Education

AM’s fears for local higher education

Published

10 years ago

February 11, 2016

Students given the chance to learn in Welsh face cuts

PLAID CYMRU AM Simon Thomas, has raised fears about the future of local higher education, following a large cut in funding to the sector from the Welsh Government.

The Welsh Government announced its draft budget last month featuring massive cuts to the Higher Education budget, affecting all higher education institutions in Wales, including the Carmarthen-based Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and the University of Wales Trinity Saint David.

There are 15 staff of the national all-Wales Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol based in the office in Y Llwyfan, Heol y Coleg, Carmarthen.

The Shadow Education Minister: “I’ve been contacted by many people who fear for the future of our universities locally.

“The Welsh language Coleg Cymraeg, a newly founded institution based in Carmarthen, is just one of the higher education institutions which will now be underfunded and struggling to compete.

“Cutbacks of 32% for Higher Education in Wales will take £41million out of universities’ budgets whilst the Welsh Government is increasing its funding for English universities to £90m through its tuition fees policy.

“This is a scandalous admission from this government that it is pursuing short-term headlines instead of making long-term commitments.

“It will make it difficult for universities to widen access to Higher Education for students from all backgrounds, and the Welsh Government has questions to answer over how it intends to ensure a fair playing field for all students.”

An independent report by Universities Wales last October assessed the impact of Higher Education in Wales it discovered that 1512 full-time jobs in Carmarthenshire are generated by university activity and 542 in Pembrokeshire.

The contribution to the local economy was £8.2m in Carmarthenshire and £27.3m in Pembrokeshire.

The Coleg Cenedlaethol ensures more study opportunities for Welsh medium students – in partnership with the universities.

Since 2011 £18m has been invested in universities across Wales by the Coleg, with 115 lecturers appointed in universities in a large number of subjects including: medicine, geography and drama.

Their £1m scholarship scheme has benefited over 600 students that have received bursaries.

When the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol was established by Welsh Government in 2011, funds were allocated for a period of six years, up to 2017, to implement the recommendations of the report compiled by Professor Robin Williams. More than £30m has been invested thus far in the further development of Welsh medium provision, with the majority of the funding used to appoint new Welsh medium lecturers.

Over 115 new Welsh medium lecturers have been appointed as a result of Coleg funding and an extensive range of other activities are being supported across the higher education sector, including the development and provision of new resources, enhancing the student experience, facilitating collaboration between universities, providing scholarships to students and academic staff training, and working with schools and further education colleges. These activities have already led to a situation where an additional 1,000 full-time students are now studying through the medium of Welsh.

We asked Coleg Cenedlaethol to respond to the cuts and Mr Thomas’s comments.

We received a statement which set out the institution’s viewpoint and considerable concerns about the potential damage caused by a cut in funding.

From the outset, the Coleg was seen as a long-term project to ensure that Welsh medium university education was available to students in a wide range of subjects. The lecturers are distributed across the universities. The fact that so many of these lecturers are early career academics means that there is now a generation of lecturers who will, in time, be able to develop and embed Welsh-medium provision and thereby transform the situation in the universities.

The biggest challenge at present is to maintain what has been achieved during the first five years, and to build on it, at a time of considerable pressure on public funding. In Professor Ian Diamond’s recently published Interim Report, there is a section that deals specifically with Welsh medium provision, including the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol. It is also stated that further attention will be given to Welsh medium provision during the next phase of the Review. The Coleg believes that this presents an excellent opportunity to establish permanent and sustainable arrangements for maintaining Welsh medium provision in the universities and, in particular, to recognise the additional costs associated with that provision.

In this context, the Coleg is very concerned that short-term decisions in relation to the Coleg’s budget for 2016/17 will undermine the existing arrangements, thereby jeopardising much of what has been achieved, at a time when the Diamond Review could recommend a durable solution.

Recognising the current financial climate and the savings required by publicly funded bodies, the Coleg’s Board of Directors, at their meeting in November 2015, identified savings across the Coleg’s range of activities so that a budget can be set for the academic year 2016/17. The proposed budget would enable the Coleg’s activities to remain viable while discussions take place on the funding arrangements for 2017/18 and beyond. The Coleg has also held constructive discussions with the universities about their commitments to maintain provision following the end of some fixed-term grants provided by the Coleg.

