the fact that all these different bodies and organisations need responses, very often? So, a teacher has to be responsive to various layers and various people involved within the school, and I sometimes wonder whether there is too much of that happening and if there's duplication of what is monitored and what teachers have to respond to. That duplication is often...
Siân Gwenllian: .... Four—the Government needs to review the childcare offer, which is deficient. It needs to be extended and the emphasis should be placed in the right place and that includes early years education. Five—we need to strengthen the work of the fair work commission substantially and we need to use public procurement processes to increase salaries. Six—we need to press for the devolution...
Siân Gwenllian: ...draft curriculum, but I am still slightly concerned as to why it’s not contained within that general statement, which is also at the heart of the curriculum, whilst relationships and sexuality education is there. I’m struggling to understand the rationale for that, whilst welcoming of course that RSE is there. I’m sure you would agree that we do need expertise in teaching in that...
Siân Gwenllian: ...because there is no definition in the draft curriculum as it stands, and that is perhaps a weakness. Another aspect of the new curriculum that’s been given some coverage is sex and relationships education, and I quote from the draft curriculum that teaching, 'Welsh, English, religious education, relationships and sexuality education, and the three cross-curricular responsibilities of...
Siân Gwenllian: ...staged at the request of Ymgyrch Hanes Cymru—the campaign for Welsh history—and there concerns were expressed that an excellent opportunity will be missed to teach the history of Wales in every school unless that is entirely clear in the new curriculum and unless resources and appropriate training are available. The young people of Wales learn about events such as the drowning of...
Siân Gwenllian: 4. Will the First Minister make a statement on the availability of revision textbooks in our schools? OAQ53909
Siân Gwenllian: ..., rekindling his musical interests with local brass bands and Dyffryn Peris choir. He worked diligently within his community as a community councillor and through Plaid committees and as a school governor at Ysgol Gynradd Llanrug. He was positive and strong, fighting till the end, despite his illness. We will remember Llew as a gentle and decent person. He was enthusiastic to see the...
Siân Gwenllian: ...curriculum has the potential to transform the learning experiences of our children and young people, but I am shocked to think that it also has the potential of failing entirely. The life of every school is very busy on a day-to-day basis and is filled chock-full with challenges, and a lot of time is spend dealing with cuts in budgets that are shrinking. Now, you've suggested that there...
Siân Gwenllian: To help with that discussion, therefore, may I suggest that there are a number of questions that you and the education department within Government could be asking? Are there too many layers in our education system? Do these create unnecessary bureaucracy? Is there too much duplication of work? And is that a good use of the scarce funding in the education pot? For example, are there too many...
Siân Gwenllian: ...I'm very pleased to hear that last announcement. I know that my colleague in Westminster, Ben Lake, has been pursuing this issue, so I'm very grateful to hear that—that'll be good news for our schools. But, to return to direct funding, just to put it on the record, Plaid Cymru is willing to consider any proposals that would deliver better outcomes for our children. We are not of the...
Siân Gwenllian: Thank you, Llywydd. Headteachers the length and breadth of Wales are warning that there is a funding crisis facing our schools and that this will have far-reaching impacts—larger class sizes, fewer teachers, the condition of buildings deteriorating, reduction in the support for additional learning needs, cuts to pastoral services and well-being services. We are losing hundreds of our most...
Siân Gwenllian: ...to share homes with their parents or other relatives or friends. There are too many people in homes that are too small for their needs, and this in turn impacts their general well-being and the education of the children also suffers. I’m going to focus on two aspects this afternoon. We have a planning system in Wales that does work to the benefit of major housing developers. Yes, they...
