Issue - meetings

As detailed in the recommendation.

The Cabinet Member for Corporate Management presented the Council’s Welsh Language Scheme Annual Monitoring Report 2011-12 for endorsement prior to formal submission of the report to the Welsh Language Commissioner (WLC). 

He advised that in May 2012 the Welsh Language Commissioner published a consultation on ‘Standards and the Welsh Language’ to provide an opportunity for anyone to state their opinion on the standards in relation to service delivery, policy making, operational activities, promotion and record keeping.   A report providing a summary of all responses received to the consultation would be published in the Autumn and the recommendations presented to Cabinet upon publication with an overview of potential resource implications and associated actions to mitigate risk.  The Welsh Language Scheme targets and timetable was set out in the appendix to the report.

The Chief Executive provided further background information and context and advised that although the Council was successfully implementing many of the Scheme’s commitments some of the targets had not been met.  There was, however, a genuine commitment to monitor and review the implementation of its Welsh Language Scheme. 

The Leader of the Council referred to the development of staff skills and expressed the view that encouragement was better than coercion in engaging employees to improve their Welsh language skills.  The Cabinet Member for Education said that it was important that Members were also made aware of the opportunities available to them to develop their Welsh language/bilingual provision. 

RESOLVED:

That the Council’s Welsh Language Scheme Annual Monitoring Report 2011-12 be endorsed prior to formal submission to the Welsh Language Commissioner.