4. Will the Minister make a statement on promoting the Welsh language among young children? OQ55536

Thank you very much, Mike, and thank you for asking the question in Welsh. Through Cymraeg i Blant, the language charter, Mudiad Meithrin, the Urdd, the mentrau iaith and many other methods, there are many opportunities for children to use the Welsh language. I will also be publishing a policy on transmission of the Welsh language between parents and children before the end of the year, which will again be the basis for a new programme of work.

Thank you for that response, Minister. I, like many others here, am aware of how difficult it is to become fluent in Welsh as an adult. So, what discussions has the Minister had with colleagues on the importance of starting learning Welsh at a young age, particularly in terms of support for Mudiad Meithrin and Ti a Fi and ensuring that they have a positive start through the medium of Welsh?

Thank you very much. That was excellent, Mike, and I think that the questions are very fair too. Of course, what we do try to do to reach 1 million Welsh speakers is to ensure—. To reach that target, we want to ensure that more children receive their education through the medium of Welsh. So, around 20 per cent currently receive their education through the medium of Welsh, and we want that to get to 40 per cent. That's quite a major step and, of course, the way to do that is by starting with nursery provision, and that's why Mudiad Meithrin have opened more settings where there is an opportunity for children to come together to learn Welsh in areas where there is no such provision at the moment. But before that, 20 new Ti a Fi cylchoedd have been established throughout Wales, and they provide an opportunity for people just to step into the Welsh language and try it out before they send their children to those Welsh-medium nursery schools.

So, we try to encourage children to use the Welsh language, but, of course, once they go into Welsh-medium schools, we also have to ensure that they use the Welsh language socially. So, that's why we use initiatives such as the mentrau iaith to ensure that they have opportunities to practice the Welsh language once they're able to speak it.

I'm pleased, Minister, that you mentioned parents because the visible support of parents and carers for the Welsh language is very influential in terms of how a young child accepts bilingualism as part of how he or she sees him or herself, which is very important beyond locations such as the cylchoedd and the ysgolion meithrin. Baby massage and yoga, around the football pitch at a local sports ground, a local shop—these are all friendly areas where parents can use the Welsh language themselves while they are with their own children. And programmes such as Cymraeg i Blant, which you've already mentioned, and Clwb Cwtsh are crucial in the work of supporting parents on their children's journey towards bilingualism. But what else can you suggest that isn't online to enhance parents' experience so that they can become the main promoters of the Welsh language to young children, by actually showing their commitment, and that's very important, as you've said, in the non-Welsh speaking areas?

Thank you very much. I think that's a very important point, because there is a risk that people see the language as something artificial that's only spoken in schools, so it's important that they see that this is a way of life as well. And that's why Cymraeg i Blant is an opportunity for people to do just that, but, of course, at the moment it's difficult, and that's why all of that work has moved online, and it's very important at the moment that we give opportunities for those who don't have opportunities to speak Welsh at home, and who haven't been able to attend school for months—that they have an opportunity to use the Welsh language as well.

We've been sharing ideas through social networks to parents, so that they can see what is out there, so there is 'Llond haf o Gymraeg'—that's a hashtag that people can use to find activities, initiatives, that they can use with the Welsh language. But, of course, what else we're going to do is adopt this idea of language transmission between people within their families. That's really sensitive and really difficult to do, but it is something that we are trying to focus on at the moment, to see how we can get more of those people who don't quite have the confidence, who haven't spoken Welsh for years, since they left school—that they might start using the Welsh language again.