The publication of the Welsh Government’s draft budget for 2016/17, however, creates uncertainty, since there is a possibility of a further and substantial cut in the Coleg’s budget. This is a cause for concern and, for that reason, the discussions are ongoing with the Welsh Government and the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales.

The Coleg does not intend to make any further public comment until those discussions have been completed.

Rebecca Williams, Policy Officer for UCAC education union, told The Herald: “UCAC has very serious concerns about the proposed 40% cut to the Higher Education budget, and indeed about the Welsh Government’s current funding methodology.

“By channelling such a high percentage of the Higher Education budget through students in the form of tuition fee grants, the Welsh Government is ensuring that millions of pounds are flowing from the Welsh budget directly to universities over the border, mainly in England.

“At the same time, by substantially reducing the funding it provides to universities via the funding body (HEFCW), the Welsh Government is undermining its ability to influence the sector in key areas such as parttime provision, increasing access to students from deprived backgrounds, and providing Welsh-medium courses. The clear and immediate consequence of such a cut will be the axing of these crucial types of provision.

“Such a move could be devastating to the nature and quality of university provision, the Welsh economy, and the options available to students of all backgrounds. We call on the Welsh Government to revisit this illconsidered and damaging decision.”

Universities Wales, the body which represents the interests of Universities within Wales were equally concerned and have suggested that the cuts are both in breach of the Welsh Government’s current policy on widening access and constitute a reverse of previous policy commitments. In its submission to the Welsh Government on the issue, the Uni Wales says: “The distribution of the cuts between institutions is likely to be very uneven. At this stage we are unclear how the sector can absorb a reduction of this size in a single year or where the shortfall in income can be made. The impact of the fee and funding changes introduced from 2012/13, for instance, has worked through the system already and will provide no significant additional income for 2016/17. Recruitment for 2016 entry is already in full swing, and growth in fulltime undergraduates from Wales remains subject to an overall limit in the sector.”

Education

Pembrokeshire College students praised for road safety films

Published

14 hours ago

April 12, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Creative Media learners recognised after producing hard-hitting videos to warn young drivers about the dangers of peer pressure

PEMBROKESHIRE COLLEGE has praised its Creative Media learners after students produced a series of powerful short films as part of an annual road safety competition run in partnership with Pembrokeshire County Council.

The project challenged learners to create short social media videos highlighting one of the main causes of serious road traffic collisions, with this year’s theme focusing on the dangers of peer pressure. The films were designed to help raise awareness of road safety issues among young people across the county.

Aliyah was named overall winner for her video, Peer Pressure Doesn’t Need a Voice, and received a £100 prize.

Noah was recognised as a runner-up for his film, Don’t Treat the Road Like a Toy, while Lily was also commended for her entry, Don’t Give in to Peer Pressure.

The college said the competition gave learners the chance to respond to a real-world brief while producing work with an important public safety message.

Lecturer Denys Bassett-Jones praised the standard of the entries and said the issue of peer pressure was a major factor in young people’s lives, making it an important theme to highlight to new drivers and their passengers.

Sally Jones, Road Safety Officer at Pembrokeshire County Council, also praised the students’ work and said the group had produced interesting and dynamic videos while rising well to the brief.

The college said projects like this continue to give learners valuable practical experience while supporting wider efforts to reduce serious collisions on local roads.

Education

Additional Learning Needs support in Wales under strain, says Audit Wales

Published

6 days ago

April 7, 2026

Tom Sinclair

THE SYSTEM supporting children and young people with Additional Learning Needs in Wales is facing serious pressures that could threaten its long-term sustainability, according to a new report from Audit Wales.

Published on Tuesday (Apr 7), the report examines support for children and young people with Additional Learning Needs, or ALN, in the context of changes introduced under the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018.

Audit Wales said public bodies do not have a full understanding of demand, workforce capacity, skills, costs or outcomes, leaving them without the information needed for effective planning, budgeting and value-for-money assessments.

The report raises concerns about whether the current system is performing well enough to help learners achieve their full potential.

In 2024-25, 48,257 learners aged from nought to 25 were recorded as having ALN or Special Educational Needs. However, Audit Wales said that figure is incomplete and does not capture the full picture across all settings.

Available data shows the number of school learners recorded as having ALN or SEN fell by 58 per cent between 2018-19 and 2024-25, although the reasons for that drop are disputed. Over the same period, the number of school learners receiving statutory support through a statement of SEN, or now an Individual Development Plan, increased by 164 per cent.

