Vacancy -- Member - Welsh Language Partnership Council (Welsh essential)

The first Partnership Council was created in April 2012 to help implement the first set of Welsh Language standards, the policy statement Bwrw Mlaen and the development of the next Welsh language strategy.

The Welsh Ministers’ current strategy for the promotion and facilitation of the use of the Welsh language Iaith fyw: iaith byw was launched in March 2012. The strategy superseded Iaith Pawb: A National Action Plan for a Bilingual Wales and the Welsh Language Policy Statement - A living language: a language for living – Moving forward to increase the number of adults who can speak Welsh, and increase its everyday use in Wales.

The Council’s Role

The Partnership Council is responsible for giving advice and making representations to Ministers in relation to the Welsh language strategy and its implementation plan, alongside assisting in the continuation of increasing the amount of Welsh speakers and reaching the ambitious target of increasing the number of Welsh speakers to 1 million by 2050.

The Welsh Ministers wish to see the new Partnership Council Members appointed in May 2017 in order to contribute to the work of implementing the new strategy as soon as possible.

As a Member of the Partnership Council you will advise the Welsh Ministers and contribute to the implementation of a new Welsh language strategy. This will include a promotional role in order to encourage the use of the Welsh language in everyday situations, and contribute towards the Welsh Government’s ambitious target of increasing the number of Welsh speakers to 1 million by 2050.

The Welsh Government acknowledges the importance of developing and growing bilingual capabilities in public appointments in Wales, and welcomes applications from candidates who demonstrate their capability to work in both English and Welsh.  The following list of language requirements represents an objective assessment by the recruiting body of the Welsh language skills required to undertake the duties of this particular post.

Having an effective Partnership Council will depend on its Members collectively having a wide range of experience of matters relating to the Welsh language, from across all areas and sectors in Wales. It is desirable that the Members should also reflect the varying extent to which the Welsh language is used by those living in Wales. This includes persons working within the public, private and third sectors. Applications are also welcome from individuals from different parts of Wales.

To be considered, you must be able to demonstrate that you have the following qualities, skills and experience:

• be able to work independently as well as part of a team;

• be an effective and persuasive communicator, capable of making relevant and appropriate contributions to meetings;

• have a clear understanding and commitment to equality and diversity.

Essential Criteria

In addition Members will need to demonstrate how they meet each of the following three criteria:

• Have experience and/or knowledge of matters relating to the Welsh language including a speciality in one or more of the following areas;

o Education
o Economy and business
o Marketing or behavioural change techniques
o Linguistic planning
o Health and care
o Language infrastructure (including technology, corpus, lexicography)

• Have experience and/or knowledge of at least two of the following:

o strategic planning and managing change;
o developing balanced, evidence based policy advice; or
o influencing others within an organisation, including influencing senior members of an organisation.

• Have experience and/or knowledge of the varying extent to which the Welsh language is used by those living in Wales.

31/03/2017, 23:55

Please note that appointments to the Council are being made based on written applications only. Interviews are not being held.

For further information regarding the selection process, please contact:

The Corporate Shared Service Centre
Tel: 029 2082 5454
Email: sharedservicehelpdesk@wales.gsi.gov.uk

For further information regarding the role of the Welsh Language Partnership Council and the role of Members please contact the:

Welsh Language Unit
Email: UnedIaithGymraegWelshLanguageUnit@wales.gsi.gov.uk

If you need any further assistance in applying for this role, please contact the Welsh Government’s Corporate Shared Service Centre Helpdesk on 029 2082 5454 or SharedServiceHelpdesk@wales.gsi.gov.uk

For further information about Public Appointments in Wales, please visit www.gov.wales/publicappointments

To apply for this role, click on the ‘Apply’ button below. The first time you apply for a post, you will need to complete a registration form for the Welsh Government’s online application system.  You will only need to register once, and you will be able to keep yourself updated on the progress of your application, and any other applications you make, via your registered account.

Once you’ve registered, you’ll be able to access the application form.  To apply you will need to submit two supporting documents. The first, a document outlining how your knowledge, skills and experiences meet the criteria for the role as outlined in the information for candidates.  This document should be no more than 2 sides of A4.  Your application may be rejected if you exceed this limit.  The second document is a full, up to date CV.  The two documents should be uploaded to the ‘Reasons for applying’ section of the online application form.

In your application, you will also be asked to provide details of any activities which have helped you to develop skills that would be useful in a public appointment role, and list the organisations for which you undertook these activities.  We also need to know about any political activity that you’ve undertaken over the last 5 years. 

It is recommended that you register for an account and access the application form as soon as possible so that you see how the application form is structured, before starting to prepare your evidence.  You don’t have to complete the application form all in one go.  You can save your responses, and log in and out as required, until you’re ready to submit – just follow the guidance in the application form.

If you need any further assistance in applying for this role, please contact the Welsh Government’s Corporate Shared Service Centre Helpdesk on 029 2082 5454 or SharedServiceHelpdesk@wales.gsi.gov.uk 

For further information about Public Appointments in Wales, please visit www.gov.wales/publicappointments