A decade ago, Ynys Môn’s Language Forum was established by the Isle of Anglesey County Council and Menter Môn to promote collaboration between organizations for the benefit of the Welsh language on Ynys Môn. Since then, the Forum has gone from strength to strength by implementing annual action plans with over 25 partners now involved in the Forum.
Annwen Morgan, the current Chair of the Forum, noted: “Protecting the Welsh language, but more than that, promoting and creating opportunities for people to use Welsh naturally on Ynys Môn, is very important. I feel that being able to use the Welsh language when doing simple things like taking children swimming, booking a table in a restaurant, or paying for shopping in a store is essential to ensure that Welsh remains healthy and natural here, in an area that has always been a stronghold for the language.”
Over the past year, the Forum has focused on creating a collaborative action plan, concentrating on five priority areas:
- Welsh in the Workplace, ensuring that Forum partners share resources and best practices on how to increase the use of Welsh in their workplaces.
- Families and the Transmission of Welsh, with an emphasis on engaging with families and groups involved in early years to promote the OgiOgi app and encourage families to raise their children bilingually – https://www.ogiogi.cymru/.
- Community and Young People, focusing on reaching new audiences and offering a taste of Welsh and Welsh culture to non-confident speakers and non-Welsh speaking young people on Ynys Môn.
- Education, with an emphasis on expanding opportunities for students to use Welsh socially outside the classroom.
- Infrastructure and Legacy, ensuring the time and resources for the Forum’s maintenance. This includes increasing public understanding of the Forum’s work and the partners as individual members.
To celebrate the decade, Ynys Môn’s Language Forum will host a public breakfast at Menter Môn’s Stall at Sioe Môn at 10 am on the 14th of August. Refreshments will be available along with a panel discussion featuring the current Chair – Annwen Morgan, Annest Rowlands – OgiOgi Facilitator, Rhian Roberts-Jones – Language Charter Coordinator for Gwynedd and Môn, and Catrin Lois Jones – Language and Community Manager for Menter Môn. The panel will be chaired by Carwyn Jones – a local journalist.
The discussion will focus on the Forum’s current approach and its main duties, concentrating on some of the main themes of the action plan. Catrin Lois Jones mentioned, “Menter Môn is proud to host the Forum’s celebratory breakfast at the Show and proud of the strong partnership that has developed over the years. Anyone who wants to know more about the Forum or the work of some of the partners are more than welcome to join us that morning. The breakfast will be served on a first come first served basis, so come early for a chat over breakfast.”
The celebration is funded through one of Menter Môn’s programmes, Balchder Bro Môn, which has been funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, with financial support also from the Nuclear Recovery Services (NRS) on behalf of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA).
