Latest news with #non-Welsh
Wales Online
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
The best pictures as Welsh-language festival Tafwyl attracts thousands
Wales has a lot to be proud of. Steeped in history, fiercely independent in its identity, and with its own thriving language, there is a lot to cover in Welsh culture. Welsh festival Tafwyl, which took place in Cardiff's gorgeous Bute Park on Saturday, June 14, and Sunday, June 15, certainly does a very good job bringing together a lot of Welsh culture. There is so much to enjoy at Tawfyl, from the two music stages, endless food options, children's area, and more. As soon as you enter you are hit by the delicious smell of a range of street food and nearly overwhelmed with the Instagram opportunities, as two lovely signs declaring Tafwyl welcome you in. After that, you could mingle and mooch around the trade stalls which are fronted by Welsh artists, designers, and makers, selling everything from prints to jewellery and more. The festival was home to the Tafiliwn stage and the main stage, Prif Lwyfan. Here Welsh artists from across the country took to the stage bringing everything from rap to even renditions of Dolly Parton and Abba in Welsh. Lining the sides of this are the amazing food traders including Hoggi Hoggi Hoggi, Greek options, vegan and vegetarian options, paella, and more. Tafwyl really is for everyone. Welsh speakers, non-Welsh speakers. Old, young, and everyone in between. Families, couples, friends, and every combination possible. Many enjoyed going to Tafwyl and here are some of the best pictures from Tafwyl 2025.
Wales Online
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
I went to Wales' biggest free Welsh-language festival and one thing really stood out
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info I moved to Wales four years ago, not knowing a word of Welsh. Now my Welsh is still very limited but when I first moved here, never did I imagine I would be attending Welsh language festivals. Welsh seemed a language I would never wrap my head around and certainly one I never thought I'd immerse myself in. I was also worried I wouldn't even be welcome at the festivals, being English and that being immediately identifiable as soon as I opened my mouth. How wrong I was. It turns out Welsh festivals are a bucket load of fun, get it, a reference to the famous Welsh bucket hats? And not something to be missed. Last year I attended three Welsh festivals, you can read about my first Eisteddfod here, and this year I returned to Tafwyl, ready to experience more. It is running in Cardiff's gorgeous Bute Park, the perfect setting for it, this weekend on Saturday, June 14, and Sunday, June 15. There is so much to enjoy at Tawfyl, from the two music stages, endless food options, children's area, and more. As soon as you enter you are hit by the delicious smell of a range of street food and nearly overwhelmed with the Instagram opportunities, as two lovely signs declaring Tafwyl welcome you in. After that, you can mingle and mooch around the trade stalls which are all Welsh artists, designers, and makers, selling everything from prints to jewellery and more. (Image: Steph Colderick) From there the festival opens up wider with the Tafiliwn stage to the left and the main stage, Prif Lwyfan, bang in front of you. Here Welsh artists from across Wales take to the stage bringing everything from rap to even renditions of Dolly Parton and Abba in Welsh. Lining the sides of this are the amazing food traders including Hoggi Hoggi Hoggi, Greek options, vegan and vegetarian options, paella, and more. Walk on past the main stage and past more incredible food vendors and you come into the children's section which has its own smaller stage and plenty of activities to keep the little ones occupied, such as the sports area and sensory tent. This is where Tafwyl really comes into its own, as it really is for everyone. (Image: Steph Colderick) Welsh speakers, non-Welsh speakers. Old, young, and everyone in between. Families, couples, friends, and every combination possible. It is truly joyous to walk past families spread out on picnics with little ones running around, young people grabbing drinks at the bar, elderly couples, and every walk of life in Wales, in one place, celebrating Welsh culture. You don't need to be fluent in Welsh to bob along to the music and it's impossible not to see how much joy it brings and how it brings people together. And it is totally free. It really is accessible for everyone and you can bring your own food, unopened soft drinks and reusable water bottles, so you literally don't have to spend a penny. Welsh culture should never be hidden away and really is there for everyone to enjoy and Tafwyl I feel is the perfect example of this. Free, accessible, welcoming, and incredibly good vibes - I couldn't ask for more from any festival. Diolch Tafwyl.
