4. How is the Welsh Government encouraging schools to promote female role models in the classroom? OAQ51673

Thank you, Jayne. We want our young people to be ethical, informed citizens of Wales and the world, and healthy, confident individuals, ready to lead fulfilling lives as valued members of society. That means promoting positive female and male role models in the classroom.

Thank you, Cabinet Secretary. With the centenary of the end of world war one and women getting the vote over 30, it's vital that we share with boys and girls the contributions of so many women before us. Yesterday, I was proud to unveil a blue plaque for Annie Mistrick in Newport—a nurse who was on the front line, who put her own life at risk to care for and treat wounded soldiers in world war one. She was awarded the highest honour by the French Government for bravery. Pupils from St Woolos Primary School were there at the unveiling to hear about a local woman who was so remarkable, yet nearly lost from history. What support is the Welsh Government providing to schools to ensure that all pupils across the curriculum learn about women, past and present, who play such an important role and, where possible, linking schools with local women and events to bring them to life for a new generation?

Thank you, Jayne. I was delighted to listen to reports on the media yesterday of the unveiling of the plaque. It's sad that it's taken such a long time, really, for this amazing woman to be recognised by her home community when the French Government, over many, many years, at the time, recognised her immense contribution.

There is a variety of ways in which we work with a number of organisations to ensure that children in our schools have access to a wide range of opportunities to learn about women from history, and indeed their own local history. So, for instance, I'm aware that, just next month, the soroptimists of Monmouthshire are putting on an event at King Henry VIII Comprehensive School in Abergavenny where they will be talking about women in science and how we can encourage more girls in primary and secondary schools to study science. So, there's a whole variety of work going on to ensure that we have positive role models for all of our children in school, and we recognise the contribution that Welsh men and women have made, not only to their local history, but, in the case of Annie, to a bigger cause.

Well, I'm more than happy to cite Amy Dillwyn from my region as a dead role model—that's not always the most useful role model, though. One of the recommendations from the 'Talented Women for a Successful Wales' report is that we should find imaginative initiatives to challenge gender stereotypes and encourage girls and boys to consider non-traditional occupations. When do you expect to be able to give us some working examples of role models who have been persuaded to go into schools, and how schools themselves have identified those—it could be women, but it could be men as well, I suppose—so that we know what a good role model might look like? Thank you.

I think, Suzy, you're absolutely right: we need to really challenge some stereotypical images that people have. That's why I'm aware that my Cabinet colleague, Julie James, only this week was involved in the This is Me launch at a local college, really challenging what it means to be male or female and what that might mean in terms of the expectations you have of yourself, or that your peers and your community might have of you.

It's also really important in terms of Careers Wales and the offer that Careers Wales put into schools to help inform children when they're taking individual subject choices about what that means for their career going forward. So, I know that Careers Wales activities and services do challenge gender stereotypes, and they do work to facilitate education and business links, for instance, through their exchange programmes, so that people have a wide variety of opportunities to explore what they may want to become when they leave school.

This place was an excellent role model for gender equality, but since 2003, the situation has changed and has moved backwards. I'd like your opinion on the principle of introducing legislation to create equality in terms of representatives in the National Assembly as a means of leading to equality in other areas, including in our schools and education more generally.

Perhaps there's one silver lining to the predicament I find myself in: at least the Welsh Liberal Democrats can claim 100 per cent female representation in this particular Assembly term. [Laughter.] Although, I must admit that's not a particular silver lining I would have welcomed.

I have always, throughout my political career, paid tribute to other political parties that, I believe, took very brave steps to ensure good gender representation in this place. I have to admit that it's a battle that I was never able to win when I was leader of my own political party. I'm a firm believer: unless you can see it, you can never hope to become it.

But, from my perspective in education, what's really important to me is that we, via our existing PSE curriculum and our new curriculum, give young women the opportunity to learn about the political process, to understand how that political process works, and to encourage in them a desire to want to contribute to it, as campaigners and activists in their own communities as well as formal politicians who might seek to serve on councils, in Assemblies or in Parliaments.