Pwyllgor Diwylliant, y Gymraeg a Chyfathrebu - Y Bumed Senedd
Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee - Fifth Senedd
24/09/2020Aelodau'r Pwyllgor a oedd yn bresennol
Committee Members in Attendance
| Carwyn Jones | |
| David Melding | |
| Helen Mary Jones | |
| John Griffiths | |
Y rhai eraill a oedd yn bresennol
Others in Attendance
| Betsan Moses | Prif Weithredwr, Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Cymru |
| Chief Executive, National Eisteddfod of Wales | |
| Bethan Ruth | Cadeirydd, Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg |
| Chair, Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg | |
| Caryl Haf | Is-gadeirydd, Clybiau Ffermwyr Ifanc Cymru |
| Vice-chair, Wales Young Farmers Clubs | |
| Efa Gruffudd Jones | Prif Weithredwr, Y Ganolfan Dysgu Cymraeg Genedlaethol |
| Chief Executive, National Centre for Learning Welsh | |
| Helgard Krause | Prif Weithredwr, Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru |
| Chief Executive, Welsh Books Council | |
| Lowri Jones | Cadeirydd, Mentrau Iaith Cymru |
| Chair, Mentrau Iaith Cymru | |
| Siân Lewis | Prif Weithredwr, Urdd Gobaith Cymru |
| Chief Executive, Urdd Gobaith Cymru | |
| Tegwen Morris | Cyfarwyddwr Cenedlaethol, Merched y Wawr |
| National Director, Merched y Wawr |
Swyddogion y Senedd a oedd yn bresennol
Senedd Officials in Attendance
| Angharad Roche | Dirprwy Glerc |
| Deputy Clerk | |
| Martha Da Gama Howells | Ail Glerc |
| Second Clerk | |
| Osian Bowyer | Ymchwilydd |
| Researcher |
Cynnwys
Contents
Cofnodir y trafodion yn yr iaith y llefarwyd hwy ynddi yn y pwyllgor. Yn ogystal, cynhwysir trawsgrifiad o’r cyfieithu ar y pryd. Lle mae cyfranwyr wedi darparu cywiriadau i’w tystiolaeth, nodir y rheini yn y trawsgrifiad.
The proceedings are reported in the language in which they were spoken in the committee. In addition, a transcription of the simultaneous interpretation is included. Where contributors have supplied corrections to their evidence, these are noted in the transcript.
Cyfarfu'r pwyllgor drwy gynhadledd fideo.
Dechreuodd y cyfarfod am 09:29.
The committee met by video-conference.
The meeting began at 09:29.
Bore da, bawb, a chroeso cynnes i'm cyd-Aelodau i gyfarfod Pwyllgor Diwylliant, y Gymraeg a Chyfathrebu ein Senedd. Yn unol â Rheol Sefydlog 34.19, dwi wedi penderfynu gwahardd y cyhoedd o'r cyfarfod yma er mwyn amddiffyn iechyd y cyhoedd. Mae'r cyfarfod yn cael ei ddarlledu yn y ffordd arferol ac, ar wahân i'r pethau mae'n rhaid i ni eu gwneud gan ein bod ni'n cyfarfod yn rhithiol, mae pob Rheol Sefydlog arall yn ei lle. Os, am unrhyw reswm, dwi'n colli cysylltiad, mae David Melding yn garedig iawn wedi cytuno i gymryd y gadair drosodd tra mod i'n trio ailymuno â'r cyfarfod. Dŷn ni wedi derbyn ymddiheuriadau oddi wrth Mick Antoniw, ac fe wnaf i wedyn ofyn a oes yna unrhyw ddatganiadau o fudd gan fy nghyd-Aelodau. Nac oes.
Good morning, everyone, and a warm welcome to fellow Members to this meeting of the Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee at the Senedd. In accordance with Standing Order 34.19, I have determined that the public are excluded from attending this committee meeting in order to protect public health. The meeting is being broadcast in the usual way and, apart from the procedural adaptations relating to conducting proceedings remotely, all other Standing Order requirements for committees remain in place. If, for any reason, I drop out of the meeting, David Melding has kindly agreed to temporarily chair whilst I seek to rejoin the meeting. We've received apologies from Mick Antoniw, and I will ask whether Members have any declarations of interest. No declarations of interest.
Felly, dŷn ni'n symud at eitem 2 ar yr agenda, sef sesiwn dystiolaeth ar fel mae COVID-19 wedi effeithio ar yr iaith Gymraeg. Dŷn ni'n falch iawn i groesawu ein tystion ni atom ni, ac fe wnaf i eich cyflwyno chi fesul un a jest gofyn i chi gyflwyno eich hunain o ran eich rôl. So, fe wnaf i ddechrau gyda Siân Lewis.
So, that takes us to item 2 on our agenda, which is an evidence session on the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the Welsh language. I'm very pleased to welcome our witnesses. I will introduce you individually and I will ask you to introduce yourselves in terms of your roles. So, I will start with Siân Lewis.
Helo, bore da, Siân Lewis, prif weithredwr Urdd Gobaith Cymru.
Hello, good morning, Siân Lewis, chief executive, Urdd Gobaith Cymru.
Croeso atom ni, Siân. Betsan Moses.
A warm welcome, Siân. Betsan Moses.
Betsan Moses, prif weithredwr Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Cymru.
Betsan Moses, chief executive, Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Cymru.
Croeso atom ni. Helgard Krause.
A warm welcome to you. Helgard Krause.
Prif weithredwr Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru.
Chief executive, Books Council of Wales.
Croeso. A Lowri Jones.
A warm welcome. And Lowri Jones.
Bore da—cadeirydd Mentrau Iaith Cymru.
Good morning. I chair Mentrau Iaith Cymru.
Croeso i'r pedair ohonoch chi. Diolch yn fawr iawn am ymuno â ni. Mae yna oedi o damaid bach pan fydd y cyfieithu yn cael ei ddefnyddio. Os ydych chi'n dod mewn ar ôl rhywun sydd wedi bod yn siarad Cymraeg, a wnewch chi jest aros am gwpwl o eiliadau fel nad ŷm ni'n siarad ar draws y cyfieithiad. Wedyn, fe wnaf i symud yn syth at gwestiynau, gan ddechrau gyda David Melding.
A very warm welcome to all four of you. Thank you very much for joining us. There is a slight delay in the volume coming back up when interpretation is being used. So, if you come back in after someone has contributed in Welsh, just give it a few seconds so that we don't interrupt the interpretation. I'll move immediately to questions, starting with David Melding.
Diolch yn fawr, Cadeirydd, and bore da, everyone. I want to look at mostly economic issues, but, before I do that, I wonder if I could ask the witnesses for the impact over the last six months on language use and promotion, as your various events at national, regional and local levels have obviously been massively curtailed, and perhaps we could look particularly at children and young people and then the wider community also.
Shall we perhaps start with you, Siân—
—o ran yr effaith ar bobl ifanc?
—in terms of the impact on young people?
Can we unmute, Siân, please? Sorry, we've still got Siân on mute. Can you try unmuting yourself, Siân, and see if that works?
Dyna ni.
There we are.
Ymddiheuriadau am hwnna. Yn amlwg, o ran sefyllfa'r Urdd, dŷn ni mewn sefyllfa gwbl heriol ar hyn o bryd, ac mae'n mynd i, yn naturiol, gael effaith ar y defnydd o'r Gymraeg i blant a phobl ifanc Cymru. Ein sefyllfa ni, fel dŷch chi'n gwybod, yw ein bod ni wedi colli £14 miliwn o incwm, ac yn rhagweld hynny dros y ddwy flynedd nesaf, a mynd i fod mewn dyled o £3.5 miliwn. Mae hwn, yn naturiol, wedi cael effaith enfawr ar ein gweithlu ni, sydd wedi'n harwain ni i golli hanner ein gweithlu o 320 o staff. Sefyllfa hwnna i blant a phobl ifanc Cymru, yn naturiol, yw, wrth leihau ein gweithlu ni, bydd rhaid i ni leihau'r gwasanaethau dŷn ni'n gallu eu cynnig.
Yn sgil trafodaethau presennol COVID yr wythnos yma, dŷn ni'n rhagweld y bydd ein colledion incwm ni dan fygythiad i gynyddu i ryw £18 miliwn o golled dros y blynyddoedd nesaf, a gan y bydd pobl ifanc yn methu â mynychu ein gwersylloedd ni, mae yna ofid gyda ni y bydd hwnna'n mynd i allu parhau mor bell â mis Medi nesaf.
Dŷn ni'n rhagweld, efo heriau COVID, o bosib—mae yna drafodaethau yn digwydd ar hyn o bryd—na fyddwn ni mewn sefyllfa i gynnal eisteddfod mewn cae, a fydd holl gystadlaethau cenedlaethol chwaraeon yr Urdd ddim yn cael eu cynnal. Felly, mae'r trafodaethau'n dal i fynd ymlaen, ond ôl-effaith hyn—o golli'r gweithlu a pheidio â gallu rhedeg ein gwasanaethau ni—yn amlwg yw bod hyn yn cael effaith ar ddefnydd plant o'r Gymraeg yn eu cymunedau nhw a thu allan i oriau’r ysgol.
Dŷn ni wedi, yn y tymor byr, gallu ymateb i'r heriau rywsut. Dŷn ni wedi agor ein gwersylloedd ni allan i gynnig cyfleoedd i blant bregus ein cymdeithas ni. Dŷn ni wedi gallu cynnal Eisteddfod T, sef eisteddfod rithiol, am y tro, ac rŷn ni wedi gallu parhau efo'n gwasanaethau prentisiaeth ni. Y tu hwnt i hwnna, dŷn ni wedi ailgychwyn rhai o'r gweithgareddau chwaraeon mewn rhai rhanbarthau, ac, yn araf deg, yn dilyn gofynion COVID, rŷn ni'n dod i ddarparu mwy o gyfleoedd.
Ond, yn yr hirdymor, mae'n mynd i gael effaith ar y Gymraeg, ac, wrth drafod efo nifer o athrawon ar draws y wlad dros yr wythnosau diwethaf, beth maen nhw'n gweld ydy bod yna ddirywiad yn nefnydd Cymraeg cymdeithasol a defnydd o'r Gymraeg gan nifer o blant sydd wedi dychwelyd i'r ysgol. Mae'r ffaith nad ŷn nhw'n cael access i unrhyw weithgareddau yn y tymor byr, neu'r tymor sydd wedi bod, hefyd wedi bod yn niweidiol iawn i'r iaith Gymraeg i bobl ifanc.
Apologies for that. Clearly, we're in a very challenging situation at the Urdd at the moment. Naturally, that's having an impact on the usage of the Welsh language among children and young people in Wales. As regards our position, as you know, we have lost £14 million in income, and we're anticipating that over the next two years, and we're going to be in debt of £3.5 million. That, naturally, has had a huge impact on our workforce, which has led to the loss of half of our workforce of 320 staff. The upshot of that for children and young people in Wales is that, as we reduce our workforce, we'll have to reduce the services that we're able to provide.
In light of ongoing discussions on COVID this week, we see that our losses may increase to £18 million over the next few years, and as young people won't be able to attend our residential centres, there is a concern that that could continue as far into the future as next September.
We anticipate, with the COVID challenges—there are discussions ongoing at the moment—that we may not be in a position to hold a traditional eisteddfod, and all of the Urdd's national sports competitions will have to be suspended too. So, the discussions are still ongoing, but the effect of this—of losing workforce and not being able to run our services—clearly, is that there is an impact on children's use of the Welsh language in their communities and outside of school hours.
