Call for action after fall in number of children speaking Welsh

A call has been made for government action in establishing Welsh-language schools after a fall in the number of children who can speak the language.

The annual population survey showed that 275,000 children between 3 and 15 could speak Welsh on 31 March 2019, accounting for 59%.

But the figure fell to 48% - 234,300 speakers - by 30 June 2026, a reduction of 40,700, according to the latest data published this week.

The Welsh government said it was committed to one million Welsh speakers by 2050 and would fully implement the Welsh Language and Education Act to help every child "become a confident and independent Welsh speaker."

The survey shared that children aged 3 to 15 were more likely to report that they could speak Welsh than any other age group.

Heini Gruffudd, chairman of Dyfodol i'r Iaith, said it was "very likely that the Covid years have affected the learning of Welsh in schools".

He said the decline was "disappointing" but suggested that caution was needed when discussing the percentages of those under 15 who speak Welsh.

He said: "Knowing that up to 23% of primary pupils are in Welsh education and less than that in Welsh secondary schools, it is surprising that those who are said to speak Welsh are twice that many.

"We need to know what the parents' idea of ​​'speaking Welsh' is, and it is quite possible that this falls short of our own idea of ​​'speaking Welsh'.

"Having said that, we are very aware that Welsh language schools have not grown as expected over the last 10 years.

"The government needs to look for new ways of establishing Welsh-language schools, especially in urban areas.

"This will offer growth in the actual number of Welsh speakers under the age of 15."

In the year ending 30 June 2026, the Annual Population Survey (APS) estimated that 27.4% of people aged 3 or over were able to speak Welsh, which equates to around 845,200 people.

The latest estimate is 0.2 percentage points higher than a year earlier when it was estimated that 27.2% of people aged 3 or older could speak Welsh.

This increase is not considered statistically significant, as there has been a change in the way the survey was carried out between the two periods, although the figures are "designated as official statistics".

The Office for National Statistics said 17,486 people were sampled for the questions on the Welsh language.

The highest numbers of Welsh speakers include Cardiff with 93,900, Gwynedd with 93,300 and Carmarthenshire with 85,500.

The lowest numbers are in Merthyr Tydfil, with 7,400 speakers, and Blaenau Gwent with 8,500.

The survey shows Gwynedd has the highest percentages of Welsh speakers at 75.9%, followed by Anglesey at 64.6%.

The lowest percentages are in Merthyr Tydfil, Blaenau Gwent, both with 12.3%, and Bridgend at 12.7%.

Out of those surveyed, 31.5% (972,300) said they could understand spoken Welsh, while 25% (771,400) could read in Welsh and 22.5% (693,800) could write in Welsh.

The number of Welsh speakers has generally decreased over the last two years, according to the survey.

But the numbers have generally increased since March 2010 (25.2%, 731,000), after a gradual decline between 2001 and 2007.

The Welsh government said it was determined to reach one million Welsh speakers by 2050 and "increase the use of the Welsh language in all aspects of everyday life".

It also promised to implement the Welsh Language and Education Act "to its full potential" so children have the "opportunity to become a confident and independent Welsh speaker".