BBC News
16-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Gwynedd: Fears Welsh teaching plan will hit recruitment
Phasing out teaching in English in one county could worsen a "crisis" in recruiting and retaining teachers, an education union has one of two counties where Welsh is spoken by the majority of people, laid out plans to phase out English-medium streams from the vast majority of secondary schools in a new draft Gwynedd said it was part of an effort to bolster the use of Welsh in a council meeting has heard it was already difficult to attract staff to the county and, nationally, teachers were leaving the profession "in droves". The comments were made during a debate over the draft revised education language policy last council is aiming for 70% of lessons to be taught in Welsh but the branch secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), Elise Poulter, has raised concerns over training, funding and the impact on the Welsh language immersion is already the predominant medium of teaching for across Gwynedd, but schools including Bangor's Ysgol Friars, Catholic primary Our Lady's School and Ysgol Uwchradd Tywyn, are "transitioning" towards full Welsh medium provision. Ms Poulter asked the education and economy scrutiny committee meeting if there was provision for teachers who do not teach in Welsh to go on courses to "up-skill".Report author Rhys Meredydd Glyn, head of Gwynedd's immersion education system, said the council was "collaborating with" the National Centre for Learning courses were "tailored" for teachers in specific schools and there would also be tutors appointed for a catchment or school cluster, as well as courses geared towards teaching different subjects in Welsh, he said. Children coming from non-Welsh speaking areas could also be referred to the immersion education system, but he acknowledged it needed "the capacity to accept incomers and late comers". 'We will have to be patient' Mr Meredydd Glyn said there were "a wide range of courses available from the national centre" but Ms Poulter said she feared these measures would not stem the numbers of people leaving teaching."I do think we have to be realistic, in teaching we have a retention and recruitment crisis," she said."We want really really good teachers. I think any teacher who comes here would welcome the opportunity to learn Welsh fluently... But it will take time."Councillor Dewi Jones agreed that recruiting teachers was a "general problem".After the meeting, Ms Poulter told the Local Democracy Reporting Serviceday-release programme for this, with payment for staff cover" to achieve the goal.
Telegraph
08-03-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Whole Six Nations should pray the Welsh revival is for real
In this build-up, Adam Jones, the Welsh scrum coach, has made a valiant attempt of piling the burden on Townsend's side – 'all pressure is on them' – but if they are, as Jones, says 'the best Scottish team ever' then they will be too good for an outfit taking baby steps. So what if it does come to pass and the outsiders revert to humble type. For Sherratt's final match – he is adamant that he will return to his role at Cardiff full-time – England at home would appear the perfect tonic and there can be little doubt that the Principality Stadium would be hymning and humming. But a 17th defeat would equal the worst run ever by a tier one nation – Scotland 70 years ago – and those quotation marks will appear more necessary than ever. At that point the resurgence would be but a fleeting memory and the submergence would resume its inexorable effect. Unless the Welsh Rugby Union acts decisively, there would be no coach and with the domestic game still mired in the shambles of an agreement with the regions that has yet to be published, the despondency could carry the national team to yet lower depths. Japan for the summer tour, anyone? New Zealand and South Africa on back-to-back weekends in November? By then, Wales's world ranking could feasibly be below not just Georgia, but that of Japan, Samoa and the United States. The notion of Six Nations relegation would become increasingly louder. Of course that is a nonsense and those who propose it – wise judges such as Sam Warburton, who should know better – are making the mistake of judging the championship purely as a sports competition. It is so much more. In its 142-year history, it has emerged as a cultural phenomenon, as an annual jamboree that sees more violence-free travel between countries than any other international sports event. Unless you have not been to the Principality Stadium and sampled the atmosphere that Brian O'Driscoll this week has labelled 'the best' or seen the Welsh fans make the trips in their tens of thousands, then you cannot deny what they add to the occasions. The support the smallest nation in the championship takes to Scotland has long been touted as the biggest away section in the Six Nations. 'It's a good place to play and the Welsh travel up there well,' Jones said, with a smirk. 