In the short term, we have somehow been able to respond to the challenges. We have opened our centres to provide opportunities to vulnerable children in our community. We were able to hold Eisteddfod T, which was a virtual eisteddfod, and we've been able to continue with our apprenticeship programmes. Beyond that, we've recommenced some sporting activities in some regions, and, while following COVID requirements, we are slowly providing more opportunities.
But in the longer term, it will have an impact on the Welsh language, and, in discussing this with many teachers across the country over the past few weeks, what they see is that there is a decline in the social use of the Welsh language and in relation to many children who've returned to school. The fact that they don't have access to any activities in the short term, or in the months just passed, will also be very damaging to the Welsh language among young people.
Ydy'r tystion eraill eisiau ychwanegu rhywbeth o ran yr effaith ar blant a phobl ifanc yn benodol? Betsan.
Do other witnesses have anything to add in terms of the impact on children and young people specifically? Betsan.
Wel, yn yr un modd, mi oedd Maes B, sy'n binacl i nifer ar gyfer y to iau—. Bu'n rhaid inni newid y modd ro'n ni'n gweithredu, ac felly, un o'r pethau mawr oedd, dros nos, bu'n rhaid inni ailedrych ar fel oedd creu'r bwrlwm ar gyfer yr Eisteddfod. Mi wnaethon ni fynd yn rhithwir, felly mi grëwyd AmGen, a bwriad AmGen oedd (1) ar gyfer llesiant; roeddem ni'n ymwybodol iawn fod pobl yn teimlo'n ynysig. Dros nos, mi oedd cymdeithasu a phob dim wedi mynd. Ac yn arbennig o ran y gwaith rŷm ni'n ei wneud yn gymunedol yn arwain at yr Eisteddfod, mae yna dros 300 o ddigwyddiadau'n digwydd ar lawr gwlad yn arwain at yr Eisteddfod, felly, roedd e'n bwysig ein bod ni'n rhoi cyfleoedd i bobl ddod at ei gilydd, boed hynny'n defnyddio technoleg ddigidol ond bod yna gyfle. Felly, mi oedd yna gyrsiau wythnosol ac mi oedd yna ddigwyddiadau, a hefyd mi wnaethon ni, gyda Maes B, yn raddol, Maes B o Bell—mi grëwyd Maes B o Bell. Felly, mi oedd yna gyfle i glywed pobl yn perfformio o'u hystafelloedd gwely, ac yna mi drodd e, erbyn y diwedd, yn berfformiadau wedi cael eu golygu a phob dim ar gyfer yr wythnos ei hun. Ond hefyd, mi oedd yn gyfle i gyfranogi—mi oedd yna gwisiau a phob dim yn digwydd er mwyn bod yna ymdeimlad o berchnogaeth a dod at ei gilydd, a dwi'n credu mai dyna beth oedd yn bwysig yn y cyfnod yma, sef ein bod ni'n gallu defnyddio'r dechnoleg ar gyfer ceisio dod â phobl at ei gilydd a hefyd i ddefnyddio'r Gymraeg a chyflwyno'r diwylliant a'r diwydiant cerddorol. Mi oedd hwnna'n hollbwysig fel rhan o'n gwaith ni gyda Maes B.
Well, likewise, with Maes B, which is a pinnacle for many in the younger generation, we had to change our operations there, and one of the major things that we had to do overnight was to look at how to generate all of that activity, and we did go virtual. So, we created AmGen, and the intention of AmGen was first of all related to well-being; we felt very aware that people felt isolated. Overnight, socialising had disappeared. And particularly in terms of our community work in the lead-up to an Eisteddfod, there are over 300 activities happening on the ground in the lead-up to the Eisteddfod, so it was important that we gave people an opportunity to come together, albeit using digital technology but there was that opportunity. So, there were courses available on a weekly basis and there were events, but also, with Maes B, we virtually created Maes B o Bell. So, there was an opportunity to hear people perform from their bedrooms and, ultimately, it became performances that had been professionally edited for the week itself. But it was also an opportunity to participate—there were quizzes and all sorts of other events happening so that there was that feeling of ownership and community. I think that is what was important—that we were able to use technology in order to bring people together so that they could use the Welsh language and also to present Welsh culture and the Welsh music industry to people. That was crucial with our work on Maes B.
Diolch. David.
Okay. I think it's important to underline the effect it's having socially on the Welsh language, particularly amongst young people when they develop these habits we hope will be lifelong. I think some of the detail, like moving to digital and the other details that were mentioned, will be looked at by colleagues. So, I do want ask a broad question, then, on the economic situation, and I think it's fair to say that this week has been a very grim week for Wales and for Britain in terms of where we are with the pandemic and what happens when more social activity is permitted, and the economic consequences. Obviously, the Chancellor has cancelled the budget and there will be an emergency announcement of future measures this afternoon.
So, you've had six months where you've had to make all sorts of adjustments economically—postponing events and some of your most reliable income generation activities. How do you think you might cope in the next six months? Also, going further afield than your own organisations, although that's important, there's the impact that this will have on businesses—you're dealing with suppliers and artists—and perhaps you could give us a flavour of what you anticipate there.
Perhaps we could start with you on that, Helgard.
Yes. The last six months have been very challenging. From a purely economic point of view, if we're looking at the distribution centre, which is our commercial arm, the breakdown in sales has been substantial. And, of course, when we are losing sales, our bookshops are losing sales and our publishers are losing sales, because we're only an intermediary. So, just to give you a figure for April, we were 80 per cent down on last year. Now, the trend has been improving as we've all been finding our feet as publishers. Booksellers have been finding different ways of reaching their audiences, and it has improved. So far, September is shaping up very nicely, because, of course, there has been a whole flow of books that haven't been published during the last six months and so we're making up. But that does not mean that we are somehow able to make up for the loss of the last six months.
Now, in terms of the bookshops, they had to close very suddenly in March. There was a grant given to them to help them with cashflow. That was very much appreciated; they thought that was very good. There has also been emergency funding made available, through us, for publishers, and the first round has been awarded. And, again, that has been welcomed. But I think the nature of our particular industry is that there will be very much a delayed effect. You very rarely sell your entire print run of a book in the first two months; you need a good trading period to really earn back your investment. And my greatest fear is, actually, that we'll see the real dramatic impact on my industry next year, when publishers have been working hard in publishing, but, actually, the delayed effect is that, in a year's time, they can't make it work any longer.
Now, in terms of our grant support, that hasn't changed. So, publishers get the same grant aid that they've always had, in addition to the emergency fund. But, of course, the nature of our funding is that it's predicated on commercial activity. So, there's not a single book that is entirely funded from the beginning to end. So, the commercial, or lack of commercial activity, is profound. On the other hand, I thought it was very heartening that the one thing we sold most of in May was Welsh language courses; they flew out of the distribution centre, as an indication that people were maybe using the time, in furlough, to undertake training. I always like to look at some of the positive things. To come back to your previous point, about young people, what certainly is a huge gap not just commercially, but in terms of materials, is e-books in the Welsh language for children. We're addressing that; we are going to be launching a bilingual platform, a consumer-based platform, where people can buy e-books sometime in October. But there is still not enough choice, and what we have found, where people don't have the choice, they turn to English. That's just the nature of the beast, and that's what we're trying to tackle. Now, we're working very closely with our publishers to address that, but, again, creative output is not something that suddenly happens overnight.
Now, perversely, I do think, possibly, this period might be one of the most creatively productive for our writers, because we all know that difficult times create fantastic stories. But that does not negate the fact that those stories and those authors need their public, and when our industry is at its most powerful, in my opinion, is at life events. When children meet authors in schools, that's when, really, the transformative effect of literature is really felt. We all know the power of a good reading at a literature festival as well, so we are dependent on those activities as well.
Diolch. Lowri.
Ie, diolch yn fawr. Felly, o safbwynt y mentrau iaith dros y cyfnod yma, fel gweddill y trydydd sector, mae wedi bod yn gyfnod heriol iawn. Mae'r mentrau'n cyflogi, fel arfer, dros 300 o staff ar draws eu gwasanaethau o safbwynt cynnig cyfleodd i ddefnyddio'r Gymraeg yn y gymuned, a nifer uchel o rheini'n gweithio o fewn gwasanaethau megis gofal plant, busnesau fel siopau a chaffis, a gwasanaethau cyfieithu hefyd. Felly, buon ni'n ddiolchgar iawn i dderbyn y cyllid buon ni'n ei ddisgwyl gan Lywodraeth Cymru ar ddechrau'r cyfnod clo, oedd yn ein galluogi ni i sefydlogi o ran ein staff craidd, a beth oedd hwnna'n golygu oedd ein bod ni'n gallu parhau i ddarparu cyfleoedd yn ddigidol, addasu'n gyflym iawn i'r angen i wneud hynny fel nad oedd toriad yn y gwasanaeth yna.
Ond ble rŷn ni wedi gweld yr effaith yw ar y gwasanaethau ehangach yna lle buon ni'n gorfod cau am gyfnod eithaf hir. Mae'r gwasanaethau yna yn ailagor ar hyn o bryd, ond yn raddol iawn, a'n pryder ni, yn amlwg, yw bod gyda ni weithlu mawr cyfrwng Cymraeg—gofalwyr plant, cyfieithwyr ac yn y blaen—a'r pryder yw y byddwn ni ddim yn gallu dychwelyd pob un o'r rheini dros y cyfnod sy'n dod. Felly, dyna ble mae'r her i ni, lle rŷn ni yn llwyddo i ddenu rhyw £3.5 miliwn i mewn i gynnal y gwasanaethau yna sydd wedyn yn cael ei ailfuddsoddi o fewn gwasanaethau cyfrwng Cymraeg yn y gymuned, a dyna le mae'r pwysau dros y cyfnod nesaf.
Rŷn ni'n gweld cyswllt cryf iawn gyda phobl ifanc o safbwynt gwerth eu sgiliau cyfrwng Cymraeg, ac yn awyddus iawn i barhau i weithio gyda nhw dros y cyfnod yma. Yn sicr, mae yna gyfle i unigolion gychwyn busnesau newydd trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg, naill ai'n ddigidol neu yn y gymuned a byddwn ni'n awyddus iawn i ffocysu ar hynny hefyd, gan fod unigolion yn dod aton ni yn ystod y cyfnod gydag amser i ystyried, efallai, cychwyn busnesau newydd trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg. A hefyd mae'r mentrau yn cydweithio â Llywodraeth Cymru a'r gwasanaeth Helo Blod lleol sy'n cefnogi busnesau i gynyddu eu defnydd o'r Gymraeg. Wrth i fusnesau ddechrau ailagor dros yr haf, yn sicr maen nhw'n dod aton ni yn gweld cyfle i ehangu busnesau yn ystod y cyfnod anodd yma trwy gynyddu eu defnydd o'r Gymraeg, ymgysylltu yn fwy effeithiol gyda siaradwyr Cymraeg, ac yn sicr byddwn ni'n awyddus i barhau i weld y gwasanaeth yna'n datblygu, gan fod busnesau mewn cyfnod mor fregus.
Felly, mae e wedi bod yn gyfnod o addasu yn gyflym iawn, ond yn sicr mae heriau o'n blaenau ni o ran sicrhau, efallai, fod digon o drafod ynglŷn â chynllunio gwasanaethau cyfrwng Cymraeg wrth i Lywodraeth ac awdurdodau lleol fod yn gorfod ailgynllunio'r ffordd mae gwasanaethau'n cael eu darparu.