The report says spending on supporting learners with ALN has also risen significantly, adding pressure to already stretched public budgets. While Audit Wales said it could not put an exact figure on total spending, identifiable annual costs are approaching £1 billion, with the true figure likely to be higher.

Councils’ budgeted expenditure on ALN or SEN rose by 34 per cent in real terms between 2018-19 and 2025-26.

Audit Wales said its conclusions were based on evidence showing that the system lacks good enough data to understand growing demand and complexity, while patchy workforce information makes it harder to assess staffing capacity and skills gaps. It also found that public bodies do not have a strong enough understanding of costs, raising concerns about financial sustainability.

The report adds that although the goals of the ALN system are clear, there is only limited evidence on whether it is delivering strong outcomes for learners, and that the system remains adversarial despite some signs of improvement.

Its recommendations are aimed mainly at the Welsh Government, particularly in its national leadership role, although Audit Wales said successful implementation would require action from a wide range of public bodies.

Auditor General Adrian Crompton said: “Children and young people with Additional Learning Needs include some of the most vulnerable people in society.

“There has been a significant amount of work involved in efforts to reform the system for the better over recent years. However, the system remains under strain and there is still a lot more that can be done to ensure it does as well as it can for our children and young people, both now and for future generations.”

The 2018 Act introduced a new system designed to create a more integrated, collaborative and person-centred approach to supporting learners with ALN. It extended statutory provision to learners aged nought to 25 and replaced the previous separate systems for under-16s with SEN and post-16 learners with learning difficulties or disabilities.

A major part of the reform was the introduction of Individual Development Plans, which replaced both non-statutory SEN support and statutory statements of SEN. Under the new system, every learner with ALN is entitled to an IDP.

Audit Wales stressed that the figure of 48,257 learners does not include all settings for learners aged nought to 25, including further education, meaning the overall scale of need may be higher than official data suggests.

For more information, contact Rhian Jones at Audit Wales on 02920 320 575 or by email at [email protected]
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Community

Music in the air as record numbers join school festival

Published

2 weeks ago

March 31, 2026

Tom Sinclair

A RECORD number of young musicians from across Pembrokeshire took part in this year’s Valero Primary Music Festival, with nearly 600 pupils showcasing their talents.

The event, organised by Pembrokeshire Music Service, was held at Ysgol Caer Elen on Saturday (March 14), drawing a large and enthusiastic audience.

The festival’s overall winner was Hafan y Môr pupil Carys Meiring, who impressed judges with a standout trombone performance of Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off. She had earlier secured victory in the open brass class.

Young talent shines

The afternoon Spotlight concert opened with an energetic performance from the county’s Second Steps ensembles, bringing together young players from across Pembrokeshire.

Winners from the day’s open classes also took to the stage, highlighting the depth of musical talent across local schools.

Osian Kite, of Roch CP School, won the open woodwind class with a performance of Sentimental Serenade on alto saxophone.

Cadi Marshall-Jones, from Ysgol Bro Preseli, claimed the open piano and harp title with Over the Sea to Skye, while Roch CP School cellist Mari Broomfield won the open strings category with Vamoose.

In percussion, Ysgol Caer Elen’s Aled Hooper secured first place in the open class with a drum kit performance of Are You Gonna Go My Way.

The open ensemble prize went to Tavernspite pupils Finn Hickman and Evelyn James, whose piano duet of Handel’s Passacaglia impressed both judges and audience.

Building confidence through music

Head of Pembrokeshire Music Service, Philippa Roberts said the festival continues to play a vital role in developing young performers.

She said: “Pembrokeshire Music Service is proud to deliver the Valero Music Festival, offering an exciting opportunity to nearly 600 young performers from across the county.

“Providing children with the chance to perform, shine, and receive supportive feedback from professional musicians is incredibly powerful and helps build lasting confidence.

“In line with the Music Plan for Wales, we remain committed to creating meaningful musical experiences for children throughout Pembrokeshire. Our sincere thanks go to Valero for their fantastic support.”

The festival forms part of a wider effort to promote music education across Wales, encouraging participation and nurturing the next generation of performers.

Photo caption:

Talented performers: Overall winner Carys Meiring is pictured with fellow category winners and organisers (Pic: Pembrokeshire Music Service).