'Max Boyce wrote a song about it, so it must be true.' Naturally, Boyce is one of the Welsh clichés and while not up there with the team of the Seventies or of the No 10 production line, he is part of the allure. And that enduring mythical quality is why so many non-Welsh people welcomed the sight of the twinkle-toed underdogs frightening the life out of the unstoppable Irish champions. It was a glimpse of the Welsh rugby iconography that under the highly effective but just as pragmatic Gatland had not been witnessed for years. Believe it, the Six Nations does not need a strong Wales but it will indeed shed priceless lustre if the Dragons are pathetically weak. It should not only be the Welsh wishing The Revival is for real – but the championship as a whole.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Planners recommended against nuclear plant in 2019 citing fears for Welsh language
Planning inspectors recommended against a Hitachi-built nuclear power plant in Anglesey on the basis that it could dilute the island's Welsh language and culture, it has emerged. Hitachi scrapped plans to build a £20bn nuclear power plant at Wylfa in 2020 over cost concerns after failing to reach a funding agreement with UK ministers. Keir Starmer's government has vowed to make it easier to build major infrastructure projects by reforming the planning system and stopping campaigners from launching 'excessive' legal challenges. The prime minister unveiled plans for a historic expansion in nuclear power this week, vowing to 'push past nimbyism' and make sites across the country available for new power stations. Nuclear industry figures believe that the fate of Hitachi's proposed plant at Wylfa demonstrates the problems with the UK's planning system. Planning inspectors appointed by the UK government recommended that the project be rejected in 2019, warning of its impact on biodiversity, the local economy, housing stock and the Welsh language. The inspectors' 906-page report said the additional workers required by the project would put pressure on local housing and schools and that 'given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture'. Hitachi carried out a Welsh language impact assessment as part of its application, which found that the project would need to bring 7,500 workers from outside the area. Anglesey has 70,000 residents and one of the highest concentrations of Welsh speakers in the country. The impact assessment concluded the extra workers 'could have a major adverse effect on the balance of Welsh and non-Welsh speakers' in the area and 'could adversely affect the use and prominence of the Welsh language within communities'. But the assessment also found that by creating high-skilled jobs for young people, the project would help preserve the Welsh language on the island. It would have created more than 2,000 local construction jobs for nine years, and about 85% of the plant's workforce would be local under the plans. Nevertheless, the inspectors' report concluded that 'the matters weighing against the proposed development outweigh the matters weighing in favour of it' and that despite planned mitigations the project could 'adversely affect tourism, the local economy, health and wellbeing and Welsh language and culture'. Related: What are small modular reactors and why does UK want to build them? It also found that the developers had not put forward enough evidence to demonstrate that the arctic and sandwich tern populations around the Cemlyn Bay area, where the plant was going to be built, would not be disturbed by construction. There were fears that the birds would abandon the area as a result. The last Conservative government revived plans for a large-scale nuclear power station at Wylfa and bought the site from Hitachi for £160m. In its election manifesto, Labour pledged to 'explore the opportunities for new nuclear at Wylfa'. Dan Tomlinson, the Labour MP for Chipping Barnet and the government's growth mission champion, said: 'It's no wonder we've gone from a world pioneer in new nuclear to lagging at the back. Now we've got a government that's willing to back the builders not the blockers, we can stop the delays so the UK can be at the forefront of new nuclear with more jobs and cheaper bills.' Tom Greatrex, the chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, said: 'It is absolutely symptomatic of how planning processes for significant infrastructure projects can disappear down a cwningar – the Welsh for a rabbit warren.' Linda Rogers of the campaign group People Against Wylfa B said Hitachi withdrew 'because the government wasn't able to provide adequate funding as far as they were concerned'. She added: '[The plans] broke environmental regulations – which this present government is laughing at, at a time when we need to increase biodiversity – and affected very much the local wildlife, particularly terns. And it was bad for the Welsh language. There were a lot of issues why it was not appropriate to build at Wylfa.'
