The next item is item 8, and that's a statement by the Minister for Education and Welsh Language on supporting an anti-racist education system. I call on the Minister to make his statement—Jeremy Miles. 

Thank you, Llywydd. As a Government, we are absolutely clear that we expect allegations and incidents of bullying and racism to be fully investigated, with immediate actions taken to address the matter and prevent further instances from happening. We are absolutely committed to our schools being inclusive and welcoming to all pupils. I reiterated that recently against the backdrop of the case involving Raheem Bailey, and the importance of providing support to the family and the school community, who will also have been impacted. 

Llywydd, our education system has a crucial role and responsibility to help deliver our vision for an anti-racist Wales. We know that what young people learn in school stays with them their entire lives and shapes our broader society.

The Welsh Government’s 'Anti-racist Wales Action Plan' published today sets out a number of goals and actions to embed an anti-racist culture in schools in order to make meaningful and measurable changes to the lives of black, Asian and minority ethnic people. The plan also brings together work across education, including updating statutory anti-bullying guidance, to reflect our vision for a truly anti-racist Wales. 

While we will deliver on our commitment to update our anti-bullying guidance by the beginning of the next academic year, we will build on this guidance further by working with the Children’s Commissioner for Wales to engage with the lived experiences of children and young people, as well as our teachers and education practitioners.

But, recognising that one of the areas that is most asked about is how we can provide better support to the teaching workforce to deal appropriately with questions in relation to race and racism, today's statement primarily focuses on our innovative developments to establish a national approach to diversity and anti-racism professional learning. This area was identified by Professor Charlotte Williams OBE and her working group. She noted that it was a priority to prepare practitioners for the new curriculum, and that is a key Government priority.

The diversity and anti-racism professional learning—DARPL—project will be led by the BAMEed network and a constantly evolving coalition of partners, including the Black Curriculum and Show Racism the Red Card, among others, who are driving this challenging yet inspirational project to move forward with pace.

Llywydd, strong foundations are already in place with regions and partnerships to fully embed this important work to support schools' development of the new curriculum, recognising our shared responsibility to fast track this agenda. The DARPL project has already launched a new virtual campus and a series of live events, open to all education professionals, encouraging practitioners to embark on their own anti-racist journey, engaging in difficult conversations and discussing critical issues with peers. The Welsh Government hosted a virtual event with the project's team in March to highlight positive developments, and the project has attracted positive international recognition during this year's world education summit.

I was delighted to deliver a keynote address at a recent diversity and anti-racism professional learning event to support middle-tier leaders to take action and to help drive change. Following on from that, I am pleased to confirm today that a new professional learning module for middle-tier education leaders will be developed, and that we are extending the reach of the project to include early years and further education, so that we see a step change right across the system. The work of the project is also reaching our early years practitioners via the national Master's in education. This is an important step on a challenging journey over the next 18 months to upskill education professionals and learners, to attain the ambitions of the Welsh Government's 'Anti-racist Wales Action Plan' and Professor Williams's final report. 

I will soon be publishing the first annual update on the recommendations by the black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, contributions and cynefin in the new curriculum working group, reflecting on progress to date. The Curriculum for Wales seeks to engender a sense of cynefin in both our practitioners and learners, celebrating the diverse culture of modern Wales. Ensuring that all practitioners are equipped to meet these expectations in the design of their curriculum and in their pedagogical practice through professional learning will be key to making this a success. We are also working on the development of new materials that will support teachers in their teaching of these important issues.

Since publication of Professor Williams's report in March 2021, we've made progress across a number of areas to develop both a whole-school and national approach to anti-racism, including becoming the first part of the UK to introduce mandatory teaching of black, Asian and minority ethnic histories in all schools and settings from September 2022; announcing the new professional teaching award—the Betty Campbell MBE award—for promoting the contributions and perspectives of black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, which will be awarded for the first time this year on 10 July; and publishing our plan to increase recruitment of people who are from ethnic minority backgrounds into initial teacher education. This includes, Llywydd, for the first time, additional financial incentives targeted at increasing the diversity of our workforce.

Sustaining momentum and reviewing progress will be key to ensuring that we are making real change in a sustainable way. We will equip regional consortia and local authority partnerships to address specified priorities and actions within annual plans aligned to recommendations from Professor Williams's report. Regions and partnerships will be critical in supporting the move to a sustainable approach beyond the DARPL project itself, and can develop their own professional learning by engaging with the extended module for senior education leaders launching early next year.

