Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Education and Welsh Language – in the Senedd at 2:29 pm on 26 January 2022.
Thank you, Llywydd. Minister, I'd like to start by welcoming the news that the Welsh Government is to fund new research into the resilience of NHS Wales's cognitive tests, particularly in terms of dementia care and the use of the Welsh language. Now, I'm sure that the Minister will be aware that first-language Welsh speakers with dementia often forget that they're able to communicate in English, whilst retaining their mother tongue. This allows for a clear line of communication to remain open whilst eliminating the risk of isolating individuals by not providing services in their language of choice.
Given this, I was disappointed to hear that the Welsh Government doesn't have any official data on the percentage of its social care workforce who are Welsh speakers. So, could I ask the Minister to work with the Deputy Minister for Social Services in order to carry out a Welsh language audit of the social care sector here in Wales, and note what plans the Government has to improve social care for first-language Welsh speakers?