Concise Minutes - Children, Young People and Education Committee

Meeting Venue:

Hybrid - Committee room 4 Tŷ Hywel and video conference via Zoom
Meeting date: Wednesday, 16 July 2025

Meeting time: 09.00
This meeting can be viewed
on Senedd TV at:
http://senedd.tv/en/15163

Hybrid

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Attendance

Category	Names
Members of the Senedd:	Buffy Williams MS (Chair) Natasha Asghar MS Siân Gwenllian MS (In place of Cefin Campbell MS) Vaughan Gething MS Joel James MS Carolyn Thomas MS
Witnesses:	Dona Lewis, National Centre for Learning Welsh Rebecca Williams, Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol Dr Lowri Brown, Association of Directors of Education Dr Angella Cooze, Swansea University Deborah Davies, Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) Dave Stacey, University of Wales Trinity Saint David Dr Sarah Stewart, The Open University in Wales Christopher Williams, University of South Wales
Committee Staff:	Naomi Stocks (Clerk) Tom Lewis-White (Second Clerk) Sarah Bartlett (Deputy Clerk) Sian Hughes (Researcher) Jennifer Cottle (Legal Adviser) Michael Dauncey (Researcher)

<AI1>

1 Introductions, apologies, substitutions and declarations of interest

1.1 The Chair welcomed Members to the meeting of the Children, Young People and Education Committee.

1.2 Apologies were received from Cefin Campbell MS, Sian Gwenllian MS substituted.

</AI1>

<AI2>

2 Motion under Standing Order 17.42(ix) to resolve to exclude the public from items 3 and 8 at today's meeting and for item 1 at the meeting on 17 September

2.1 The motion was agreed.

</AI2>

<AI3>

3 Pre appointment hearing for the Chair of the Qualifications Wales Strategic Board

3.1 The Committee considered the lawfulness of the Welsh Government’s proposed extension to the term of office of the current Chair of the Qualifications Wales Strategic Board to December 2015.

3.2 Members agreed to write to the Cabinet Secretary for Education for clarification on the issue.

3.3 Following the meeting, the Committee received a letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Education setting out that she had withdrawn her offer of an extension to the Chair of the Qualifications Wales Strategic Board’s term of office. The Committee consequently agreed that it was no longer necessary to write to the Cabinet Secretary.

</AI3>

<AI4>

4 Teacher recruitment and retention - evidence session 7

4.1 The Committee heard evidence from teacher training providers.

4.2 The Open University agreed to provide further information regarding withdrawal rates from the Open University in Wales’ PGCE programme.

</AI4>

<AI5>

5 Teacher recruitment and retention - evidence session 8

5.1 The Committee heard evidence from Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and the National Centre for Learning Welsh.

</AI5>

<AI6>

6 Teacher recruitment and retention - evidence session 9

6.1 The Committee heard evidence from the WLGA and ADEW.

</AI6>

<AI7>

7 Papers to note

7.1 The papers were noted.

7.2 The Committee agreed to write to the Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing to raise the issues regarding perinatal mental health raised in papers to note 3 and 4.

</AI7>

<AI8>

</AI16>

<AI17>

8 Teacher recruitment and retention - consideration of the evidence

8.1 The Committee considered the evidence it had heard in the previous evidence sessions.

</AI17>

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