To conclude, Llywydd, our young people have a key role to play as positive disruptors and change agents to establish a true culture of inclusion, equipped to make real change, moving forward. I've outlined today a number of positive steps that have been taken, but this is just the beginning. There is a great deal of further work needed to build confidence and resilience across the system to tackle racism head on. I will endeavour to keep Members updated as we continue to move at pace to deliver an anti-racist education system that Wales can be proud of.

I want to thank the Minister for his statement today. We all want to see a fairer, more inclusive and open Wales. We welcome the new categories that have been added to the 'Anti-racist Wales Action Plan'. This new holistic approach is the right one, and we welcome the progress that you've outlined today, Minister. We share your aims in today's statement, and laid out in the document, but I was hoping to see a bit more meat on the bone today in practice, in how they will be delivered.

One of the main aspects I was especially pleased with in the statement and the new action plan was the emphasis on eradicating online bullying and racism, which only keeps growing, as we all know. This obviously affects our young people in and out of school, particularly those with mobile phones. I was just wondering how you envisage looking to try to eradicate—working with the UK Government—racism and bullying online, and when we will see a bit more detail on that sort of aspect, and how you're dealing with it in the education system.

Having a diverse set of teachers, also, across Wales is a crucial part, in my view, of helping to educate children and achieving an anti-racist education system. Black, Asian and ethnic minority role models within our schools are very important, particularly, I would say, in densely populated black, Asian and ethnic minority areas. It's important to ensure that new and all teachers have a comprehensive understanding of race, diversity and equality issues, so I welcome what you're doing in this regard, which you've outlined in your statement. It's so important that teaching staff begin to reflect our local communities. Labour have been in power for 23 years, yet we're seeing black and Asian and ethnic minority teacher numbers falling way short of where they should be. Minister, what plans and strategies do you have in place to ensure that we attract and retain more teachers from black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds?

Empowering schools to deal with cases of racism is also fantastic, and a great way of helping to combat racism in our education system, but it also needs to be handled with great care and sensitivity. The last thing that we'd want to see is a single case being used to make a political point, and that having a detrimental and dangerous impact on the community and schools surrounding it. Race is emotive and it needs to be handled with care. So, Minister, will there be significant guidance for school leaders and governors to that effect, please?

Finally, Llywydd, do you agree with me, Minister, that it's important that we begin to see more literature in schools that is reflective of our communities, of black, Asian and ethnic minority communities? Obviously, they form an integral part of where we live. Thank you, diolch.

I thank Laura Anne Jones for that very important range of questions, and I agree with much of the thrust of her questioning. I do agree that the role of online bullying and racist bullying and racist harassment is a very important part of this picture, and the resources that we are working on will support both learners and teachers and teaching assistants in being able to engage with that. We will continue our work in engaging with the UK Government to make sure that both Governments are doing absolutely everything that they can to address that really important issue.

She made a very important set of points about the diversity of our education workforce in Wales. Our education workforce is not as diverse as the learners in the classrooms that they teach, and that is true, actually, in all parts of Wales, both rural and urban. So, I want to see that picture improved in all parts of Wales. I know that she wasn't suggesting that shouldn't be the case, but I do think it's important to set that expectation in all parts of the geography of Wales. This is the first academic year—from 2023 onwards—where we will have introduced a specific financial incentive to encourage students from black, Asian and minority ethnic communities to take up initial teacher education, and we will do more, as she will have seen from the plan, to work with ITE partnerships to increase the visibility and presence within their curricula of the anti-racist approaches that we want to see for all our teaching workforce.

But in addition to encouraging students into the profession, it's really important to support teachers and teaching professionals from black, Asian and minority ethnic communities who are already in the system, and an important part of that is progression, so that we can see school leaders that young professionals can look up to as an inspiration for their own career paths, and we are a very long way from being able to say that that is the reality. The discussions that I've had with BAMEed Network and others has really focused on that as being an important part of our plans into the future. There's a role there for governors as well in understanding progression, recruitment to the senior leadership teams, and so on. So, at each level, if you like, of a professional journey or the school's governance, there is work to be done, and she will have seen in the plan that we've embarked upon that, focusing on ITE, but there is certainly much more that we plan to do, as is set out.

I do agree with what Laura Anne Jones said, that we need to be able to ensure that all teachers, whether they have the lived experience of racist incidents or not in their own lives, are able to handle confidently and sensitively issues that arise in school and that affect the life of the school. And so the DARPL project is very much based on upskilling, if you like, professionals generally to be able to deal with issues of harassment and bullying, for them to be reported, for the data to be captured and for responses to be given that are appropriate and very clearly in accordance with our commitment to an anti-racist education system. And, as she was saying, the role of leaders in that is also very important. She will have noted the additional funding to the National Academy for Educational Leadership, which is intended to encourage them to look at the diverse workforce and the role specifically of leaders in supporting their schools to be able to play their part in creating an anti-racist Wales. So, that's very much part of the plans that we are setting out today.

