1. Barry Town Council is not responsible for education and therefore has limited evidence to submit to this Inquiry. However, through its work Barry Town Council contributes to the aims of Welsh Government’s target of increasing the numbers of Welsh Speakers.

2. Currently, Barry Town Council:

- Recruits Minor Authority Representatives onto Governing bodies of all Primary Schools in Barry including Welsh Medium Primary Schools.

- Provides funding for non-curriculum based books to all primary and secondary schools in Barry, including Welsh Medium Schools, to encourage reading.

- Provides a community grant scheme that can be accessed by all community and voluntary groups in Barry

- Provides a bilingual website

- Operates a Welsh Language Scheme

3. Having circulated the information on the Welsh Language Strategy Inquiry to Councillors, some suggestions have been proposed for the future which include:

- Working in partnership with the Vale Council to Invite the Urdd Eisteddfod to Barry – the last time the Urdd eisteddfod visited Barry was in 1977.

- Working in partnership with the Vale Council to provide an Immersion Unit for children wanting to transfer from non-Welsh medium to Welsh medium education. They have this in Cardiff where it was worked very well. Many children arrive from other countries and counties and may have missed the opportunity to receive Welsh medium education due to lack of awareness or through being new arrivals in this country. An immersion unit would enable children who wish to enter Welsh medium education to do so. 10 weeks is normally all it takes to get a child fluent and confident enough to enter Welsh medium primary education full time from starting an immersion unit.

- Working in partnership and providing support for Rhag and Mudiad Ysgolion Meithrin in order to promote Welsh medium education

- Improved financial support for the local language initiative or “Mentrau Iaith”

- Redefine some council posts with higher Welsh requirements on advertising.

- A review and strengthening of Barry Town Council’s Welsh Language Policy

4. At this point in time, it should be noted that these proposals are at suggestion stage only and have not yet been discussed wider or ratified via Full Council. They have been included in this response in order to make a positive contribution to the consultation and will be discussed further at a Barry Town Council Consultation Working Party meeting in December 2016.

Emily Forbes, Town Clerk, Barry Town Council.