A father from Wrexham has refused to send his children for swimming lessons for three years until they can have lessons in Welsh. According to Welsh-language pressure group Cymdeithas yr Iaith, several investigations into the matter have been conducted by the Welsh Language Commissioner.
Aled Powell has been asking Wrexham Council for swimming lessons in Welsh for his children since 2019. His two daughters, the eldest of who is now seven, have been asking him every week when they can start learning. But Aled says he is still waiting without any clarity on when swimming lessons will be available in Welsh for children in the area.
Mr Powell, from Pencae, Wrexham, said that while he is fighting to get swimming lessons in Welsh for his children, he is aware that they are missing out. He said: "I’ve been discussing with Wrexham Council for over three years, I’ve made complaints to the Council and the Welsh Language Commissioner, and nothing fundamental has changed. What am I supposed to do?
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"The Council has a duty to give provision in Welsh, but they clearly don’t care about their Welsh speakers. The choice I've been given, basically, is swimming lessons in English or no swimming lessons at all.
His two girls, Awen and Elan, have written their own letter to the council pleading for progress. Dated November 8, the letter was written in Welsh and translates as: “When do we get to go and learn to swim in Welsh? From Awen and Elan.”
He added: "The Welsh Language Commissioner is currently on their third investigation into the matter, but in the meantime my children are growing up. I don't want lessons for my children years from now when they’re in secondary school. Awen was four when I started requesting lessons and she’s now seven. She and her little sister are asking every week when they can learn to swim."
On behalf of the Wrexham branch of Cymdeithas yr Iaith, Nia Marshall Lloyd said: "It’s incredible that a local authority is behaving in such an indifferent way when the area’s parents are asking for something as basic as swimming lessons in Welsh for their children. This should be a straightforward matter – clearly the main obstacle is Wrexham Council's attitude towards the Welsh language. We are calling on Council leader Mark Pritchard to accept responsibility for this and intervene at once to ensure that swimming lessons in Welsh are available to children in Wrexham in the new year."
In response, a spokesperson for Wrexham County Borough Council said that they were aware of the issue and are working with the Welsh Language Commissioner and Freedom Leisure to resolve it. The council also said that they have continuously advertised online that they are looking for Welsh-speaking swimming teachers.
Alongside the advertisement, Richard Milne, Freedom Leisure Area Manager for Wrexham, said: "We’re working in partnership with Wrexham County Borough Council in our commitment to deliver Welsh speaking swimming lessons across the borough. We have a fantastic opportunity for the right person who is a Welsh speaker to join our friendly team and help deliver this important life skill to children and adults."
Stephen Jones, Welsh Language Officer, added: "As a Welsh local authority, we’re committed to providing more services in Welsh to our residents. Our partners at Freedom Leisure fully understand this and we’re working together to attract more Welsh speakers to team, but also encouraging non-Welsh speaking staff to learn Welsh for use in the workplace."
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