Yes, thank you very much. In terms of the mentrau iaith over this period, like the rest of the third sector, it has been a very challenging time. The mentrau usually employ over 300 staff across all services in terms of providing opportunities to use the Welsh language on a community level, and a high number of those work within services such as childcare, businesses such as shops and cafes, and translation services also. So, we were very grateful to receive the funding that we had expected from the Welsh Government at the beginning of lockdown, which enabled us to stabilise in terms of our core staff, and what that meant was that we were able to continue to provide opportunities digitally. We adapted very quickly to the need to do that so that there was no halt in service.
But where we have seen the impact is on those broader services where we did have to close for quite an extended period. Those services are now reopening, but very gradually, and our concern, clearly, is that we have a large Welsh-speaking workforce—child carers, translators and so on—and the concern is that we won't be able to return all of those to post over the ensuing period. So, that's where the challenge lies for us. We are bringing in some £3.5 million to support those services, which is then reinvested in Welsh-medium services in the community, and that's where the pressure will be over the ensuing period.
We do see a strong link with young people in terms of the value of their Welsh language skills, and are very eager to continue working with them over this period. Certainly, there's an opportunity for individuals to establish new Welsh-medium businesses, either digitally or in the community, and we would be very eager to focus on that too, because individuals have approached us during this time, and they've had time to consider establishing those new Welsh language businesses. And the mentrau are also collaborating with the Welsh Government on the Helo Blod service, which works locally to support businesses in increasing the use of the Welsh language. As businesses have started to reopen over the summer, they are approaching us and seeing opportunities to expand their businesses during this difficult time by increasing their use of the Welsh language, engaging more effectively with Welsh speakers, and, certainly, we'd be eager to continue to see that service develop, because businesses are in such a vulnerable position.
So, it's been a period of swift adaptation, but certainly we are facing challenges for the future in terms of ensuring that there is enough discussion on planning Welsh language services as the Government and local authorities have to reorganise how services are provided.
Diolch. David.
Thank you. David.
In written evidence, I thought it was very interesting that the Urdd estimates that the recovery period for the current loss of income caused by COVID in the six-month period could take three to five years. I think that's useful evidence that policy makers and those that scrutinise policy like us should hear. I just wonder if the other organisations here this morning have a similar view about the length of time it may take to get back to a—when I say 'normal', I mean an operating pattern that is not deeply influenced by the pandemic and the loss of income, which might take between three and five years.
Gaf i gychwyn gyda Betsan, os gwelwch yn dda?
If I could start with Betsan.
Yn sicr, o ran yr Eisteddfod, bu'n rhaid gohirio ar y cyfnod anoddaf, oherwydd, mewn gwirionedd, dyna pryd mae gwyliau mawr o'n maint ni yn gwneud y cytundebau a phob dim. Mi oedd gennym ni gytundebau gwerth £1.9 miliwn allan ar y pryd. Bu'n rhaid negydu gyda chyflenwyr ar gyfer eu symud nhw a phob dim. Mi gawsom ni gymorth wrth y Llywodraeth—heb hynny mi fyddai e'n broblematig tu hwnt ar gyfer edrych ar hirhoedledd y corff.
Ond yn yr un modd, wrth edrych yn ehangach ar y sector, mae yna oblygiadau ac mae yn beryglus iawn o ran y sector digwyddiadau ar hyn o bryd. Oherwydd o edrych ar yr Eisteddfod yn unig, rŷn ni'n gwario—[Anghlywadwy.]—miliwn ar gwmnïau o fewn Cymru ar gyfer gwireddu'r ŵyl, felly dros nos mae yna 2,000 o swyddi yn rhannol neu'n ddibynnol ar yr Eisteddfod ar gyfer incwm, ac felly mi wnaeth hynny ddiflannu.
Yn yr un modd, os ŷn ni'n edrych ar ein stondinwyr ni, mae nifer o fusnesau bychan yn ddibynnol iawn ar yr Eisteddfod. Dyna'r pinacl o ran y gwariant. Mae Helgard newydd sôn o ran y llyfrau ac yn y blaen—dyna beth yw'r pinacl o ran gwariant llyfrau Cymraeg. Ond yn yr un modd, felly, mi oedd creu cyfleoedd ond y rheini yn ddigidol yn unig yn hollbwysig ar gyfer helpu'r busnesau llai oedd yn ddibynnol arnon ni.
Ond hefyd, o ran y sector ei hun, mae yna nifer o gyflenwyr sydd ddim ond yn gweithio ar ddigwyddiadau, a dros nos mae'r cwmnïau hyn, cwmnïau bychain ac yn rhai llawer yn fwy, wedi colli incwm. Felly, heb gymorth yn y cyfnod ac am gyfnod yn hwy—mae ffyrlo nawr yn dod i ben—mae yna oblygiadau anferthol i hynny, oherwydd does yna ddim incwm yn dod i mewn ar gyfer y bobl sy'n ddibynnol ar ddigwyddiadau. Felly, yn edrych i'r hirdymor, mi fyddwn ni mewn sefyllfa—. Rŷn ni ar hyn o bryd yn edrych ar opsiynau ar gyfer y flwyddyn nesaf oherwydd, wrth gwrs, gyda'r clo yn parhau, mae yna farc cwestiwn am 2021. Yn yr un modd, nid yn unig o edrych ar y sector o'r diwydiant sy'n paratoi digwyddiadau, ond mae'r artistiaid dros nos yn colli cyfleoedd. Fely, un o'r pethau sy'n hollbwysig i ni yw ein bod ni'n defnyddio grantiau 2020 ar gyfer comisiynu, fel bod artistiaid yn cael cyfleoedd i greu, oherwydd heb y cyfleoedd yna, a hefyd gyda chloi y theatrau a phob dim, mae eu gwaith, eu bara menyn nhw, wedi diflannu.
Felly, mae'r diwydiannau creadigol—mae'r sector yma mewn argyfwng ar hyn o bryd. Ac felly mae'n rôl ni o ran cyfleoedd, o ran comisiynu, hefyd o ran cynorthwyo busnesau ar gyfer bod yn rhan o'r economi ehangach, yn greiddiol. Ac felly, i fi, os oes yna ymbil—mae hwn yn rhywbeth hirdymor. Yn sicr, mi fydd yn cymryd tan 2022 i gychwyn dod allan o hwn, ond dyw hynny ddim yn golygu y byddwn ni mewn sefyllfa gadarn yn 2022. Y gobaith yw y bydd modd datblygu o hynny.
Certainly, from the Eisteddfod's point of view, we had to postpone at the most difficult time, because that's when major festivals of our size make contracts. We did have contracts worth £1.9 million out at the time, and we had to negotiate with suppliers in order to shift those. We had some support from the Government—without that support it would have been very problematic in looking at the viability of the organisation.
But, likewise, looking at the sector more broadly, there are implications and it is very fragile in terms of the events sector at the moment. In looking at the Eisteddfod alone, we spend—[Inaudible.]—million on companies within Wales in order to deliver the festival, so, overnight, 2,000 jobs are partly reliant or totally reliant on the Eisteddfod for their income, so that disappeared.
Likewise, if we look at our stall holders, many small businesses are very reliant on the Eisteddfod. That is a high point in terms of expenditure for them. Helgard has just mentioned books—well, that is the pinnacle in terms of expenditure on Welsh language publications. So, creating opportunities, be they digital in this case, was crucial for the smaller businesses that were reliant upon us.
But also, in terms of the sector itself, there are a number of suppliers who only work on events, and overnight these companies, some small and some much larger, have lost their income. So, without support over this period and for a longer period—furlough is now coming to an end—there are huge implications to that, because there is no income coming in for those people who are reliant on events. So, looking to the longer term, we at the moment are looking at options for next year because, with lockdown continuing, there is a question mark about 2021. Similarly, not only in looking at the events industry, but overnight, artists have also lost out. So, one of the things that was crucially important to us was that we used the grants available to us in order to commission artists to give them opportunities to create, because without those opportunities, and with the closure of theatres and venues, their bread and butter has disappeared overnight as well.
So, the creative industries sector is in crisis at the moment, and our role in terms of providing opportunities through commissions and also assisting in terms of the businesses that are part of the wider economy is crucial. And for me, if there is a plea to be made, it's the plea that this is going to be a long-term issue. It will certainly take until 2022 until we start to get out of this. That doesn't mean that we will be in a robust position in 2022. The hope is that we can develop from that.
Diolch yn fawr. Dwi'n gweld bod pawb yn cytuno, mae'r tystion i gyd yn cytuno, â hynny. Oes yna un ohonoch chi sydd eisiau ychwanegu at beth mae Betsan wedi'i ddweud? Lowri, ac wedyn Helgard. Lowri yn gyntaf.
Thank you. I see that everyone is agreed on that. Does anyone have anything to add to Betsan's comments? Lowri, then Helgard.
Dim ond yn sydyn iawn, erbyn hyn mae'r mentrau iaith yn cynnal gwyliau blynyddol—mae Tafwyl yn un o'r rhai mwyaf llwyddiannus, ond hefyd mae Parti Ponty, Ffiliffest a Gŵyl Canol Dre erbyn hyn—ac yn yr un modd â gwyliau llawer mwy na'r rheini, buon ni'n gorfod eu canslo eleni a rhedeg yn ddigidol. Yn sicr, gwelon ni'r effaith ar fusnesau lleol a'r effaith y mae'r gwyliau yma yn gallu cael ar yr economi leol iawn, lle mae cyfleoedd i fusnesau lleol ac ysgolion i ddod at ei gilydd, a'n bod ni wedyn yn rhoi gwaith i artistiaid cenedlaethol ond lleol hefyd.
Felly, llwyddodd nifer o'r mentrau i gynnal y gwyliau yna yn ddigidol, ac felly dyna le byddem ni'n hoffi gweld mwy o drafod a mwy o fuddsoddiad, er mwyn cryfhau'r seilwaith sydd gyda ni a'n partneriaid ni o ran cynnal y gwyliau yna yn llwyddiannus, o ansawdd da, yn ddigidol. Felly, rŷn ni yn wynebu heriau tebyg dros y cyfnod nesaf o ran penderfyniadau ar gyfer haf nesaf a thu hwnt i hynny hefyd.
Just very briefly, the mentrau iaith now hold annual festivals—Tafwyl is one of the most successful, but there's Ffiliffest, Parti Ponty and Gŵyl Canol Dre too—and just like the larger festivals, we too had to cancel those this year and run them digitally. Certainly, we saw an impact on local businesses in terms of the impact that these festivals can have on local economies where there are opportunities for local businesses and schools to come together. But then we also provide opportunities to local and national artists too.
So, many of the mentrau managed to hold those festivals digitally, so that's where we would like to see more discussion and more investment, so that we can strengthen the infrastructure that we and our partners have in terms of staging those events successfully, and ensuring they are of a high quality in digital terms. So, we are facing similar challenges over this ensuing period in terms of making decisions for next summer and beyond.
Diolch. Fe ddawn ni nôl; mae yna gwestiynau ychwanegol o gwmpas y maes digidol. Helgard, oeddech chi am ddod mewn?
Thank you. There are some additional questions around digital. Helgard, did you want to come in?
