New Welsh campaign aims to improve communication skills in young children

The Welsh government has announced the launch of a new campaign that aims to encourage parents to take a more active role in helping their young children develop essential language and communication skills.

Entitled "Take Time to Talk, Listen and Play", the campaign will provide practical tips to parents and carers to help children aged three to seven improve their language skills and prepare for school, as better support at this formative age can lead to improved literacy, better communication skills and a greater chance of success in later life.

This effort will be backed by two weeks of advertising on TV, radio and online channels, while bilingual learning materials for use in the classroom and at home have also been produced to support this oracy campaign.

It comes as part of a broader commitment to improving oracy standards among Welsh schoolchildren and those beginning school, with £700,000 of extra funding and support having already been committed to schools in 2018-19 through regional consortia to help improve the language skills of learners.

This is in addition to the £700,000 already in place from 2017-18, and will aid the Welsh government's objectives of ensuring that as many children as possible have a strong aptitude for communication in both English and Welsh.

Education secretary Kirsty Williams said: "We are prioritising children's speech, language and communication skills because they are the building blocks for success, not only in school but later on in life as well.
"Oracy is essential for developing life skills and we are keen to support parents, carers and guardians as they pass these valuable skills on to their children."