Ministry of Defence Allocates Large Sums on Private Schools to Bypass Welsh Teaching
The Ministry of Defence allocates around £1m annually to send children to private educational institutions in northern Wales because "public schools teach various classes in the Welsh language".
The ministry disbursed over one million pounds in day school allowance in the northern region for eighty-three students of service personnel in the current academic year, and nearly one million pounds for 79 children in the previous year under a longstanding policy.
An official representative said "service children can face frequent moves" and the stipend "seeks to minimize interruption to their schooling".
Plaid Cymru described it as a "total misuse of money" and "an insult to our language" while the Conservatives said parents should be able to choose the medium in which their kids are taught.
The figures were acquired following a inquiry under the public records law.
The website of RAF Valley on Anglesey tells its personnel, "if you live and serve in north Wales, where state schools teach some or all classes in the Welsh language, you can opt to enroll your kids to an English-medium private institution".
"As long as you are joined by your family at your duty station, you can use this benefit to pay for the expense of school charges, field study trips/residential educational courses and regular commuting."
An MoD spokesperson told, "the aim of the educational stipend in the northern region (DSA-NW) is to support service families posted to the area, where the Welsh tongue is the primary medium of local state education".
"As mobility is a part of service life, military kids can face frequent moves and the this allowance aims to minimize disruption to their learning."
"The MoD supports the contributions service personnel, and their relatives make, and from DSA-NW assists with the costs of independent day schooling given in English."
'In Areas With Bilingual or Non-English Instruction'
The benefit covers tuition fees up to a maximum of £22,755 a year, £7,585 each semester, and is accessible to people living in the regions of the county, Denbighshire, Gwynedd, the island or Flintshire and serving in one of the following establishments:
- RAF Valley, Anglesey
- Joint Services Mountain Training Centre, Anglesey
- Joint Services Mountain Training Wing, Llanrwst
- The university military training program (UOTC), Bangor detachment, Caernarfon
The eligible private schools are Treffos institution, Llansadwrn, Anglesey; Rydal Penrhos preparatory institution in Colwyn Bay; St Gerard's, the city and St David's College, Llandudno.
The relevant military policy document confirms that "disbursement of the stipend is restricted to those areas where teaching in the state sector is on a dual-language or non-English foundation".
People serving in other locations in the three branches of the military - the ground forces, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force - can apply for a continuity of education allowance which contributes towards boarding and/or school charges up to a maximum rate, with a required family share of 10% for each qualifying student.
Tory Senedd member Natasha Asghar commented "members of the UK military move around the country and the globe, and the ministry has always sought to guarantee that their kids have availability to continuity in schooling".
"While we strongly endorse Welsh-medium education across the country, it's important to recognize there are dual recognized tongues in our nation, the English tongue and the Welsh language, and local councils and school boards should provide for each."
"Families should always have the option to decide the medium in which their kids are instructed."
The Welsh party's education spokesperson Cefin Campbell MS stated "not just is this a total misuse of funding, it is a slight to our tongue".
"I cannot think of any justifiable cause to be allocating these funds annually, on blocking young people living in the country from having the chance to acquire the Welsh tongue."
"Dual-language ability enhances life and aids the growth of youth, but the UK government is clearly unaware to this."
"These funds is a clear illustration of the attitude of the Westminster parties regarding the nation and the native tongue - namely unawareness and insults."
