Cardiff Council Celebrates Progress in its Goal to Create a 'Truly Bilingual' City
Cardiff Council says its Welsh Language Standards Annual Report for 2024/25 reveals 'significant progress' in promoting the Welsh language across the capital.
The report highlights key achievements in workforce training, education, and public engagement, and the council said it reinforces Cardiff's ambition to become a 'truly bilingual' city.
Key achievements include: A 10% increase in Welsh-speaking staff, with 1,480 council employees now reporting Welsh language skills—representing nearly 19% of the council's workforce.
Over 1,400 staff have received Welsh language training, surpassing the council's 2027 target two years ahead of schedule.
In excess of 13.8 million words were translated by the Bilingual Cardiff team, supporting both internal services and external partners.
689 hours of simultaneous translation was provided to support 252 bilingual events and meetings.
17.7% of reception pupils and an increase to 19.7% of nursery children enrolled in Welsh-medium schools.
Over 700 students attended the Gyrfa Gymraeg careers fair, promoting Welsh language career pathways.
Welsh language social media reach grew to nearly 5,000 followers, generating over 450,000 impressions.
Council Leader Cllr Huw Thomas said:
'Cardiff remains the local authority with the third highest number of Welsh speakers in Wales and it's great to see the progress made over the past year, as we work to support Welsh Government's Cymraeg 2050 goal of one million Welsh speakers by 2050.
'This report reflects our commitment to making Cardiff a truly bilingual capital where the Welsh language thrives in everyday life – from schools and workplaces to public services and cultural events.'
Local authorities in Wales have a statutory duty to comply with Welsh Language Standards Regulations that explain how they as organisations will use the Welsh language in different situations. Cardiff is expected to comply with 171 standards, including the requirement to produce this annual compliance report.
The report also marks a historic first – a full Welsh language impact assessment was conducted, and a bespoke Welsh language policy developed, for Cardiff's Replacement Local Development Plan (LDP), setting a precedent for future planning policy across Wales.
The Cymraeg i Bawb (Welsh for All) regional partnership to promote access to Welsh-medium education in Southeast Wales, chaired by Cardiff Council, has been hailed a success and will now be expanded nationally with doubled Welsh Government funding.
Looking ahead, the council will revise its Bilingual Cardiff Strategy and Welsh in Education Strategic Plan in 2025/26 to align with the new LDP and strengthen its data-driven approach to measuring progress.
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