Agenda item

To present information about the Department’s contribution to the Language Policy.

To accept the report and note the observations received.

The report was presented by the Head of Economy and Community Department, and attention was drawn briefly to the following main points:

Attention was drawn to the Arfor project by noting that Cyngor Gwynedd took a leading role on the project's Board. It was explained that the Board was in the process of evaluating the impact of the projects on areas and residents to receive a budget in the future.  The committee was reminded that the Arfor project was funded up to the end of the 2024-25 financial year therefore it was important to work on trying to currently receive financial commitment for the future. It was confirmed that important collaboration was happening between Arfor regional counties, namely Anglesey, Gwynedd, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire.

It was reported that the Department had succeeded to attract funding by the UK Government's Shared Prosperity Fund, by confirming that a grant fund for businesses was available from this budget in addition to the Arfor project. It was explained that the terms and conditions that were developed through the Arfor project had been included for businesses’ applications for funding through the Shared Prosperity Fund too. It was explained that this meant that companies needed to highlight the use of the Welsh language as part of their business as well as sharing how the company promoted the Welsh language, whilst they made an application for funding. ⁠As a result, it was noted that 79 businesses from Gwynedd had completed the Welsh Language Commissioner's 'Welsh Language Offer' assessment during 2023/24 and 12 of the companies had already secured the accreditation. ⁠It was acknowledged that the same encouragement would not be available when business grants were not available. However, it was emphasised that work was underway to be able to offer support for small businesses to obtain the accreditation by the Welsh Language Commissioner. It was reiterated that the hope was that the companies would take the opportunity to apply for a 'Welsh Language Offer' accreditation voluntarily in the future, but it was noted that there was no way for the Department to compel them. Disappointment was expressed that Gwynedd was the only county in the north that had set this condition on business grant applications through the Shared Prosperity Fund.

It was confirmed that the Department had launched the Gwynedd and Eryri Plan 2035 which was a Sustainable Visitor Economy Plan for the area, formed jointly with Eryri National Park Authority. It was reminded that one of the plan's clear priorities would be to promote local ownership and to develop opportunities to highlight the Welsh language, our culture and heritage. It was emphasised that work was underway to monitor the impact that the plan had on this priority at present. It was emphasised that this priority had been included as a clause and that the department had agreed to support events, to ensure that the event fulfilled those cultural and language requirements.

It was explained that the Department had adopted a new measure within the marketing and events tourism field, namely 'Percentage of the County's residents who believe that tourism has a positive influence on the Welsh language and culture of Wales'. It was noted that this new measure was included in an annual questionnaire for Gwynedd residents. It was explained that the hope was to collect data from the questionnaire to measure the impact of the work done within the field. It was anticipated that this was the best method of receiving positive responses as it enabled communities to commit as much or as little as they wished. It was emphasised that the measure had been trialled by the Council on behalf of the Welsh Government last year and it was hoped that other counties would incorporate the measure in the future.

In response to an enquiry on how to collaborate with holiday businesses, holiday lets and caravan parks to ensure that the language was prominent in their culture, the Head of Department confirmed that interesting work was underway to encourage businesses to be Welsh language ambassadors. It was confirmed that this was work that had been adopted within the new Visitor Economy Plan and it was required for the ambassadors to be aware of culture and language as well as respecting the landscape and the environment. Hope was expressed that this would strengthen the language as visitors would see the Welsh language clearly when they would visit the area. It was emphasised that the plan had been trialled within Eryri National Park and that positive results were received therefore the hope was that this plan would be successful across the whole of Gwynedd, and to share an information package with businesses.

⁠It was reported that the Department continued to support companies and establishments within the museums and arts field by noting that the language and cultural impact was something that got attention whilst going forward to support them. There was also reference to the Slate Landscape of North West Wales project. It was elaborated that the department collaborated with Bangor University on a long-term plan, and a great deal of time would pass before seeing the plan's changes and impact. It was explained that stimulating the interest of volunteers who possessed Welsh language skills could be a challenge for the Department. It was acknowledged that this was a problem that raised concern for many years and that it was a bigger challenge in some specific areas within the county. It was emphasised that the Department supported those areas by offering more volunteering opportunities through various plans jointly with schools and colleges to stimulate the interest of Welsh speakers to volunteer. An example was shared of where these plans were successful such as Storiel in Bangor where there were more Welsh speaking volunteers by now.

Examples were shared of how Gwynedd libraries contributed towards promoting the Welsh language as well as providing a bilingual service. It was emphasised that the activities held in the libraries were very popular amongst Gwynedd residents and it was detailed that there was positive feedback from non-Welsh speaking attendees of the way that the local library promoted the Welsh language effectively. It was mentioned that the libraries service was available bilingually across the county, but it was acknowledged that some sessions were held where it was not possible to have all of the resources through the medium of Welsh occasionally. It was explained that the Department was aware of the problem and considered that the challenge would arise in some areas where the number of Welsh speaking volunteers were low. It was emphasised that the Department tried to support everyone who wished to hold activities within the libraries to be able to do so bilingually. It was confirmed that the Council's language policy ensured that no activities were conducted in English only, while acknowledging that some elements were not held through the medium of Welsh on rare occasions.

It was reported that there was an increase in the number of the department's staff who had completed a language self-assessment, emphasising that 96.65% of the department's staff had reached the language designations of their jobs. It was noted that this has increased from the 93% that was reported in 2023. ⁠It was confirmed that the Department had faced challenges whilst trying to employ temporary beaches and marine officers in the summer and had had to appoint non-Welsh speaking teams and individuals in the past. It was elaborated that the challenge that arose from this was that they were not employed with the Council for a long enough period to be immersed in the language. It was emphasised that the Marine Manager took actions to ensure that officers spoke Welsh with each other and customers on every opportunity.

It was detailed that financial matters were a barrier that currently faced the Department. It was explained that an extensive proportion of the Department's work was dependent on grants and that was a good way of setting language conditions within the County. It was emphasised that regular public cultural events played an important role whilst people practised their language skills publicly especially if they did not have any other way of doing so. It was acknowledged that ensuring service or events' continuation when various grants came to an end could be challenging to the Department especially considering general financial challenges that currently faced the Council. It was emphasised that the Department continued to target grant funding regularly to ensure support for communities for the future.

The members expressed their thanks for the report.

RESOLVED

To accept the report and note the observations received.