Diolch. Jest i roi enghraifft i chi am yr effaith o golli'r Eisteddfod—mae'r tri llyfr mawr, sef y Fedal Ryddiaith, y Daniel Owen a'r cyfansoddiadau, jest yn gwneud lan dros £100,000 o werthiant. Dydyn ni ddim ond yn siarad am y tri, ond mae yna sawl llyfr sydd wedi cael eu canslo achos maen nhw wedi cael eu cyhoeddi ar gyfer yr Eisteddfod yn arbennig, ac, wrth gwrs, dŷch chi byth yn gwneud hyn lan. Mae wedi cael ei golli, mae wedi mynd, ac mae'r bwlch hwn yn parhau. I rai gweisg bach sydd ddim ond yn gallu cyhoeddi tri, pedwar, pum llyfr y flwyddyn, mae hwn yn gallu bod yn hanner eu hincwm nhw. Ond, wrth gwrs, maen nhw yn gwneud y gwaith craidd ar yr ochr Gymraeg, a dyna'r broblem hefyd. Mae pob gwasg, bron pob gwasg sydd gyda ni, yn ficrofusnes, so maen nhw'n dibynnu ar un neu ddau neu dri aelod o staff, ac os oes un ohonyn nhw wedi bod yn sâl, mae'r impact yn gallu bod yn y tymor hir.
Beth sydd hefyd yn fy mhoeni i yw faint o bobl ifanc, ifancach, yn gyffredinol rydyn ni'n gallu eu tynnu i mewn i ddiwydiant sydd mor fregus, achos mae'r marjins yn y byd cyhoeddi mor fach, mae'n anodd ennill arian yn y diwydiant beth bynnag. So, nawr mae dan bwysau, mae'r mwyafrif o awduron gyda beth rydyn ni'n galw portffolio careers; os maen nhw, felly, yn colli incwm pendant o un lle, efallai y byddan nhw'n stopio gallu fforddio ysgrifennu. So, mae yna impact mawr sydd yn bendant yn parhau, ond dwi ddim yn gallu gweld y byddwn ni'n dod allan unrhyw le cyn 2022 hefyd—at the earliest.
Thank you, yes. Just to give you an example of the impact of the loss of the Eisteddfod—the three major books, the y Fedal Ryddiaith, the Daniel Owen prize and the cyfansoddiadau of the Eisteddfod, account for around £100,000 in sales annually. We're just talking about those three publications, but there are a number of publications that have had to have been cancelled because they were being published particularly for the Eisteddfod. And, of course, you can never make that up; it's been lost, it's gone forever, and this gap remains. For some small presses and publishers who can only publish three, four maybe five books per year, this can be half of their income in any given year, and, of course, they do the core work on Welsh language publication, and that's a problem too. Every publisher, or virtually every publisher, is a microbusiness and they rely on one or two staff members, and if they have been unwell, then that can have a long-term impact.
What also concerns me is how many young people we can attract into the industry when it is so vulnerable, because the margins for publishing are so small it's very difficult to make a living in the industry in the first place. So, now there are additional pressures. Most authors have what we call portfolio careers, and if they lose income from one stream, then perhaps they won't be able to afford to continue to write. So, there is a huge impact, which is certainly ongoing, but I can't see us coming out any time before 2022, and that's at the earliest.
Diolch yn fawr. Mae yna gymaint o feysydd rydyn ni am gyfro. Dwi'n mynd i ddod â John Griffiths mewn gyda chyfres o gwestiynau nawr, ond a allwn ni drio bod yn ymwybodol o'r amser? Mae hanner awr gyda ni ac mae lot o gwestiynau eraill gyda ni. Gofynnaf i John, a allwn ni fod yn eithaf cryno yn ein cwestiynau a'n hatebion, lle mae hynny'n bosib? Fel rwy'n dweud, mae yna gymaint i'w ddweud ac rydyn ni am glywed oddi wrthoch chi. John.
Thank you very much. There are so many areas that we want to cover. I'm going to bring John Griffiths in with a series of questions now, but if we could be aware of the time. We have half an hour left and a number of questions to cover. So, I'll invite John, and if we can be quite succinct in our questions and in our answers, where possible. But, as I say, there is so much to be said, and we do want to hear from you, of course. John.
Diolch yn fawr, Gadeirydd. Yes, I wonder if we could cover in a little bit more detail some of the activities that very much support the language and its use. We live in rather strange times, unfortunately, and very challenging times, and obviously the future is very uncertain. We had the national lockdown, we had an easing, we've had some further national measures and, of course, now we have the local lockdowns. So, obviously, this creates great difficulty for you, along with all the rest of us. I just wonder, really, if you could say a little bit more about the main challenges you face and some of the practical issues around social distancing and so on in terms of restarting activities and provision.
Rwy'n gofyn i Siân i ddechrau.
If I could ask Siân to begin.
Diolch, John. Mae yna sialens enfawr o'n blaenau ni. Rwyf wedi sôn yn barod fod y gwersylloedd yn rhagweld nawr na fyddan nhw'n agor tan fis Medi. Mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi rhoi canllawiau clir i ddweud na fydd lletya dros nos i blant tan fis Ionawr ac, yn fwy diweddar, mae rhai o'r rhanbarthau yn yr Alban wedi cyhoeddi na fydd ysgolion, am y flwyddyn addysgol yma, yn cael lletya mewn unrhyw ganolfannau. Mae hynny'n mynd i olygu, wrth gwrs, os bydd Llywodraeth Cymru yn dilyn yr un patrwm, na fydd unrhyw ysgol yn mynd i unrhyw un o'n gwersylloedd ni yn y flwyddyn i ddod, sy'n mynd i gael effaith enfawr ar yr incwm rŷn ni'n creu.
Ynghyd â hynny, dyw'r eisteddfod a'r chwaraeon cenedlaethol—fel rŷn ni wedi ei ddweud, ac fel rŷn ni'n rhagweld, i fod yn gwbl realistig o'r negeseuon rydyn ni'n clywed trwy gyfarfodydd â Llywodraeth Cymru—ddim yn debygol o ddigwydd flwyddyn nesaf oherwydd y canllawiau social distancing. Eto, mae'r eisteddfod yn creu incwm, mae'r gwersylloedd yn creu incwm sylweddol i ni, a hyd yn oed y gwaith cymunedol, lle nad ydyn ni'n gallu get back on track, fel petai, ar hyn o bryd, sydd wedi dod ag incwm inni—bydd hyn yn cael effaith am flynyddoedd arnon ni, mewn ffordd.
Dydyn ni ddim wedi denu cymaint o bobl i ymaelodi eleni. Mae'r aelodaeth wedi agor ac mae pobl yn dangos ewyllys da ac yn ein cefnogi ni drwy aelodaeth. Mae aelodaeth yr Urdd fel arfer yn creu dros £0.5 miliwn. Rŷn ni, yn y rhagolygon ariannol, wedi rhagweld efallai mai £100,000 o arian aelodaeth y byddwn ni'n ei gael. Felly, mae pob un o'r rhain yn ein harwain ni i sefyllfa lle na fyddwn ni'n gallu dod yn ôl oherwydd does yna ddim yn hir iawn—oherwydd bod y canllawiau COVID yn cael effaith ar bob un o wasanaethau'r Urdd. Byddem ni'n gallu gwneud rhai pethau'n ddigidol, ond yn sicr dydy hynny ddim yn cael effaith mor gadarnhaol ar y defnydd o'r Gymraeg â'r effaith o'r engagement rŷn ni wedi cael yn y gorffennol o ran yr Urdd.
Thank you, John. There are huge challenges facing us. I've already mentioned that our residential centres aren't anticipated to open until September. The Welsh Government has put clear guidance in place that overnight accommodation for children won't be available until January. And, more recently, some regions in Scotland have announced that schools for this academic year will not be able to use any residential centres and, if the Welsh Government follows the same approach, then no school will be going to any of our camps in the year to come, which will have a huge impact on our income generation.
Along with that, the eisteddfod and the national sporting events, to be entirely realistic, from what we're hearing from meetings with the Welsh Government, aren't likely to happen next year because of the guidance on social distancing. Again, the eisteddfod generates income and the centres create income for us, and even the community work, where we can't get that contract at the moment, they have brought us income in the past—this is going to have an impact on us for years to come.
We haven't been able to attract as many members this year. Membership is open and people are showing goodwill and are supporting us through membership, but membership usually generates some £0.5 million in income, and in our forecasts we're predicting some £100,000 through membership fees. So, this all leaves us in a position where we won't be able to return for a long time because the COVID guidance is having an impact on all of the Urdd's services. We'll be able to do some things digitally, but certainly they don't have such a positive impact on the use of the Welsh language as that engagement has had in the past.
Diolch. Lowri.
Thank you. Lowri.
Diolch yn fawr. Fel roeddwn i'n sôn yn gynharach, ers y cyfnod clo yn ôl ym mis Mawrth, buon ni'n addasu'n gyflym iawn i ddarparu gweithgareddau yn ddigidol i drawstoriad o oedrannau, ond hefyd yn ffocysu yn arbennig ar blant a phobl ifanc ac yn cefnogi rhieni, yn enwedig rhieni sydd ddim yn siarad Cymraeg ond sydd â phlant mewn addysg Gymraeg. Fel arfer, mewn blwyddyn, rŷn ni'n darparu rhyw 250,000 o gyfleoedd yn y gymuned ar draws Cymru, felly roedd hi'n her i addasu'n sydyn i fod yn rhoi darpariaeth i'n cymunedau ni.
Buon ni'n gweld rhyw 220,000 o bobl yn ymwneud â'n gweithgareddau ni'n ddigidol, nôl efallai yn Ebrill a Mai. Ond yn debyg i Siân, yr her nawr yw parhau i ddarparu cefnogaeth a chyfleoedd i ddefnyddio'r Gymraeg, i ymwneud yn rhyngweithiol â phobl eraill sy'n siarad yn Gymraeg. Felly, mae'r mentrau wedi cydweithio'n rhanbarthol ac yn genedlaethol ar raglen amrywiol iawn o weithgareddau, a dŷn ni nawr yn ailagor rhai o'n gweithgareddau ni sydd tu allan. Ond gyda'r gaeaf ar y ffordd a'r cyfyngiadau, mae hynny'n mynd i fod yn heriol iawn i gynnal y lefel yna o ddarpariaeth. Ac, yn sicr, rŷn ni'n gweld nifer o rieni gyda phlant mewn ysgolion Cymraeg yn dod aton ni yn gofyn am gyfleoedd ac am adnoddau, a dyna le fyddwn ni'n gobeithio ffocysu dros y misoedd nesaf.
Ond mae nifer o oedolion bregus hefyd yn dod atom ni, lle rŷn ni'n gweld cysylltiad cryf iawn rhwng lles ein cymunedau a'r gallu i ddefnyddio'r Gymraeg a mynychu gweithgareddau cyfrwng Cymraeg gyda siaradwyr a dysgwyr Cymraeg eraill yn y gymuned. Felly, yn sicr, heriau mawr, yn enwedig dros y gaeaf nawr, wrth i ni ystyried beth sy'n ddiogel ac yn trio ymateb i anghenion rhai o'n siaradwyr Cymraeg mwyaf bregus ni yn y gymuned hefyd.
Thank you very much. As I mentioned earlier, since lockdown back in March, we adapted very quickly to provide digital activities to a range of age groups, but focused particularly on children and young people, and supported parents, particularly parents who are non-Welsh speaking but have children in Welsh-medium education. Usually in a year we would provide some 250,000 opportunities in the community across Wales, so it was a challenge to adapt swiftly in order to make provisions for our communities.