And finally, she made a very important point about the resources available for teachers to be able to teach the new curriculum, but also to adopt the anti-racist approaches that the plan sets out today. We're working with external suppliers on the development of new materials that will support teachers to teach black, Asian and minority histories and experiences as part of the new curriculum. The supplier is now in a research phase, if you like, and is engaging with external organisations, and obviously with professionals, with teachers and others as well, as we develop that. I'll have more to say about that in due course, but that work is under way.

Thank you, Minister, for today's statement. Evidently, it's very important that we do have a specific statement like this on education because, as we've heard already, the role of teaching and raising awareness from a young age is vital if we genuinely want to create a nation where racism doesn't exist. We know from speaking to many of the people that we represent that experiences in school have been earth shattering for many people. Many of us who are here today were in a session with the Privilege Cafe some months ago, where a number of people told us about their terrible experiences in school in terms of racism, and the fact that it wasn't a positive experience for them, and they didn't want to continue in school or go on to university because the school world wasn't one where they felt they could prosper, be themselves or be safe. So, there is a great deal of work to do in this area. I do specifically welcome the fact that you've given such a clear statement in this Senedd that there is a great deal of work to be done, but also your commitment. I think you used the words 'fast track' and 'at pace', and that we need to move quickly on this, because evidently with every year that passes, these experiences do affect young people and children for the rest of their lives. 

We saw in the report published in 2020 by Show Racism the Red Card that racism is common in Welsh schools, and that it is likely that teachers and learning support staff are underestimating the situation greatly. In fact, the report found that 63 per cent of pupils have experienced or know someone who has experienced racism at school. Those are shocking figures. We saw in that report that it was not just because of the colour of someone's skin and so on, but religion as well, that there are so many considerations here, and why it is so important that we come to understand each other better and that we understand what a modern and multicultural Wales is, and overturn the stereotype that there is a specific kind of Welsh person. That's rubbish. We are all Welsh if we live in Wales, and I think we have to work hard to get rid of that myth.

Furthermore, in that report, the percentage of educators teaching anti-racism has fallen since the 2016 study, and they said that a lack of time and a lack of confidence were identified as the main challenges. I think that it is excellent that you do acknowledge that in this plan and you're trying to tackle it. But the majority of teachers have not received any anti-racism training, and we know from other discussions that we've had about the great pressure on teachers in terms of the new curriculum, additional learning needs, and so forth, and that they have a lack of time. We have to ensure that this is central to that, and the question that I'd like to ask is: evidently, you've given a commitment to establish a national approach to professional learning on diversity and anti-racism, but how we can we ensure that teachers will have the time to do this, so that they'll all feel that they've received that training that is greatly needed?   

The plan's aim of ensuring that the stories, contributions and histories of black, Asian and minority ethnic people are taught through the revised Curriculum for Wales is therefore of paramount importance. And despite the Government's goal of rolling out the new curriculum in September 2022, we know that many schools have said that they will need to pause the implementation for another year. Therefore, Minister, what mitigation measures will be put in place for this uneven and delayed roll out, and its consequences for the timescales of the plan, as we've seen in today's plan?

Laura Anne Jones mentioned this, but I'd like to ask further in terms of the aim of increasing the recruitment of teachers from ethnic minority communities into the education sector, with a clear focus on recruitment to ITE programmes, which is also vital in this regard. Could you explain why it's not possible to expand the range of subjects available on the ITE employment-based scheme to attract support staff from ethnic minority backgrounds, including Welsh-medium, until September 2025, with this being offered through Open University programmes, only where it is economically and educationally feasible, according to the plan? Could you explain that further, please? 

Evidently, we will greatly welcome a number of these actions, but we'll have to keep an eagle eye on how this is being implemented, and ensure that the training is in place. As we've mentioned, children and young people do face racism in our schools at the moment. That's not acceptable, and we need to change this so that everyone is safe in school. 

I thank Helen Fychan for her contribution, and I agree with much of what she said. She started by talking about learners' experiences and those who had experienced racism in school, and many will have direct experience of that in schools. And that's our objective: not only ensuring that that doesn't happen directly and that there aren't examples of this in schools, but that there is a broader anti-racism culture in schools that is a core part of school life. So, not only that we don't see these incidents, but that it's accepted as part of the ethos of the school that it is repugnant in terms of our values as a nation, and cannot be accepted within the education system.

