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Agenda item

This report is submitted in order to provide a background to Committee members about the existing work and priorities of the initiative.

Minutes:

In response to a request, the Chair presented an update on Hunaniaith's work, outlining the successes, lessons learnt; he also took the opportunity to raise Members' awareness of this work.

 

Overview of 2018-19 work

It was reported that 2018-19 had been a good year in terms of developing key partnerships, such as Cymraeg for Kids, and Llandrillo Menai Group, and that it appeared that investing time to jointly plan and collaborate was paying dividends.  

 

Additionally, it was noted that collaboration across the Language Initiatives as a whole had also developed further, with Welsh Language Initiatives (the umbrella organisation that supported the work of the initiatives across Wales) leading on many national projects.  There would also be opportunities for further collaboration between the North Wales region language initiatives in future.

 

Two presentations were made by the Language Officers:

 

Early Years

It was explained that seminars had been held to equip the early years workforce and activity providers with the knowledge to enable them to convey the message about the value of bilingualism to families.  It was noted that the feedback from the seminars had been extremely positive, and although it had not been possible to attract some of the targeted businesses and organisations that provided family activities, the officer felt that the events had been successful. Collaboration would continue with Cymraeg for Kids and the Council's Early Years Service on similar events in future.

 

 

Targeting Young People aged 15+:

A conference had been held for young people to discuss the value of the Welsh language as a skill for the workplace, and to introduce best practice and role models from professional and occupational areas.  The conference's aim was to encourage young people to consider their career choices, and to pay particular attention to the Welsh language as part of those options.

 

The conference had been arranged jointly with officers from Llandrillo Menai Group, with specific focus on students from Llandrillo Menai Group in the sectors of Construction, Hair and Beauty, and Hospitality and Tourism. The feedback had been positive, and it was agreed that the content of the sessions was beneficial and appropriate, although some changes were needed, such as simplifying the terminology and including fewer open-ended questions, in order to facilitate participation and discussion.

 

A series of evaluation meetings were held following the events, and the officers agreed that the conference had been a success in relation to arrangements and content, although some refinements and minor changes would be needed if similar events were held in future.   One concern expressed was the difficulties in attracting interest and the commitment of the group's tutors.

 

Members expressed their disappointment regarding this, and noted their desire to pursue it further.  The Gwynedd Language Development Officer noted that she would write formally to Llandrillo Menai Group to share the feedback on the conference evaluation to share the concerns.

A committee member expressed a willingness to write a letter on behalf of the committee to Llandrillo Menai Group.

 

The proposal was accepted.

 

Members were given an opportunity to raise general questions about Hunaniaith's work, and Members asked how Hunaniaith chose the areas to target.  In response, it was noted that the areas that had received attention over the last three years had been largely chosen on the basis of the Census data and Welsh Government's recommendations.  It was noted that other data sources needed to be examined, such as the Language Charter, in order to determine future target areas.

 

Welsh in Business

Information was presented by the Gwynedd Language Development on behalf of Paul Carrol Jones (Welsh in Business).

 

Welsh in Business was one of the national projects run by the Wales Language Initiatives.

 

The project's aim was to:

 

       Offer support and advice to businesses on their use of the Welsh language.

       A free service.

       Principally tailored to small and medium sized, and micro businesses.

It was explained that small businesses in Wales could request support with communication, ordering goods, developing websites and social media through the medium of Welsh.  It was also noted that support was available with advertising and staff recruitment, and the provision of free translation services.

 

RESOLVED:

 

To accept the report.

 

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