We saw some 220,000 people engage with our activities digitally back in April and May, but as Siân mentioned, the challenge now is to continue to provide support and opportunities to use the Welsh language and to interact with other Welsh speakers. So, the mentrau have worked regionally and nationally on a very diverse programme of activities, and we are now reopening some of the activities carried out outdoors, but with the winter coming and with the restrictions still in place, it's going to be very challenging to maintain that level of provision. And, certainly, we're seeing a number of parents with children in Welsh-medium education approaching us and asking for resources and support, and that's where we hope to focus over the next few months.
But a number of vulnerable adults have also been approaching us, where we see a strong link between the well-being of our communities and the ability to use the Welsh language and to attend Welsh-medium activities with other Welsh speakers and Welsh learners in the community. So, certainly, there are major challenges facing us, particularly over the winter months, as we consider what can be safely done and as we try to respond to the needs of some of our most vulnerable Welsh speakers in the community also.
Diolch. John.
Thank you. John.
Yes. Lowri, I think you mentioned earlier some of the Valleys events that haven't been able to proceed in the way that they normally would, and I think it's probably fair to say that a lot of the regional community events around the Welsh language are particularly important in areas of Wales where the language isn't strong, unfortunately, because obviously it allows those that want to use the Welsh language to experience it and use it in a community setting, opportunities that they generally might not have throughout the year. So, is there much that you've been able to do with your alternative provision that's particularly looked at those areas and tried to overcome those issues?
Diolch, John. Yn sicr, dŷn ni wedi gweld hynny mewn ardaloedd ar draws Cymru, ond yn yr ardaloedd hynny lle, fel arfer, dyw'r cyfleoedd yna ddim mor uchel i ddefnyddio'r Gymraeg yn y gymuned, ac efallai dyw plant ddim yn clywed y Gymraeg cymaint ac mewn ardaloedd eraill. Eto, rhaglenni digidol sydd wedi bod yn llwyddiannus, a dyna lle rŷn ni yn gorfod datblygu ymhellach ac yn gobeithio datblygu'r seilwaith sydd gyda ni ar draws Cymru hefyd. Ond dŷn ni wedi gweld llwyddiant mawr mewn sesiynau i deuluoedd ar-lein, clybiau digidol i blant a phobl ifanc, a'r rheini'n cynyddu nawr wrth i'r ysgolion dychwelyd. Ond un o'r heriau mwyaf ydy dyw llawer o'r clybiau wyneb yn wyneb yn y gymuned ar hyn o bryd ddim yn gweithredu, ac rŷn ni'n gweld bwlch mawr o ran darpariaeth ddigidol ar ôl ysgol, gyda'r hwyr ac ar benwythnosau.
Felly, dros y cyfnod nesaf efallai mai dyna fydd un o'r pwyntiau i ni ffocysu arno, gan fod bwlch o ran y ddarpariaeth cyfrwng Cymraeg wyneb yn wyneb yn y gymuned, sy'n heriol iawn o ran cynnig rhywbeth amrywiol iawn, ond dyna efallai fydd ein blaenoriaeth. Yn sicr, mae nifer o deuluoedd yn cysylltu sy'n colli'r gweithgareddau yn y gymuned, y digwyddiadau yn y gymuned, ac yn awyddus i gysylltu â rhieni eraill yn y gymuned hefyd. Felly, fe fydd gyda ni bwyslais ar weithgareddau rhanbarthol yn ogystal er mwyn cwrdd â'r angen yna rŷn ni'n ei weld ar hyn o bryd.
Thank you, John. Certainly, we have seen that in areas across Wales, but certainly in those areas where those opportunities aren't as freely available and the children don't hear as much of the Welsh language in their communities. Again, there have been digital programmes that have been successful and that's where we need to develop further, and we do hope to develop the infrastructure that we have across Wales. But we have seen major successes in sessions for families conducted online, digital clubs for children and young people, and those are increasing now as the schools are returning. But one of the greatest challenges is that many of the face-to-face clubs in the communities aren't operational at the moment, and we do see a huge gulf in terms of after-school, evening and weekend digital provision.
So, over ensuing periods that will be one of the issues that we will focus on, because there is a gulf in terms of Welsh-language provision in terms face-to-face activity in the community, and it's very challenging in terms of offering opportunities, but that will be our priority. Certainly, we have families getting in touch with us who are missing the community events and community engagement, and they're eager to be in touch with other parents in the community too. So, we will have an emphasis on regional events now so that we can meet that need that we have identified.
Diolch. Helgard.
Thank you. Helgard.
Yes. Just to add to this, we ran—because of acknowledging the challenges that especially families face where Welsh isn't the first language in the home, we've run two pilots, one in Ceredigion and one in Merthyr, particularly looking at vulnerable children and families, working with the local councils and providing a book pack that is tailored to the reading ages of those families. And the reception we had was amazing—people were so, so grateful to have that really tangible support. It's also really important, I think, that kids actually have a book in their hand instead of spending all the time now with distance learning and digital interaction. And we're talking to Welsh Government about possibly rolling this out nationwide, because this is a really tangible intervention that can be targeted, and we have the capacity. It also has the benefit, of course, that, through this intervention, you're supporting a creative industry in Wales. So, there's a layered benefit to this, and those two pilots were very successful.
Thank you. John.
Diolch yn fawr, Cadeirydd.
Thank you very much, Chair.
Diolch yn fawr. Carwyn.
Thank you. Carwyn.
Diolch, Cadeirydd. Gaf i ofyn cwestiynau ynglŷn â'r arloesedd digidol sydd wedi cael ei ddangos dros y misoedd diwethaf? Faint mor gynaliadwy yw'r platfform digidol ynglŷn â'ch gweithgareddau chi, a pa fath o impact sydd wedi bod neu efallai fydd yn digwydd yn y pen draw ar y nifer sy'n gallu chwarae rhan yn y gweithgareddau digidol?
Thank you, Chair. May I ask some questions on the digital innovation that has emerged over the past few months? How sustainable is the digital platform in terms of your own activities, and what kind of impact has there been or what kind of impact will there be perhaps in terms of the numbers that can participate in the digital activities?
Dwi'n siŵr y byddwch chi i gyd eisiau ymateb i hwn, ond gwnaf i ddechrau gyda Betsan.
I'm sure you will all want to respond to this, but I'll start with Betsan.
Dwi'n credu mai un o'r pethau pwysicaf i ni wrth inni gychwyn ar AmGen oedd sicrhau bod y Gymraeg yn rhan greiddiol o ddatblygiadau digidol, a dŷn ni ddim yn cael ein gweld fel rhywbeth oedd tu ôl gyda'r amser. Ac, felly, beth wnaethon ni oedd defnyddio amryw o lwyfannau er mwyn ymwneud â'r gynulleidfa. Mi wnaeth e—os rŷn ni'n edrych ar ystadegau AmGen, mi oedd e, yn sicr, yn llwyddiannus. Os rŷch chi'n edrych o ran yr argraffiadau, roedd dros 4 miliwn. Os rŷch chi'n edrych o ran ymgysylltu, roedd yna 173,000 ar Facebook a Trydar am y cyfnod. Roedd dros 500,000 wedi gwylio'r Facebook, a dros 360,000 o argraffiadau ar YouTube yn y cyfnod. A hefyd, o ran yr ystod oedran, mi oedd 35 i 44 ar Facebook, a 25 i 34 ar Trydar. Felly, mae hynny'n golygu ein bod ni'n mynd i'r afael ag ac yn edrych ar gynulleidfaoedd newydd.
Yn yr un modd, beth wnaeth AmGen brofi i ni yw ein bod ni—ac mae'n e'n dryllio'r cwestiwn yna sydd wastad yn gofyn, 'Ydy iaith yn rhwystr?' Oherwydd mi brofodd AmGen—mi gaethon ni gynulleidfa rhyngwladol; mi oedd gyda ni o Iwerddon, i'r Ariannin, i'r Almaen, y Swistir, America, Canada, Seland Newydd, y Ffindir, jest i enwi y 10 uchaf i chi. Ac, felly, mae hynny yn hollbwysig, ein bod ni yno.
Mi oedd Epona, sef ein horiel rhithwir ni, felly y lle celf, yn defnyddio'r dechnoleg ddiweddaraf, ac mi oedden ni y cyntaf, dwi'n credu, yng Nghymru, i ddefnyddio hynny ar gyfer rhoi celf weledol ar-lein.
Un o'r pethau pwysig rŷn ni hefyd yn gwneud yn yr Eisteddfod yw ein bod ni'n edrych ar—. Bydd yr Eisteddfod byth yr un peth eto. Mae yna bethau positif o COVID. Mi oedd angen inni fynd i'r afael â digidol, a drwy hyn rŷn ni wedi profi mi fydd yna Eisteddfod draddodiadol mewn cae, os liciwch chi, ond hefyd mae angen inni edrych ar y digidol, er mwyn ein bod ni yn wirioneddol yn agor y gynulleidfa'n ehangach. Felly, rŷn ni wedi cael arian oddi wrth Clwstwr i edrych ar ddefnyddio technoleg gemau, er mwyn inni allu gwneud profiad rhithwr go iawn wrth ichi fynd i'r Eisteddfod—mi allwch chi fynd ar hyd y maes. Ac mae hwnna'n ddatblygiad hollbwysig, ac mi fydd yn gallu helpu gwyliau ar hyd Prydain, ac ar hyd y byd, o ran cyflwyno'u hunain yn ddigidol.
Ond allaf i ddim gorbwysleisio, fel rhan o AmGen, roedd yn rhaid inni edrych ar weithio gyda radio, theledu a'r wasg brint, oherwydd mae yna dlodi digidol yng Nghymru. Ac felly, er mwyn sicrhau bod pawb yn cael cyfleoedd i'w gweld, mi oedd y penwythnos yna a wnaed drwy Radio Cymru; mi oedd yr ymwneud â Prynhawn Da a Heno ar hyd y daith, er mwyn i bobl bod yn rhan ohono fe, achos y peth olaf roedden ni eisiau ei wneud fel Eisteddfod oedd mynd yn ddigidol bur, ac, o wneud hynny, bod yna gynulleidfa graidd oedd yn colli allan yn llwyr.
Ac felly, wrth inni edrych i'r dyfodol, rwy'n credu bod angen i'r Llywodraeth edrych ar yr elfen ddigidol yma, oherwydd os rŷn ni'n mynd i ddefnyddio mwy a mwy o hwn fel adnodd, mae'n rhaid sicrhau bod Cymru drwyddi draw yn gallu cael mynediad i ddigidol.
I think that one of the most important things for us when we established AmGen was to ensure that the Welsh language was a central part of digital developments, and we weren't seen as falling behind the times. So, what we did was to use multiple platforms in order to engage with our audience. Now, if we look at the AmGen statistics, it was certainly successful. If you look in terms of the impressions, there were over 4 million. If you look at engagement, 173,000 engagements on Facebook and Twitter, over 500,000 had viewed on Facebook, and 360,000 had viewed on YouTube during this period. And, in terms of the age range, 35 to 44 were on Facebook, and 25 to 34 on Twitter. So, that means that we are looking at new audiences.
Likewise, what AmGen proved was—and it actually does away once for all with this question as to whether language is a barrier. Because AmGen proved that we could attract an international audience. We had viewers from Argentina, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, America, Canada, New Zealand, Finland, just to name the top 10. So, that's also crucially important, that we were there.
Epona, which was our virtual gallery—y lle celf, if you like—did use the latest technology, and I think we were the first in Wales to use that in order to provide visual art online.
