Theatr Iolo’s Welsh Language Plan
Theatr Iolo has a mission to serve all the communities and audiences in Wales. The 2021 Census results show that 17.8% of the population in Wales can speak Welsh. That's 538,300 people aged three or older. The Welsh Government have their Welsh Language strategy in Cymraeg 2050, which outlines their vision to increase the amount of Welsh speakers to 1 million people by the year 2050.
The Annual Population Survey (APS) is the primary source for tracking Welsh language data between census periods. In the year ending December 2024, the APS estimated that 843,500 people in Wales, aged three and older, could speak Welsh. This represents 27.4% of that age group, this figure represents a decrease from 29.2% in 2023. The APS also provides estimates of how often people speak Welsh, with 14.0% reporting daily use.
Children and young people aged 3 to 15 years were more likely to report that they could speak Welsh (48.1%, 235,700) than any other age group. This is consistent over time, but the percentage of children and young people aged 3 to 15 years who can speak Welsh has been decreasing in general since the beginning of 2019. These statistics are important to acknowledge as we provide work and communications for this audience.
Theatr Iolo's Welsh Language policy has been drawn up to reflect the artistic, language and community needs of its audiences, employees and volunteers. Theatr Iolo’s principles match the Arts Council of Wales’s Welsh language strategy;
We are a bilingual nation – legally, socially, culturally, and as individuals and communities. Nothing makes Wales more distinctive than the Welsh Language. We’re committed to developing and promoting the arts in and through the medium of Welsh. We believe everyone has the right to explore their own culture, their own creativity, through the language of their choice, whether as consumer, participant or artist.
Theatr Iolo is committed to treating the Welsh and English languages on a basis of equality, which is enshrined in the Welsh Language Act of 1993. We also recognise the legal context for the Welsh language included in the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011, which gives official status to the Welsh Language and sets out the general principle that the Welsh language should be no less favourably treated than the English language in Wales and that persons in Wales should be able to live their lives through the medium of the Welsh language if they choose to do so.
To find out more, download our Welsh Language Policy and Action Plan in full.
Theatr Iolo received the
Cynnig Cymraeg in 2023