Delyth Jewell MS meets learners from Coleg Gwent

During a visit to the Coleg Gwent Crosskeys campus, Member of the Senedd, Delyth Jewell, had the opportunity to meet learners benefitting from new bilingual provision supported by the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol.  

The new provision is in Health and Care, Childcare, Public Services, Business and Creative Industries. 

During the visit, Delyth Jewell MS met Sorrell Butler, 18, who is studying a Musical Theatre course at Coleg Gwent. Sorrell has also been selected as one of the Coleg Cymraeg’s ambassadors.  

She said: “I’ve been speaking Welsh since I started at the local school as a little girl, and I wanted to continue that in college. The language has been a lot of help to me to express myself in creative ways through singing at the college, and I’m very proud of those opportunities. I feel very happy to be an ambassador for the Coleg Cymraeg at Coleg Gwent to share these opportunities with other young people at the college.” 

Delyth Jewell MS said: “I was delighted to see the great work that goes on to promote the language at the college.   

“Welsh belongs to us all, and the youth ambassadors’ work is so important to normalise the language amongst the students, while it has also been positive to see the increase in the availability of Welsh language materials (and also the increase in the number of students studying through the medium of Welsh.) Congratulations.” 

According to recent Coleg Gwent data, 52% of their learners who are Welsh speakers complete part of their studies bilingually, compared to just 7% seven years ago.  

During this time Coleg Gwent has also taken advantage of staff development programmes funded by the Coleg Cymraeg, for example, Cymraeg Gwaith, an initiative to develop the Welsh skills of staff in further education colleges, the Coleg Cymraeg Ambassadors scheme, and also made use of the resources commissioned by the Coleg. 

Arwel Rees-Taylor, Bilingual Development Manager at Coleg Gwent, said: “I’m delighted to welcome Delyth Jewell MS to the college, along with our partners from the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol who have provided strategic leadership that enables us to offer what we have always wanted. 

“The impact of the investment is evident in the number of learners now completing significant elements of their main courses bilingually. This means that many more learners can use and value their Welsh language skills in the context of their fields of study, and their future careers.  

“It’s been an extraordinary journey, but the work continues until we have the same impact across all areas.” 

Dr Ioan Matthews, Chief Executive of the Coleg Cymraeg said: “The Government has identified growth in bilingual skills across the public sector as a priority, therefore ensuring that vocational courses can be studied bilingually is vital. 

“The Welsh language belongs to us all, and the Coleg Cymraeg looks forward to continuing to work with further education colleges, and the Government, to achieve our long-term vision that Welsh and bilingual provision is available to all who study and train in Wales, regardless of their Welsh language skills.”