And one of the things that we also do as an Eisteddfod—. And the Eisteddfod will never be the same again. There are positives from COVID. We needed to tackle digital, and through this we have proven that there will be a traditional Eisteddfod in a field, but we also need to consider the digital, so that we truly open out to broader audiences. So, we have received funding from Clwstwr to look at gaming technology, so that we can provide a real virtual experience as you go to the Eisteddfod—you will be able to travel through the Eisteddfod field virtually. And that will be crucial, and it can assist festivals across the UK, and across the world, in terms of how they present themselves digitally.
But I can't overemphasise that, as part of AmGen, we did have to look at work with radio and television and the print media, because there is a digital divide in Wales. So, in order to ensure that everyone had opportunities, that weekend on Radio Cymru took place; there was the engagement with Prynhawn Da and Heno across the journey, so that people could participate, because the last thing we wanted to do as an Eisteddfod was to go purely digital and to exclude a core audience that would have lost out entirely.
So, as we look to the future, I think the Government does need to look at this digital element, because if we are going to use more and more of this as a resource, then we must ensure that the whole of Wales can access digital.
Wel, dwi'n cytuno â llawer o beth roedd Betsan yn ei ddweud o ran—mi wnaf i gychwyn efo hwnna—yr angen i sicrhau bod digidol ar gael i bob un yng Nghymru. Dŷn ni'n gwybod bod rhai pobl ifanc wedi dreifio i dop eu caeau nhw yng nghefn gwlad er mwyn gallu cysylltu ac ymwneud â rhai o'n gwaith digidol ni. Felly, mae'n rhaid bod yna fuddsoddiad hirdymor gan Llywodraeth Cymru ar gyfer hynny.
Ond, o ran arloesedd a'r platfform digidol, yn amlwg, roedd yn rhaid inni feddwl yn glou iawn ar ôl gohirio'r Eisteddfod a chynnal Eisteddfod T—27 awr o ddarlledu, 7,000 o gystadleuwyr, ac mi wnaeth e weithio i ddenu cynulleidfa newydd roedden ni'n falch iawn ohono. Wedyn, mae Eisteddfod T wedi dangos y ffordd inni sicrhau bod yna Eisteddfod, o bosib Eisteddfod T arall, yn mynd i fod ar gyfer y dyfodol, a sut gallwn ni wneud hwnna'n well a chael cynulleidfa well.
Arloesi hefyd ar y neges heddwch—roedd yn rhaid i ni newid ein neges ni eleni yn glou iawn, ac roedd y neges wedi cyrraedd y cyrhaeddiad mwyaf yn ei 98 mlynedd o hanes, ac roedd 14 miliwn o bobl yn gweld y neges ar gyfryngau cymdeithasol, a chyrhaeddiad y neges yn fyd-eang yn 35 miliwn.
Mae'r ddarpariaeth ar-lein yn ein cymunedau wedi gallu datblygu. Gwnaethon ni ymgyrch Llamau a gyrru arian i'r elusen dŷn ni'n cefnogi fel partner ar-lein, a dod a £15,000 mewn i Llamau ym mis Mai.
Mae'r gweithgareddau chwaraeon wedi bod yn rhai rhithiol i gychwyn. Erbyn hyn, dŷn ni'n dod nôl efo gweithgareddau chwaraeon wyneb yn wyneb. Mae'n amhosib i ni ddatblygu cyfleoedd digidol ar-lein ar gyfer y gwersylloedd.
Mae'r cylchgronau—dŷn ni wedi cael cefnogaeth Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru a'r Llywodraeth i fynd â'r cylchgronau yn ddigidol. Ac mae yna rhyw 2,500 yn fwy o danysgrifwyr i'r cylchgronau yn ddigidol nag a fu y llynedd, ac mae hwn yn amlwg yn mynd i gael impact cadarnhaol ar ddefnydd plant a phobl ifanc o'r Gymraeg.
Felly, mae yna heriau i ni fel mudiad—dŷn ni wedi clywed am hynny y bore yma. Mae yna bethau dŷn ni wedi eu gwneud yn ddigidol. Ond, fel mae Betsan wedi ei ddweud, mae wedi agor y drysau inni feddwl yn wahanol, a sicrhau ein bod ni yn cyrraedd cynulleidfaoedd newydd, ac mae pob un o'r gweithgareddau dwi wedi sôn amdanyn nhw wedi sicrhau yr engagement yna. Beth sy'n bwysig hefyd yw ein bod ni wedi gallu cael gwell cyswllt efo'n gwirfoddolwyr ni yn ystod y cyfnod yma, achos mae cyfathrebu a chyfarfod ar-lein yn llawer haws nag i bobl, yn sicr yng nghefn gwlad, yn gorfod trafaelio am oriau i gyfarfodydd.
Felly, dwi'n gallu gweld, wrth symud ymlaen gyda dyfodol yr Urdd, bydd ein hymrwymiad ni i ddenu gwirfoddolwyr i'n pwyllgorau ac i'n cyfarfodydd ni, yn enwedig y gwirfoddolwyr ifanc, gobeithio yn llawer mwy effeithiol wrth eu bod nhw'n gallu defnyddio'r system ar-lein.
Well, I agree with much of what Betsan said in terms of the need to ensure that digital is available across the board in Wales. We know that some people had driven to the top field in rural areas in order to engage with some of our digital activities. So, there has to be long-term investment from the Welsh Government for that.
But, in terms of innovation of the digital platform, clearly we had to think very quickly, having postponed the Eisteddfod, and then we decided to have Eisteddfod T—27 hours of broadcast and thousands of participants. So, Eisteddfod T has shown a way that we can ensure that there can be a future Eisteddfod, perhaps another Eisteddfod T, and how we can improve that and get bigger audiences.
There was innovation on the message of peace and goodwill. We had to change our message very swiftly this year, and we got our biggest reach in 98 years of our history, with 14 million people seeing the message on social media, and the message reached 35 million people globally.
The provision in our communities has developed. We had the Llamau campaign to raise money for our charity partners online, and we brought £15 million into Llamau in May.
And the sports activities have also been virtual. We are now returning to face-to-face activities on the sports field. It's impossible to provide digital opportunities for our residential centres.
We have had the support of the Books Council of Wales and Government to take our magazines digital. And there are over 2,500 additional subscribers to those magazines digitally than there were last year, and that's clearly going to have a positive impact on the use of the Welsh language among children and young people.
So, there are challenges for us as an organisation, as we've already heard this morning. There are things that we have been able to do digitally. But, as Betsan has said, it has opened the door for us to think differently and to ensure that we do reach new audiences, and every one of the activities that I've mentioned has ensured that engagement. What's also important is that we've had a better connection with our volunteers during this period, because communicating and meeting online is much easier, particularly in rural areas, where people often have to travel for hours to attend meetings.
So, I do see, as we move forward, that our commitment to attracting volunteers to our committees and our meetings, particularly younger volunteers, will be far more efficient and effective as they are able to use online facilities.
Diolch. Helgard.
Thank you. Helgard.
Dwi'n cytuno 100 y cant â phopeth mae Betsan a Siân wedi ei ddweud. I ni, wrth gwrs, yr her fwyaf i'n diwydiant ni yw'r ochr weithredol—sut i sicrhau bod y gwasanaethau a'r ganolfan yn parhau mewn lockdown, a sut dŷn ni'n gallu cael y llyfrau allan i'r bobl. Dwi wedi sôn am y platfform digidol dŷn ni'n ei lansio. Wrth gwrs, mae'n siop ar-lein ni, a rhai o'r siopau sy'n darparu siopau ar-lein, wedi manteisio'n fawr iawn yn ystod y cyfnod hwn. Wrth gwrs, maen nhw wedi datblygu ac maen nhw moyn gwneud mwy o hwn.
Nawr, i fi hefyd, mae cael llwyfan rhyngwladol i beth sy'n digwydd yng Nghymru yn hollbwysig. A dŷn ni, er enghraifft, wedi colli'r cyfle i fynd i'r ffair lyfrau fwyaf yn y byd—Frankfurt—eleni; dŷn ni wedi colli'r cyfle yn Llundain yn y gwanwyn. Ac wrth gwrs, y cwestiwn yw beth fydd y fformat gorau i roi llwyfan i lenyddiaeth o Gymru, er enghraifft. Felly, oes yna syniadau yng Nghymru, oes yna bosibiliadau i gydweithio, i gael yr arian i ddatblygu, er enghraifft, platfform sy'n gallu ymddangos fel stondin mewn ffair popeth sy'n dod o Gymru? Un o'r enghreifftiau ble dŷn ni wedi cydweithio â phlatfform sydd wedi cael ei greu, yn fwy nag unrhyw beth arall, yw cerddoriaeth, yw'r platfform AM. A dŷn ni wedi cynnig lansiadau llyfrau ar y platfform hwn, ac fe gawsom ni gynulleidfa, fel Betsan, o bob rhan o'r byd. Ond mae hwn yn piecemeal—dŷn ni angen mwy o lwyfan ble mae'r celfyddydau yn gyfan o Gymru yn gallu dangos i'r byd beth sy'n digwydd. Yn arbennig yng nghyd-destun Brexit, dwi'n meddwl ei bod hi'n hollbwysig bod yna ffenest i Gymru a bod beth sy'n arbennig a gwahanol o Gymru yn cael ei weld. A dwi yn poeni nad oes yna ddigon o blatfformau rhyngwladol ar hyn o bryd ar gael, ond dwi'n hyderus bod yna ddigon o dalent yng Nghymru i'w datblygu nhw—mae jest angen ei ariannu fe a bod yn strategol am hwn.
I agree 100 per cent with everything that both Betsan and Siân have said. For us, the greatest challenge for our industry on the operational side is how do we ensure that the services and the distribution centre can continue to operate during lockdown. Now, I've mentioned the digital platform that we're launching. Of course, we have our own online store, and some of the shops are also working online, and they have benefited during this period, and they have developed and they want to do more in this area.
Now, for me also, securing an international platform for what happens in Wales is crucially important. And for example, we've missed the opportunity to attend the Frankfurt Book Fair, which is the largest in the world, and we missed the one in London in the spring as well. And there is the question as to what is the best format to provide a platform for Welsh literature. So, are there any ideas within Wales, are there possibilities for collaboration in order to access funding so that we can develop a platform that could appear as a stall in an international books fair, and that would showcase all Welsh publications? And one of the examples, where we've worked with a platform created and developed further than anywhere else, is in music, and it's the AM platform. And we have had book launches on that platform, and, as Betsan said, we attracted an audience from across the globe. But this is piecemeal—we need a greater platform, where the arts in Wales can all showcase themselves to the world. Particularly in the context of Brexit, I think it's crucially important that there is a window on Wales, and that what is distinctive and unique about Wales is showcased. And I do worry that there aren't enough of those international platforms available at the moment, but I am confident that there is sufficient talent in Wales to develop those—it just needs to be funded, and we need to be strategic about this.
Diolch. Lowri, roeddech chi'n cyfeirio yn gynt at rai o'r pethau digidol, os ydych chi moyn datblygu ar y rheini.
Thank you. Lowri, you mentioned some of the digital elements earlier, if you have anything to add.
Ie. Diolch yn fawr. A chytuno'n llwyr â sylwadau Betsan, Siân a Helgard hefyd, o ran buddsoddiad pellach fel bod darpariaeth ddigidol cyfrwng Cymraeg o ansawdd da, a bod y cynnwys ar-lein cyfrwng Cymraeg yn cynyddu dros y cyfnodau nesaf hefyd. Yn sicr, rŷn ni wedi gweld galw am hynny. Cyn y cyfnod clo, roedd gan y mentrau rwydweithiau llwyddiannus iawn o glybiau digidol i blant a phobl ifanc ar draws Cymru. Felly, roedden ni mewn sefyllfa eithaf da i fod yn datblygu'r rheini ymhellach yn ystod y cyfnod, ond eto yn croesawu sgyrsiau pellach ynglŷn â sut i ddatblygu'r rheini ymhellach, mewn ffordd llawer mwy strategol nag sy'n digwydd ar hyn o bryd.
