Agenda item

To consider the report

To accept the report and to note the observations received.

 

The report was presented by the Head of Economy and Community Department, the ARFOR Programme Regional Manager and the Gwynedd Business Development Team Leader. They referred briefly to the following main points:

 

The ARFOR programme funded by the Welsh Government since 2019 to develop the economy to support Welsh language strongholds, across west Wales in Gwynedd, Anglesey, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire, was expanded upon. It was explained that the aim of the project was to maintain and create work that enables young people to return and stay in the region to work while also promoting the use of the Welsh language. It was confirmed that Cyngor Gwynedd's Economic Development Service was leading the work on behalf of the four counties, confirming that an investment of £11 million had been provided by the Welsh Government over the last two years.

 

It was explained that an Agreement in Principle had been developed in conjunction with the Welsh Government as part of the process of applying for funding through the ARFOR programme. This meant that businesses were expected to undertake a language assessment by the Welsh Language Commissioner and that they would work towards the Welsh Offer. It was confirmed that this had been successful across the region and that a strong relationship has been forged with the Commissioner. It was added that the Welsh Language Commissioner had held a number of awareness-raising sessions to increase the visibility of the Welsh language and pride was expressed that a number of companies had taken part in these sessions.

 

It was pointed out that 'Hac Iaith' sessions had been held in each county within the west Wales region of the ARFOR programme. It was noted that these sessions highlighted how non-Welsh speaking businesses could use the language within their operations and the benefits associated with doing so. Similarly, it was reported that the World's Most Welsh-language awards were held where residents nominated and rewarded businesses they considered to be at the forefront with their use of Welsh, in order to market those businesses that operated through the medium of Welsh and bilingually within the region.

 

It was updated that it was hoped to work with the Welsh Government and the Welsh Language Commissioner to develop the Welsh Business Promise. It was explained that the Commissioner did not have the capacity to provide the Welsh Offer to small businesses, as the aim was to influence larger businesses. Members were reminded that the Welsh Offer was an accreditation provided by the Commissioner for businesses that applied for it by formulating a language policy and operating parts of their business in Welsh.

 

There was pride that the ARFOR programme had succeeded in holding a meeting between the Language Policy officers of each county within the region, in order to share good practice and hold ongoing discussions about the role of language policies when considering the economy and the Welsh language.

 

The increase in the use of Welsh within businesses in Gwynedd as a result of ARFOR programmes, such as Llwyddo'n Lleol and Ffrwd Mentro, was detailed. The Enterprising Communities grant scheme was expanded upon. It was noted that 21 businesses had received funding from this scheme and were completing the Welsh Offer accreditation which was a condition to receive that funding. It was updated that 11 of those companies had already received the accreditation, with another five companies very likely to receive it soon. It was emphasised that there was an increasing use of the Welsh language in businesses that had not been able to achieve the accreditation, such as changing business names to be Welsh only and introducing more bilingual posters and information.

 

It was pointed out that six businesses had received funding through the ARFOR programme's Challenge Fund, which encouraged innovative developments in the Welsh language within the field of the economy. It was detailed that some of these included Cymen which was developing Welsh digital speech systems, and Bangor University which was researching bilingual recruitment processes and developing the ARFer app to promote the use of Welsh in the workplace.

 

Members were updated on the operations of other services within the Department that contributed to the objectives of the Council's language strategy, such as:

 

·       Tourism, Marketing and Events Service ⁠ – pride was expressed in the service having attracted a budget from the Shared Prosperity Fund to develop a number of new articles by freelance writers from Gwynedd promoting local culture and stories.

·       Regeneration Programmes Service - it was pointed out that the LleCHI LleNi project promotes the heritage of the area. There was pride in the fact that the project promoted the Welsh language and that work was underway in collaboration with Bangor University to monitor the legacy of World Heritage status on the impact and visibility of the Welsh language in the area.

·       Maritime – it was recognised that recruitment of staff had been a challenge for the Service. It was emphasised that challenges arose when trying to recruit seasonal staff to assist the service over the summer period who also speak Welsh. However, it was emphasised that the Department had attracted individuals with Welsh language skills again this year and recognised that it was not possible to monitor the use of the language in the workplace as they worked independently.

·       Libraries - it was emphasised that library staff promoted the Welsh language proactively by ensuring that close collaboration with partners enabled residents to access books, events and information in Welsh.

·       Museums and Arts Service - it was noted that recruiting individuals with Welsh language skills was a challenge for the Department at times such as when commissioning artists for projects. It was confirmed that the Department was working with those individuals to support them with language skills. Similarly, it was noted that the Department was experiencing challenges in finding volunteers with Welsh language skills, noting that it was not possible to ensure that all individuals had Welsh language skills on all occasions. They were thanked for their interest in volunteering and collaborating with the Department.

 

It was reported that 86.8% of the Department's staff had completed the language self-assessment. However, it was clarified that some of the seasonal and fixed-term officers had not had the opportunity to complete the self-assessment to date. It was confirmed that 95.8% met the language designations of their jobs, indicating that any staff member who did not meet the language designation of their jobs received training to develop their language skills.

 

During the discussion, the following observations were made: 

 

In response to an enquiry about the future of the ARFOR programme, the Head of Department stated that there was no formal confirmation of the future of the project yet. It was clarified, however, that it was likely that the programme would be implemented for the current financial year but on a significantly lower budget – approximately £500,000. It was elaborated that the Department was looking to mainstream elements of the programme to other projects so as to ensure that the support continued for Gwynedd businesses. It was confirmed that an assessment of developments made through the scheme was currently being developed and would be available to the public shortly.

 

In response to an enquiry about offering small grants to businesses to be able to develop Welsh and bilingual signs, it was confirmed that this would not have met the requirements of the ARFOR programme. It was explained that the main aim of the programme was to assist the economy to prosper, and that Welsh language elements had been added to it. It was confirmed that it was not possible to allocate funding to businesses to develop the language without ensuring that there was a strong link with plans to strengthen the economy. In response to further comments that Mentrau Iaith Cymru could be of assistance with this, the Senior Language and Scrutiny Adviser confirmed that their budget for specific grants of this type had now ended.

 

In response to a query about statistics, the Gwynedd Business Development Team Leader confirmed that 72% of young people who received support from the ARFOR programme indicated that the programme had influenced their decision to stay in their areas. It was elaborated that it was very difficult to find statistics on the impact of the programme specifically on the numbers of young people who had come back to the region to live and work, because that decision was dependent on a range of factors and it was not possible to confirm whether the ARFOR programme, or another factor, was the main rationale for returning to the area. It was explained that the Wavehill company was currently preparing a review of the programme in the hope that more statistics would be presented once the review was published.

 

Members were thanked for ideas on how to promote Welsh language skills among volunteers.

 

In response to an enquiry about how the Department monitored those businesses that received the Welsh Offer accreditation, to ensure that they met the requirements, the ARFOR Programme Regional Manager confirmed that the Welsh Language Commissioner undertook this work. It was emphasised that businesses could lose the accreditation if they did not continue to follow Welsh Offer principles. It was confirmed that the Department offered every encouragement and support to businesses to ensure that they complied with the accreditation and offered support with the Welsh language at every opportunity.

 

The Department was asked to submit a further report on the ARFOR programme following the publication of the programme's evaluation. In response, the request was welcomed by the Head of Department, stating that the evaluation would be published in May. It was elaborated that the Welsh Government's decision on the programme's budget for 2025/26 was expected to be received around the same period.

 

The members expressed their thanks for the report.

 

RESOLVED

 

To accept the report and to note the observations received.