She made an important point on the educational continuum, and that school experiences can put people off from going on to further and higher education. So, I'm sure she will welcome what we had to say about understanding the experiences of those in the post-16 sector, so that we can amend policies and frameworks to reflect what we learn from the lived experience of learners.

In terms of general training—that was the focus of today's statement, of course—the point that she makes is important in terms of ensuring that professional training is central to the experience of practitioners and teachers. What we want to see is that, for example, the work that the DARPL project does is an integral part of preparing for the curriculum itself, and because of the way that we'll be teaching the curriculum, questions regarding the experiences of black, Asian and minority ethnic communities will be mainstreamed through the curriculum. It's important that professional training is also part of that, and that teachers don't see that as being separate in some way. What we will need to do in the longer term is to ensure that things happen together, so that that training is sustainable for the long term as part of the new curriculum. 

The Member will be aware that secondary schools had the option of starting this year or next year. As it happens, I was very happy with the numbers that had chosen to move this year, given that secondary schools have a longer journey to travel than primary schools. But, this is something that will evolve from year to year. Every pupil in our primary schools from September will be able to access the further curriculum, and when they get to secondary school that journey will continue. So, their experience of this new way of working and the anti-racist approaches will be part of their experience from the outset, and that's very important.

In terms of training and recruitment, I won't rehearse the comments I made in response to Laura Anne Jones, but the element described in the plan as one that will take slightly longer for us to look at is that element that applies to those who are training whilst in work, rather than the more general initial teacher training. So, it's possible for someone who enters the teaching profession from a black, Asian and minority ethnic background this year to take advantage of that incentive, and also the incentive for teaching a shortage subject, or teaching through the medium of Welsh. So, there are a number of incentives available in order to ensure that there is diversity in all parts of the education workforce.

I very much look forward to the awarding of the Betty Campbell award in July, and I very much welcome the statement you've made today. I'm very glad that you have announced that you're going to extend the anti-racism activity to early years and further education, because, obviously, when children start in early years, they don't bring any racist baggage with them—it's learned from adults or older siblings. So, this is a great place to start, because they're completely blind to the different colours of people's skins, so that's absolutely fantastic and that's what we need to build on to ensure that everybody feels that way.

In the context of the level of institutionalised racism that exists throughout most institutions, and the resistance of the Home Office to even admit what's in the report that has been leaked about institutionalised racism in our immigration policies over the last 70 years, and the failure of the police to admit that they've got institutionalised racism in the police force, we clearly have a major problem unless we recognise the problem we've got. So, I think it's really complicated, a bit like other aspects of the new curriculum—relationships and sexuality education is complicated—but it's very exciting that we've got the new curriculum to enable us to deal with these matters.

There's a teacher called Jeffrey Boakye, who's about to publish a new book called I Heard What You Said. He's a secondary school teacher, author and broadcaster, and he argues that racism is a safeguarding issue and something that we should take that seriously. I just wondered whether you felt that that was the case. Clearly, he had the experience of being the only black teacher in the village or the school, and, clearly, this is a more complex problem in an area where there is less diversity.

I'm privileged to represent a community where 35 per cent of people in Cardiff in schools are from an ethnic minority, and how wonderful is that? But, it's much more difficult, it would seem to me, in areas where there's less diversity, so I wondered whether you would be considering having a greater focus on ensuring that people who are in a real minority in parts of our community are really being safeguarded to ensure that school continues to be a positive experience, rather than one that traumatises them.  

I thank Jenny Rathbone for that question. I think it's important to say that the ambitions that we have in our plan are ambitions that relate to every school in Wales. Every school in Wales will live in a different community, and the demographic and ethnic make-up of that community will differ in different parts of Wales. But, we want every child in Wales to be able to benefit from being part of an education system that is anti-racist positively. We want teachers in every school in Wales to feel confident and supported to be able to identify and deal with issues of bullying or harassment in school, but also, much more positively, to be able to teach the full curriculum, reflecting the experiences of all parts of our communities, including black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. So, I do accept that it's a different set of challenges in different parts of Wales, but I think the objective needs to be a common objective, so that everyone, in whichever part of Wales you're in school, has the benefit of the full curriculum.

I think it will be important to make sure, as part of the professional learning that I've been talking about today, that we enable teachers safely to make sure that all school environments are safe in this sense, and that the teaching and the professional learning available to them is sensitive to the context in which they're practising, and that will be different in different parts of Wales as well. I think I just want to restate that principle. It's really important that we have this as a common objective in all schools, in all communities, in all parts of Wales.

Thank you, Minister.