FOUNDATION phase teaching in five Ceredigion primary schools is set to move to the Welsh language under new Ceredigion County Council plans.

The council said that a "full consultation process will begin shortly to consider changing the medium of language in the Foundation Phase in five primary schools in Ceredigion".During a Cabinet meeting held on Tuesday, 2 May, councillors agreed to begin the consultation process to change the medium of language to Welsh in the Foundation Phase in Comins Coch, Llwyn yr Eos, Padarn Sant, Plascrug and New Quay schools.

The move is part of the Council's Cabinet decision to approve the next stages of the Action Plan for Welsh in Education Strategic Plan 2022-2023.

The Welsh in Education Strategic Plan 2022-32 includes seven outcomes to strengthen the Welsh language.

One of those is to create more opportunities for children of all ages to receive a predominantly Welsh medium education.

Councillor Wyn Thomas, Cabinet Member for Schools, Lifelong Learning and Skills, said: “By presenting and implementing the Welsh in Education Strategic Plan, we want to give children the best start in life and enable people of all ages to learn, which is one of the Council's corporate objectives over the next five years.

"The proposal also wants to support Ceredigion County Council's desire to strengthen the position of the Welsh language through its Language Strategy, and to support the Welsh Government's aim to create a million Welsh speakers by 2050.

"Therefore, the aim is to educate pupils to be fully bilingual by the time they leave primary school, and enable them to participate fully in the bilingual community which they are a part of.”

The consultation documents on changing the language medium of the five schools are expected to be published in the autumn term this year.

Further consultations are outlined in the proposals, which could see nursery, reception and Year 1 classes in schools in Ceredigion moved to the Welsh language over the next three years.