The future of Welsh-speaking communities: call for evidence

The call for evidence aims to:

• bring together information and evidence in relation to Welsh-speaking communities
• collect ideas and views about how they might be strengthened
• assist the Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities in its work of drawing up recommendations to the Welsh Government

Strengthening Welsh-speaking communities is central to the Welsh Government’s strategy of doubling the daily use of Welsh by 2050.

The Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities was established by the Welsh Government in order to make recommendations that would help achieve this.

The commission will make its recommendations in the form of a report.

Welsh is a national language which belongs to us all. The Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities believes the use of Welsh should be increased in every part of Wales.

In order to reflect this, there will be two stages to the work of the commission: the first stage will be to make recommendations about communities where Welsh is the language of the majority (or where this has been true until relatively recently); the second stage will look at the use of the Welsh language as a community language in other parts of Wales.

In this document, we are seeking evidence about communities where Welsh is the language of the majority (or where this has been true until relatively recently). We refer to these communities in this document as ‘Welsh-speaking communities’.

Receiving evidence will help the Commission prepare a report and make recommendations.

We are keen to hear from members of the public, organisations and stakeholders.

We accepted comments online, by post and by email. The call for evidence closed at the end of 13 January 2023.

You can submit evidence or a point of view about any matter which in your opinion is relevant to Welsh-speaking communities.

But as the commission is keen to hear about some matters in particular, it has drawn up a number of questions to help you.

You do not have to answer every question. Submit evidence where you have relevant knowledge or a point of view.

How should we respond to recent changes in Wales?

In recent years Wales has undergone many far-reaching changes. The United Kingdom left the European Union, coronavirus (COVID-19) impacted our communities, new social practices took hold (such as working from home), and there is a crisis in energy and in the cost of living. It is possible that some of these changes will affect the sustainability of Welsh-speaking communities.

• Question 1: What steps should be taken in order to strengthen Welsh-speaking communities (or the Welsh language in Welsh-speaking communities) as a consequence of any of these developments?

How can we target support for Welsh-speaking communities in the most effective way?

The Welsh language is under pressure in some parts of Wales. We are keen to hear ideas about how to provide support for Welsh-speaking communities in the most effective way.

• Question 2: How can we provide support effectively for Welsh-speaking communities?
• Question 3: How can we use regional or local policies in order to strengthen Welsh-speaking communities?
• Question 4: What role should local government have in strengthening Welsh-speaking communities?

Policy fields

The future of the Welsh language in Welsh-speaking communities depends to a large extent on the sustainability of these communities. This means that measures to support the Welsh language must be ‘holistic’ – they must relate to many aspects of the life of society, and encompass many policy fields.

The commission is keen therefore to receive evidence about the relationship of Welsh with different policy areas.

A number of policy fields have been noted below. Not every field has been mentioned, and you are welcome to submit evidence about fields which have not been named.

In the following areas, what policies should be introduced in order to strengthen Welsh-speaking communities?

• Question 5: Regeneration
• Question 6: Education
• Question 7: Agriculture / Land Use
• Question 8: Town and country planning
• Question 9: Community development
• Question 10: Economic development
• Question 11: Housing
• Question 12: Any other field

Direct language policy

The commission is keen to receive evidence about direct language policy in Welsh-speaking communities.

By ‘direct language policy’, we mean policies which attempt to strengthen Welsh as a language within Welsh-speaking communities, rather than policies which aim to strengthen the communities themselves.

• Question 13: How effective is direct language policy in Welsh-speaking communities?
• Question 14: How can we strengthen direct language policy in Welsh-speaking communities?

How can we strengthen Welsh-speaking communities in harmony with other Welsh Government policies? 

The Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities is keen to receive evidence about how to strengthen Welsh-speaking communities in a way that intersects with other Welsh Government objectives. This is important because policies in support of Welsh-speaking communities encompass many areas. As a result, they need to work in the context of wider public policy, including the Well-being of Future Generations Act.

For example, the Welsh Government is keen to strengthen Welsh as a community language and also wishes to adopt beneficial environmental policies. In this example, we would have an interest in hearing about policies which as well as strengthening Welsh-speaking communities are beneficial to the environment.

• Question 15: How can we strengthen Welsh-speaking communities in a way that intersect with some of the Welsh Government’s other objectives?
• Question 16: How can we strengthen Welsh-speaking communities in accordance with the Well-being of Future Generations Act?

Young people and young families in Welsh-speaking communities

There is an age imbalance in many Welsh-speaking communities. A failure to keep young people or young families in these communities, or to attract young people or families to live there, undermines Welsh as a community language.

• Question 17: How can we ensure a better age balance in Welsh-speaking communities, creating a situation in which more young people and young families live there?

Equality and diversity

The Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities wishes to see Welsh-speaking communities that are diverse, inclusive and supportive of equality.

• Question 18: How can we strengthen Welsh-speaking communities in a way that promotes equality and diversity?

Under the data protection legislation, you have the right:

• to be informed of the personal data held about you and to access it
• to require us to rectify inaccuracies in that data
• to (in certain circumstances) object to or restrict processing
• for (in certain circumstances) your data to be ‘erased’
• to (in certain circumstances) data portability
• to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) who is our independent regulator for data protection.

Responses to consultations are likely to be made public, on the internet or in a report. If you would prefer your response to remain anonymous, please tell us.

For further details about the information the Welsh Government holds and its use, or if you want to exercise your rights under the GDPR, please see contact details below:

Data Protection Officer

Data Protection Officer
Welsh Government
Cathays Park
Cardiff
CF10 3NQ

E-mail: data.protectionofficer@gov.wales

Information Commissioner’s Office

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Telephone: 0303 123 1113

Website: Information Commissioner’s Office website

UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR)

The Welsh Government will be data controller for any personal data you provide as part of your response to the consultation. Welsh Ministers have statutory powers they will rely on to process this personal data which will enable them to make informed decisions about how they exercise their public functions.

Any response you send us will be seen in full by Welsh Government staff dealing with the issues which this consultation is about or planning future consultations.

Where the Welsh Government undertakes further analysis of consultation responses then this work may be commissioned to be carried out by an accredited third party (e.g. a research organisation or a consultancy company).

Any such work will only be undertaken under contract. Welsh Government’s standard terms and conditions for such contracts set out strict requirements for the processing and safekeeping of personal data.

In order to show that the consultation was carried out properly, the Welsh Government intends to publish a summary of the responses to this document. We may also publish responses in full.

Normally, the name and address (or part of the address) of the person or organisation who sent the response are published with the response. If you do not want your name or address published, please tell us this in writing when you send your response. We will then redact them before publishing.

You should also be aware of our responsibilities under Freedom of Information legislation. If your details are published as part of the consultation response then these published reports will be retained indefinitely. Any of your data held otherwise by Welsh Government will be kept for no more than 3 years.