Ministry of Defence Spends Large Sums on Independent Schools to Avoid Welsh Language Teaching

The Ministry of Defence spends approximately one million pounds each year to send students to independent educational institutions in northern Wales because "public schools provide various lessons in the Welsh language".

It paid over one million pounds in day school allowance in north Wales for 83 children of service personnel in the current academic year, and £942,000 for seventy-nine students in 2023-2024 under a longstanding policy.

An official representative said "military families' children can experience regular relocations" and the allowance "aims to reduce disruption to their schooling".

Plaid Cymru described it as a "complete waste of money" and "an insult to our tongue" while the Conservatives said families should be able to choose the language in which their children are educated.

These numbers were acquired following a request under the Freedom of Information Act.

The website of RAF Valley on the island informs its workforce, "for those residing and working in northern Wales, where state schools teach various lessons in the Welsh language, you may choose to enroll your children to an English-medium independent school".

"As long as you are accompanied by your family at your posting, you can utilize this benefit to pay for the expense of tuition fees, field study trips/residential educational courses and regular commuting."

An MoD spokesperson explained, "the purpose of Day School Allowance in the northern region (DSA-NW) is to support military households posted to the region, where the Welsh tongue is the main language of public schooling".

"Since relocation is a aspect of service life, service children can encounter regular transfers and from this allowance seeks to minimize interference to their learning."

"The ministry acknowledges the contributions service personnel, and their families make, and through the stipend assists with the costs of independent day schooling given in the English language."

'In Areas With Bilingual or Non-English Instruction'

The benefit includes tuition fees up to a limit of twenty-two thousand seven hundred fifty-five pounds annually, £7,585 per term, and is available to personnel living in the counties of Conwy, the area, Gwynedd, the island or the district and working in one of the following establishments:

• The military base, Anglesey
• Joint Services Mountain Training Centre, Anglesey
• The joint military mountain unit, Llanrwst
• The university military training program (UOTC), Bangor unit, Caernarfon

The qualifying private schools are Treffos institution, Llansadwrn, Anglesey; Rydal Penrhos Prep school in the town; St Gerard's school, the city and St David's institution, the town.

The applicable military policy document states that "payment of the stipend is restricted to those areas where teaching in the public system is on a dual-language or non-English foundation".

Personnel serving elsewhere in the multiple services of the military - the Army, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force - can apply for a educational continuity benefit which helps with residential and/or school charges up to a maximum rate, with a required family share of ten percent for each eligible child.

Tory assembly representative the politician said "members of the British armed forces move around the nation and the world, and the MoD has always tried to ensure that their children have access to continuity in schooling".

"While we fully support Welsh-language teaching throughout Wales, it's crucial to remember there are two official languages in our nation, the English tongue and Welsh, and local councils and school boards should provide for each."

"Parents should always have the choice to select the medium in which their children are taught."

The Welsh party's education spokesperson Cefin Campbell MS said "not just is this a complete waste of money, it is an insult to our language".

"I cannot think of any valid reason to be spending such money every year, on preventing youth residing in the country from having the chance to learn the Welsh tongue."

"Dual-language ability enriches experience and aids the growth of youth, but the UK government is clearly unaware to this."

"These funds is a perfect example of the attitude of the UK political groups towards the nation and the Welsh language - namely unawareness and insults."