An organisation passionate about providing Welsh-medium education for young children in Wales has just launched a new video to promote the benefits of being bilingual.
The special video 'My journey to School' shows the journey for local children on a bus to school, which aims to reassure parents who have been worried about sending their young children on a bus to travel to school.
A launch took place at Ysgol Bro Helyg, a welsh medium primary school in Nantyglo, to encourage families who send their children to Cylch Meithrin Brynithel to continue their Welsh-medium education by sending them to this local Welsh School after they leave the cylch.
Cylch Meithrin Brynithel has held a series of activities with families this year to generate interest in Welsh and Welsh Education including Welsh courses for parents; a Martyn Geraint Show at Abertillery’s Metropole Theatre and a free trip to the Dewin and Doti Festival
Nia Parker, Deputy Regional Manager for South East Wales, said:
"The campaign has been successful with progression numbers to the school increasing. The video shows the experience of one nursery class child from Brynithel who travels to school on the bus, giving peace of mind to parents who may be worried about this."
Zoe Powell is one of the parents who shares her experience of this on the video. Zoe says:
"I was worried about him getting on the bus on his own and he'd never been anywhere without me, but I was reassured by the bus company and the school. The bus has a regular driver and chaperon, and he has a lovely relationship with them. The bus journey has become an additional part of his social life."
Watch the video in full
Mudiad Meithrin works closely with the Council to promote the benefits of being bilingual, and the opportunities for Welsh education and early years provision in Blaenau Gwent. We also work together on the Welsh in Education Strategic Plan, which sets out how we aim to work with partners to increase the use of the Welsh language across the borough through education.
The Council remains fully supportive of the Welsh Government’s ambitions for the Welsh language and its national strategy ‘Cymraeg 2050: a million Welsh speakers. The Plan’s overarching aim is to work with a range of partners to create a ‘Blaenau Gwent community who embrace the Welsh language and culture with confidence and pride’. The current draft plan is awaiting final approval from the Welsh Government.