Yn ddiweddar iawn, dŷn ni wedi bod yn edrych ar effaith ein gweithgaredd digidol, ac wedi gweld bod rhyw 220,000 o bobl yn ymwneud â'n gweithgareddau digidol, a hefyd bod dros 2 filiwn wedi gweld ein gweithgarwch digidol. Felly, yn sicr, rŷn ni wedi cael ymateb cadarnhaol iawn gan bobl, a bydden ni'n awyddus i ddatblygu hynny mewn ffordd fwy amrywiol dros y cyfnod nesaf. Ond hefyd rŷn ni'n gweld heriau o ran y genhedlaeth hŷn, sydd ddim yn awyddus i ddefnyddio technoleg neu angen cefnogaeth sylweddol i ddatblygu sgiliau digidol. Ac yn sicr, mae nifer o fentrau iaith wedi bod yn gweithio gyda'r unigolion yma i sicrhau eu bod nhw'n gallu cwrdd â siaradwyr eraill dros Zoom neu blatfformau eraill hefyd.
A hefyd, dŷn ni'n gweld cyfle o ran y diwydiant digidol, o safbwynt creu mwy o swyddi cyfrwng Cymraeg, cefnogi pobl ifanc i fod yn gweithio yn y maes yma, wrth eu bod nhw'n dilyn gyrfa yn y maes. Felly, llawer o gyfleoedd hefyd, ond yn sicr her o ran cynnal y ddarpariaeth yma dros y cyfnod nesaf, a sicrhau bod ansawdd y ddarpariaeth yn uchel hefyd, fel soniodd Betsan.
Ond mae nifer o sgyrsiau'n digwydd gyda chwmnïau gemau fideo mawr, er enghraifft, sydd ddim ond yn un elfen o hwn, lle mae diddordeb mawr gyda nhw mewn creu gemau cyfrwng Cymraeg neu gyfieithu ac yn y blaen. Felly, llawer o elfennau gwahanol, a byddem ni'n awyddus, felly, i weld yr elfennau gwahanol yma yn dod at ei gilydd mewn ffordd llawer mwy strategol nag yw hi ar hyn o bryd. Ond, yn sicr, mae'r mentrau wedi gweld llwyddiant o safbwynt darpariaeth ddigidol ac yn awyddus i barhau i weithio gyda phartneriaid i ddatblygu ymhellach hefyd.
Yes. Thank you very much. And I agree entirely with the comments made by Betsan, Siân and Helgard, in terms of further investment, so that Welsh-medium digital provision of high quality is available and that online Welsh-medium content also increases. We have certainly seen demand for that. Now, before lockdown, the mentrau had very successful networks of digital clubs for children and young people across Wales. So, we were in quite a strong position to develop those further during the lockdown, but again we would welcome any further conversations on how we can develop those further, in a far more strategic way than is the case at the moment.
Very recently, we have been looking at the impact of our digital activities, and have seen that some 220,000 people are involved with our digital activities, and that over 2 million had viewed or seen our digital activity. So, certainly, we've had a very positive response from people, and we'd be very eager to develop that in a more diverse manner over the next period. But we also see challenges in terms of the older generation, who perhaps aren't as eager to use technology or need significant support in developing their digital skills. And certainly a number of mentrau iaith have been working with those individuals in order to ensure that they can meet other Welsh speakers over Zoom or other platforms.
And, also, we see an opportunity in terms of the digital industries, in terms of creating more Welsh-medium jobs, supporting young people to work in this area, as they develop their careers. So, there are also a number of opportunities, but also challenges in terms of maintaining this provision over the ensuing period, and ensuring that the quality of the provision is there too, as Betsan mentioned.
There are a number of conversations happening with large gaming companies, for example, which is only one element of this, where they're very interested in creating Welsh-medium games or having translation available. So there are many different elements, and we would be eager to see those different elements brought together in a strategic manner or a far more strategic manner than it is at the moment. But certainly the mentrau have seen some success in digital provision and are eager to continue working with partnerships to develop things further.
Diolch. Carwyn.
Thank you. Carwyn.
Diolch, Cadeirydd. Mae yna lawer o gwestiynau fanna sydd wedi cael eu hateb roeddwn i'n mynd i ofyn. Un peth sydd ar ôl gyda fi, a'r cwestiwn yw hyn: mae'n amlwg, i fi, bod yn rhaid darparu mwy o adnoddau er mwyn creu platfform digidol. Pa adnoddau ydych chi wedi gorfod eu darparu er mwyn sicrhau bod y platfform digidol iawn gyda chi? Faint o arian ydych chi wedi gorfod hala?
Thank you, Chair. A number of the questions I was going to ask have been answered. But one question remains for me. It's clear, to me, that we need to provide more resources to create a digital platform. What resources have you had to provide in order to ensure that you have the right digital platforms? How much have you had to invest?
Betsan, os ydych chi'n moyn dechrau.
Betsan, if you'd like to start.
O ran edrych ar jest y defnydd o Zoom, mi oedd yn rhaid i ni gael yr un proffesiynol a phob dim ar gyfer rhoi gweithgareddau a phob dim. Felly, mae'n rhaid wrth fod yna 10 person yn cael cyfrifon. Felly, mae hynny'n £15 y cyfrif, ac yn y blaen, y mis. Ond, wrth gwrs, yn hwy na hynny, mae pobl—. Pan gychwynnon ni'r cyfnod cloi, roedd pobl yn derbyn bod rhywbeth yn cael ei ffilmio yn yr ystafell wely a phob dim, ac mi oedd pobl yn gwerthfawrogi bod yna rywbeth yn digwydd, ond mae pobl erbyn hyn yn disgwyl llawer gwell. Felly, pan ddaethom ni fewn i wythnos yr Eisteddfod, mi oeddem ni'n creu cynyrchiadau, a dyna oedd Maes B o Bell, dyna beth oedd Tŷ Gwerin o Bell, a dyna beth oedd yn bwysig: yr ansawdd. Yn yr un modd, o ran creu gyda'r oriel rithwir, mae e'n costio.
Felly, mae'r adnoddau ei hunain, ond hefyd yr arbenigedd. Felly, mi ddaethom ni fewn â golygyddion i gynorthwyo wrth inni greu AmGen, oherwydd mi oedd angen torri'r deunyddiau, roedd angen eu gwneud nhw a'u proffesiynoli nhw. Achos yr hyn oedd yn bwysig oedd nad oedden ni'n teimlo bod ein cynnyrch ni yn eilradd mewn unrhyw fodd. Felly, mae hynny. Ac, wrth gwrs, doeddem ni ddim yn cael unrhyw incwm. Felly, yn wahanol i Eisteddfod arferol, pan ŷm ni'n talu am gomisiwn ac mae rhywun yn talu am docyn i ddod i mewn, doedd hynny ddim yn digwydd. Mi wnaethom ni drafod y posibilrwydd o orfod codi tâl, ond roeddem ni yn teimlo, gyda phob dim oedd yn digwydd, a gyda llesiant pobl, a bod pobl dros nos yn colli cyfleoedd i gymdeithasu a phob dim, mi oedd rhoi'r barrier ariannol yna yn ormod.
A dyna un o'r pethau mae nifer o wyliau nawr yn cwestiynu. Gan fod yna gyfleoedd wedi cael eu rhoi am ddim yn awr, os oes gennym ni flynyddoedd ymhellach lle nad oes modd inni i greu'r gwyliau'n draddodiadol, ydym ni'n mynd i fod yn edrych ar greu'r wal ariannol ar gyfer pobl i gael mynediad? Felly, o'm rhan i, dwi'n credu beth sydd angen sicrhau yw bod yna gyfleoedd i ni gael cymorth digidol, ein bod ni hefyd yn gallu arwain ar ddatblygu beth sydd angen yn ddigidol. Achos dwi'n credu yn hytrach nag ein bod ni'n benthyg o wlad arall, mae gennym ni'r arbenigedd o fewn Cymru. Petaech chi'n edrych ar y prosiectau sy'n digwydd ar hyn o bryd yn Clwstwr, mae'n brawf bod gennym ni'r arbenigwyr fan hyn, ac mi allwn ni fod yn arwain ac ar flaen y gad ar gyfer gwireddu'r ongl ddigidol yma.
Ond, wrth gwrs, mae yna oblygiadau i bob un ohonom ni sydd fan hyn, oherwydd wrth inni greu cynnyrch digidol am ddim, mae'n golygu nad oes yna ffynhonnell incwm yn dod mewn i ni, a dyna beth sy'n gwneud y sefyllfa'n fregus iawn. Oherwydd roedd ein bwrdd ni'n gwbl glir: mae'n rhaid inni greu ac mae angen yr hyn roeddem ni'n creu yn ystod AmGen. Ac mae'r ymateb wrth y gynulleidfa wedi bod—pobl yn dweud eu bod nhw'n teimlo'n ynysig, roedd yna rywbeth oedd yn eu cadw nhw i fynd drwy'r wythnosau anodd yna. Ac rydw i'n credu roedd hwnna'n ganolog, ond hefyd bod y Gymraeg yn rhan ganolog o ddigidol, ond wrth gwrs, heb incwm, mae pob un o nifer o sefydliadau'n mynd i orfod crebachu. Mae'n rhaid i bob un ohonom ni edrych o ran staffio a phopeth oherwydd, ar ddiwedd y dydd, busnes ŷm ni ac mae'n rhaid i'r busnes i dalu am ei hun.
In terms of just looking at the use of Zoom, we had to have the professional version of Zoom in order to stage activities. So, we had to have 10 people who were licensed. So, that's £15 per month per account. But, of course, in addition to that, people—. When we began lockdown, people accepted that things were being filmed in bedrooms, and people appreciated that there was something happening, but people now expect far better quality. So when we came into Eisteddfod week, we were creating productions, and that's what Maes B o Bell was, that's what Tŷ Gwerin o Bell was too, and that's what was important: the quality. And, likewise, with our virtual gallery, it does cost money.
So the resources themselves cost money, as does the expertise. So we brought editors in to assist us as we created AmGen, because we needed to edit materials, they needed to be professionalised. Because it was important that we didn't feel that our output was of secondary quality in any way. So, there was that. And, of course, we didn't get any income. So, unlike an usual Eisteddfod, where we pay for a commission and someone pays an entrance fee, well, that didn't happen. We did discuss the possibility of charging a fee, but we did feel, given everything that was happening and issues with people's well-being and that people were losing out on opportunities to socialise overnight, putting that financial barrier in place was too much of a big ask.
So, this is one of the things that a number of festivals are now questioning. As opportunities have been provided free of charge, in future years if we're still not able to have our traditional festivals, then are we going to be looking at creating a paywall so that people access this material? So, from my point of view, what we need to ensure is that there are the opportunities available to us to access digital support, but also that we can lead on developments digitally. So, rather than always taking from elsewhere, we have that expertise in Wales. If you look at the projects ongoing at the moment in Clwstwr, it's proof that we have the specialists here, and we can lead the way, and we can be in the vanguard in terms of delivering digital.
