Agenda item

To consider the report.

To accept the report, noting the observations received during the discussion.

The report was presented by the Head of the Environment Department and the Senior Executive Officer. They referred briefly to the following main points:

Members were reminded that the department included a range of front-line services and came into contact with the public regularly through fields such as waste and recycling, transportation, planning and public protection. Reassurances were given that every effort had been made to ensure that these services were delivered in the customer's language of choice, ensuring that the services are available through the medium of Welsh.

It was reported that the Department was leading on the Council Plan project of preparing a new Local Development Plan, which is a priority within the 2023-28 Council Plan (A Green Gwynedd). Similarly, it was noted that the Planning Policy Team was monitoring the Joint Local Development Plan 2011-26 and regularly prepared Supplementary Planning Guidance. It was emphasised that Planning Policy PS1, which related to the Welsh language and culture, is central to these Planning and Guidance. Pride was expressed that this provision went further than the Welsh Government's statutory requirements on the Welsh language, sharing an example that the requirements and guidance on Welsh language assessments and statements within the field were in more detail than what is expected nationally.

Attention was drawn that Cyngor Gwynedd was the first local authority in Wales to introduce the Article 4 direction, noting that it was a tool to ensure that houses in Gwynedd were available to residents and that the Welsh language was being supported. It was acknowledged that the direction was currently facing challenges, but that it continued to be operational.

It was highlighted that the Building Control Service was responsible for naming streets and naming and numbering properties. Assurances were given that the service was taking a proactive approach to highlight the historical and cultural significance of Welsh names on properties, although it was acknowledged that they had no powers to refuse applications unless names were duplicated or if the choice of name was inappropriate. It was reported that 113 applications had been received to change or register property names and that 88% of the names registered were Welsh names. Furthermore, pride was expressed that 18 property owners had changed the name of their property from English back into Welsh following discussions with the Service. Likewise, reference was made to the Planning Service where a planning condition was imposed on 54 new businesses and 110 new houses to ensure that they were named in Welsh.

Following a request by committee members, an update was provided on the 'Tir a Môr' bilingual education pack led by the Pen Llŷn a’r Sarnau Special Area of Conservation team. Pride was expressed that hard copies of the pack had been distributed to every primary school in Gwynedd since the Department submitted their previous report to this Committee. It was elaborated that the Special Area of Conservation team were also working to produce a bilingual magazine, 'O Dan y Don', to raise awareness of the area's unique marine environment and promote the use of Welsh alongside the English.

An update was given that the Department had been working on providing necessary training in Gwynedd primary and secondary schools. Pride was expressed that around 3,500 children had received general training on road safety through the medium of Welsh. It was elaborated that around 800 pupils had received cycling training.

Pride was expressed that the Department had collaborated with historians in the Bethesda area, the local community, as well as the Council's Archives Service, to set a bilingual time-line near 'Coeden Meurig' to commemorate historically important events that had happened in Dyffryn Ogwen over the 500 years since the tree had been planted. It was elaborated that another display board had been installed to emphasise the significance of the tree and the plants and animals nearby, noting that the public's response to the project had been very positive.

It was reported that 93% of the Department's staff had completed their language self-assessment and that 89% of those staff members reached the language designation of their job. It was considered that the confidence of individuals about their linguistic skills was a factor that affected this result, as some staff members downplayed their skills. However, it was ensured that the Department was taking every opportunity for staff members to attend training and practice their Welsh skills.

Gratitude was expressed for the support of the Council's Information Technology service, which had been collaborating with the Environment Department to ensure that Welsh versions of some software programmes were available in Welsh, where that was not possible previously. It was explained that several of the systems of the waste service and route planning systems were only available in English as they were specialist systems and were produced outside Wales, but this collaboration with the Information Technology service had been approved for the Council to offer the software in Welsh for the public.

During the discussion, the following observations were made: 

In response to an enquiry about introducing a project like the 'Coeden Meurig' notice board in Bethesda in other areas of Gwynedd, the Head of Department confirmed that he would be happy to collaborate with other communities to develop such schemes. However, it was emphasised that this project had been funded with grant money and therefore, funding options would need to be considered when considering any further projects. In response to further enquiries about collaborating with nature reserves to carry out such projects, the Head of Department explained that this would be more challenging to deliver as the Council did not manage the land.

In response to an enquiry about how the Department ensured that the Welsh language was given fair consideration when drawing up the Local Development Plan, the Head of Department gave assurances that every effort was being made to ensure that the Welsh language was central to the Plan. It was explained that a Working Group had been established to develop the Plan and that most of the conversations being held were associated with the language in order to ensure that they were robust in all aspects of it.

A comment was received that it was considered that many of the officers of the Waste and Recycling Service in the Meirionnydd area were non-Welsh-speaking and that there was general negativity towards the service's work in the area, asking the service what work was progressing to change the public's mindset towards the work in order to attract people to follow a career within the service. In response to the comments, the Head of Department acknowledged that there had been challenges within this service in the past but now the public's satisfaction was much higher and that the number of complaints brought to the Department's attention had reduced substantially. It was elaborated that new technology that had been installed on the lorries could be beneficial to respond to complaints, such as cameras showing the condition of the streets and recycling equipment following collections from the service's staff. It was emphasised that the Department was not aware of any linguistic difficulties within the service, explaining that regular visits were being carried out around the county and that not many staff members needed the translation equipment on offer as a part of those visits. It was elaborated that work was progressing to gain staff members' confidence to use Welsh more often and ensure that staff members continued to work within the service as a part of their career path.

In response to an enquiry on the preparedness of home owners to change the name of their property to a Welsh name, the Head of Department confirmed that home owners were eager to have a Welsh name in most cases. It was explained that the process of encouraging owners to change house names was simple, where officers held discussions to explain the significance of the Welsh names and any historical link they had. It was noted that the owners tended to like the Welsh names once they understood their meaning and chose to use them. It was emphasised that the Department did not have the powers to force Welsh names on houses but that this encouragement was adequate at present.

In response to an enquiry as to whether the Department arranged for simultaneous translation equipment to be available in advance when arranging road safety training, the Head of Department confirmed that the training for children was held through the medium of Welsh. However, it was explained that work was done in advance when arranging training for adults on every occasion, in order to ensure that simultaneous translation equipment was available for anyone who wished to attend but did not understand Welsh.

The members expressed their thanks for the report.

RESOLVED

To accept the report, noting the observations received during the discussion.