2. Will the Minister provide an update on the Government's plans to support children and young people with dyslexia in the Arfon constituency? OQ58053

We are developing the skills of the education workforce and have made additional bilingual resources and guidance available to help practitioners better meet the educational needs of learners with specific learning difficulties, including dyslexia. In addition, the rights are being sought to a new all-age Welsh dyslexia screening test.

One of my constituents in Arfon has undertaken an independent study after finding failings in the dyslexia provision through the medium of Welsh for her daughter. She has been disappointed by the lack of resources and services available through the medium of Welsh, and, although hopefully in the future there will be a dyslexia test through the medium of Welsh, there is no dyslexia test available for someone to take in their mother tongue at the moment. There's not even a Welsh-medium website that could be a valuable information resource. I do understand that there are experts in Bangor University eager to create Welsh-medium resources. So, what support can you and your Government provide to them, and will you provide us with an update regarding the developments to create a bilingual website to support children and young people with neurodiverse conditions?

Well, thank you for that question. Certainly we do need to do more to ensure the availability of resources through the medium of Welsh for dyslexia in general. As part of the plan to ensure that the new legislation is implemented in the most effective way, we are working with a steering group and we will be recruiting people with expertise in this area to implement the additional learning needs system through the medium of Welsh, including mapping what we will need to provide. We're working with local authorities in the context of the Welsh in education strategic plans to ensure that we understand what their analysis is of the need for further resources too. 

But as I said briefly in my initial response to the question, we are currently seeking the rights to the test for Welsh language dyslexia screening. We already have it through the medium of English, but we need it in Welsh too and those discussions are ongoing.

The Member for Arfon raised a really important point, because we know that around 10 per cent of our population here in Wales is dyslexic. And I know, personally, that if it is not dealt with or supported properly at a young age, it can cause some difficulties for people later on in life. In addition to this, the signs and symptoms of dyslexia differ from person to person, so it's really important that any plans and support are perhaps done on an individual basis as well as the broader support that can be offered.

So, in light of this, Minister, what assessment have you made of the role of the new curriculum, what role that can play in ensuring that those with dyslexia receive the help and support that they may need as early as possible in order to help them thrive?

Well, the combined effect, I think, of the curriculum reforms and the ALN reforms is—. The focus on literacy will drive improvement in this area, and the training available through the professional learning programme that we've been investing in will specifically equip our teaching workforce to identify dyslexia and support pupils that need additional support. Of course, there is a range of needs within the rubric of dyslexia and some have relatively mild needs, and others have a requirement for more significant intervention. But the ethos of the new curriculum, as well as the ethos of the ALN reforms, are to make sure that that's provided as far as possible in a mainstream setting within the life of the school and in the classroom. And so, I think the combined effect of those two reforms will be a renewed focus on this area.