Welsh language: Lack of teachers threatens one million target

Plans for a million Welsh speakers by 2050 will fail without a substantial increase in teachers speaking the language, a Senedd report has warned.

According to the 2021 Census, the number of Welsh speakers has dropped from 562,000 to 538,000 since 2011.

The report said there was not enough staff for the expansion to Welsh medium education needed and insufficient Welsh teaching in English-medium schools.

Ministers said they had set out ways to develop the Welsh-speaking workforce.

Census data also found a decrease in children and young people able to speak Welsh - particularly between the ages of three and 15.

The Welsh government funds training programmes for teachers wanting to learn or improve their Welsh.

Dyfodol i'r Iaith (Future for the Language), which campaigns to increase the numbers of Welsh speakers, estimates 17,000 teachers would need to be enrolled on the programmes to hit the million target by 2050.

The report, by the Senedd's culture and Welsh language committee, calls for major investment to ensure more teachers, teaching assistants and lecturers sign up for the schemes.

It also recommends ministers consider developing an accreditation system for teachers who teach in Welsh.

"This would ensure that teachers have the skills to teach through the medium of Welsh where the linguistic and cultural needs of each school or area are different," the report said.

"This should include the need to look at how courses are designed and how teachers are trained to teach Welsh in English medium settings."

Committee chairwoman, Plaid Cymru MS Delyth Jewell, warned the million Welsh speakers aim was in "serious jeopardy".

"It's clear that having enough teachers who can speak Welsh is crucial to addressing this issue and we need the Welsh government to show real ambition over the next few years," she said.

"More teachers should be encouraged to learn Welsh and those working in early-years education should also be able to access the same opportunities."

But Ms Jewell said a "one-size fits all approach" might not always work as the "linguistic map of Wales is quite varied".

The Welsh government said: "We have published the Welsh in Education Workforce Plan which sets out a number of ambitious steps we will take with our partners to develop the workforce over the next 10 years.

"We will respond to the committee's report in due course."