But, of course, there are implications for all of us here, because as we create digital material free of charge, it does mean that we don't have income sources, and that's what makes the situation very fragile indeed. Our board was quite clear: we do have to continue to be creative and there was a need for what we created during AmGen. And the response of our audiences has been very positive. People were saying that they felt isolated and it was something that kept people going through those difficult weeks. And I think that was centrally important, but also that the Welsh language was a central part of digital output, but without an income, each of our organisations will shrink. We will have to look at our staffing because, at the end of the day, we're running businesses and those businesses have to pay for themselves.
Wrth gwrs. Sori i dorri ar eich traws chi, Betsan, ond rydw i'n ymwybodol iawn o'r amser. Helgard.
Of course. Sorry to interrupt, Betsan, but I'm very aware of the time. Helgard.
Monetising digital activities is the holy grail for all of us, and I think that's the main challenge because we know that we can't charge the same for some digital activities—we can charge for some but not for others. And I think that that's the question. It's particularly true for the Welsh language where the market is even less competitive in a way, because it's more competitive because we're competing with other languages. So, monetising our activities is challenging whilst also having had the cut in income. So, everything that Betsan really said.
I don't think you're talking about enormous sums of funding. I think what you're talking about is the right people having the head space and the time to devote to doing something that isn't just their own personal hobby horse, that is something that works across Wales, that takes into account the various different aspects. So, it's about getting the time and space of the creative people to develop that and then having the back-up offer of funding. But monetising digital is extremely difficult.
Thank you. Siân.
Wel, yn amlwg, rwy'n rhannu sylwadau Betsan. O ran y gwaith cymunedol, mae pobl ifanc yn hapus ar Zoom ond maen nhw'n disgwyl pethau o safon arbennig, sgyrsiau a gweithdai wythnosol. Ond wrth ystyried yr Eisteddfod, mae angen hyfforddi pobl sut i ymwneud efo ni o ran Eisteddfod ddigidol; mae angen sicrhau bod yna arbenigwyr, fel mae Betsan wedi dweud, yn cyfrannu i greu safon gwell ar gyfer y cynnwys, ar gyfer y gwylwyr hefyd, ac mae'n rhaid i ni wella'r safon. Beth rydym ni wedi gwneud yw bod yn gystadleuol. Os dydy pobl ddim yn 'engage-io', mae hwnna'n risg mawr. Felly, fel roedd Helgard yn dweud, dydy'r cost ddim yn eithriadol, ond mae'n gost ychwanegol mewn cyfnod o brinder arian sylweddol. Dwi'n meddwl rydym ni ar hyn o bryd yn rhoi resilience cais mewn i'r arts resilience yn benodol ar gyfer y costau o ddatblygu ein cynnig digidol ar gyfer Eisteddfod blwyddyn nesaf os na fydd Eisteddfod mewn cae. Hyd at rhyw £150,000 rydym ni'n gallu ceisio amdano o fewn yr arts resilience, a dylai hwnna fod yn ddigonol ond rydym ni hefyd yn mynd mewn i fyd lle mae'n rhaid i'n staff ni weithredu'n glou iawn i allu addasu i'r gofynion digidol sydd ohoni. Ac efo ni, efo cymaint o staff yn dal ar furlough, mae angen i ni ailhyfforddi wrth bod y staff yna'n dod nol ac hyfforddi'r staff sydd gyda ni'n barod. Felly, rhannu sylwadau, ond rydym ni efallai'n benodol, o ran ein product ni, yr Eisteddfod yw'r un fwyaf o ran y cynnwys digidol.
Well, clearly, I agree with Betsan. In terms of our community work, young people are happy on Zoom, but they do expect quality in the weekly chats and workshops. But in considering the Eisteddfod, we need to train people how to engage with us in a digital Eisteddfod; we need to ensure that we have specialists, as Betsan has said, in generating higher quality content for our viewers too and we have to increase standards. What we have been doing is being competitive and if people don't engage that's going to be a huge risk. So, as Helgard said, the costs aren't huge, but it is an additional cost at a period of real financial difficulty. I think that at the moment we're putting in a resilience bid to the arts resilience fund particularly for the costs of developing our digital offer for next year's Eisteddfod if we don't have a traditional Eisteddfod in a field. We can apply for up to £150,000 from that resilience fund, and that should be adequate but we're also entering a world where our staff have to operate very quickly and adapt very quickly to the digital requirements upon them. And given that we have so many staff still on furlough, then we have to retrain our staff as they return and to retrain the staff that we already have. So, I share the comments already made, but in terms of our product, the Eisteddfod is the biggest one in terms of digital output.
Diolch. Lowri.
Thank you. Lowri.
Diolch. Ie, rwy'n cytuno â'r sylwadau blaenorol. Yn sicr, o ran costau, costau cynhyrchu deunydd gwelon ni dros y cyfnod diwethaf, ac rwy'n cytuno bod ansawdd yn greiddiol i hwn gan ein bod ni'n cystadlu gyda chynnyrch o ansawdd uchel iawn mewn ieithoedd eraill, yn enwedig drwy gyfrwng y Saesneg, ac mae disgwyliadau plant a phobl ifanc a phobl hŷn erbyn hyn yn uchel o ran cynnyrch digidol. Felly, yn sicr, byddwn i'n awyddus i weld mwy o fuddsoddiad o ran hynny.
Ar draws y mentrau, mae yna arbenigedd o ran creu deunydd ac yn y blaen, ond mae yna hefyd gyfleoedd i hyfforddi mwy o staff achos os taw dyma fydd ein prif blaenoriaeth ni dros y misoedd nesaf, mae angen i ni fod mewn sefyllfa da o ran gallu creu'r cynnyrch yma. Rydym yn awyddus i drafod â phartneriaid a gweld buddsoddiad pellach fel bod yna gynnyrch unigryw o ansawdd da gyda ni yng Nghymru i rannu gyda'n siaradwyr a'n dysgwyr ni ar draws ein cymunedau. A dyna'r galw rŷn ni'n gweld yn lleol, yn enwedig gan blant a phobl ifanc, ond fel roeddwn i'n sôn yn gynharach, gan rieni a phlant mewn addysg Gymraeg sy'n chwilio am ddeunydd amrywiol a chyfleoedd i gymryd rhan yn rhyngweithiol mewn sesiynau. Felly, dros y cyfnod diwethaf buodd y mentrau'n cynnal llawer o sesiynau o weithgareddau amrywiol—celf a chrefft, gemau fideo, sesiynau chwarae gyda rhieni—a'r blaenoriaeth yw ein bod ni'n ehangu ac yn datblygu'r rhaglen yna yn gyson i gadw i fyny gyda'r cynnyrch mewn ieithoedd eraill sydd allan yna. Felly sefyllfa debyg iawn ac mae diddordeb mawr gennym mewn datblygu sgiliau'n gweithwyr ni i sicrhau bod y ddarpariaeth yna gyda ni.
Thank you. Yes, I agree with previous comments. Certainly, in terms of the costs, it's the cost of producing materials that we've seen over recent months, and I agree that quality is at the heart of this as we are competing with very high-quality materials in other languages, particularly the English language, and the expectations of children and young people and older people now are very high in terms of digital output. So, certainly, we'd be eager to see more investment.
Across the mentrau, we do have expertise in creating material, but there are also opportunities to train more staff because if this is to be our main priority over the next few months then we need to be in a strong position in terms of delivering this output. We're eager to have discussions with partners and to see further investment so that there is unique high-quality output here in Wales that we can share with our Welsh speakers and Welsh learners across the community. And that is the demand that we're seeing locally, particularly from children and young people, but as I mentioned earlier, from parents whose children are in Welsh medium education who are seeking diverse materials and opportunities to interact in sessions virtually. So, over recent times the mentrau have held a number of diverse activity sessions—arts, video games, play sessions with parents—and the priority is to expand and develop that programme consistently to keep up with what's happening in other languages. So it's a very similar position and we're very interested in developing the skills of our workforce to ensure that that provision is available.
Diolch yn fawr. Unrhyw beth pellach, Carwyn?
Thank you. Anything further to add, Carwyn?
Na, diolch.
No, thank you.
Diolch. Jest cyn i fi dynnu John mewn, a set arall o gwestiynau, a gaf i ofyn i'r tystion os dŷn ni'n rhedeg dros yr amser o rhyw bum munud, rhywbeth fel yna, ydych chi mewn sefyllfa i aros gyda ni? Jest tamed bach yn bellach. Diolch yn fawr iawn. John.
Thank you. Before I bring John in with another set of questions, I would like to ask witnesses if we do run over by about five minutes, are you in a position to remain with us? Just a little longer. Yes. Thank you very much. John.
Diolch, Cadeirydd. I wonder if we could deal a little more with workforce issues and funding. We're awaiting the UK Government's Chancellor of the Exchequer's statement this afternoon, and obviously we don't know what that will say, but we do know that as things stand the furlough scheme is due to end at the end of next month. So, I wondered if you could say a little bit about, you know, as things stand with the furlough scheme due to end, then what that means for your organisations, and particularly in terms of any planned redundancies.
Siân, mi wnaf i gychwyn gyda chi, achos dwi'n gwybod bod gennych chi eithaf lot o bobol ar furlough ar hyn o bryd, onid oes?
Siân, I'll start with you, because I know that you have quite a few people on furlough at the moment.
Ie. Diolch, John. Oes, mae tri chwarter ein gweithlu ni ar furlough ar hyn o bryd, ac rydym ni wedi gorfod mynd drwy broses o ymgynghori ac ailstrwythuro cenedlaethol yn ystod y cyfnod presennol o furlough er mwyn sicrhau bod ein costau ni o ran diswyddiadau yn digwydd yn ystod y misoedd i ddod, ac erbyn diwedd mis Hydref byddwn ni wedi, erbyn hynny, diswyddo bron i 150 o staff. Bu'n rhaid i ni wneud oherwydd—i oresgyn, gobeithio, yn ariannol.
Felly, dyna'n sefyllfa ni ar hyn o bryd. Pan ddown ni nôl, byddwn ni'n hanner y gweithlu oedden ni—yn agos i 160 o staff yn gweithio i'r Urdd. Felly mae'r sefyllfa furlough wedi'n helpu ni yn y tymor byr yn sicr. Hebddo fe, bydden ni wedi rhagweld diswyddo llawer mwy o'r gweithlu ac efallai wedi cael ein gadael â rhyw 25 y cant o weithlu'r Urdd ar gyfer y tymor hir.
Yes. Thank you, John. Three quarters of our workforce are currently on furlough, and we've had to go through a consultation process on national restructuring during this current furlough period in order to ensure that any redundancies occur in the coming months, and by the end of October we will have lost some 150 staff. We had to do so in order, hopefully, to survive in financial terms.
So, that's our situation at the moment. When we return, our workforce will have been halved—there will be almost 160 staff working for the Urdd. So furlough has assisted us in the short term, certainly. Without it, we would have seen far more job losses which would possibly have left us with about 25 per cent of our staff for the longer term.
Diolch. Betsan.
Thank you. Betsan.
Ar hyn o bryd, mae hanner ein staff ni ar furlough, ac wrth gwrs, fel gwnaethoch chi nodi, mae hynny'n dod i ben. Un o'r pethau mae'n bwrdd ni yn edrych arno ar hyn o bryd yw'r opsiynau ar gyfer 2021. Felly, mae yna saith opsiwn, yn edrych o Eisteddfod arferol yr holl ffordd lawr i ddigidol bur, ac opsiynau AmGen o wahanol feintiau yn mynd lawr i hynny, oherwydd mae'n rhaid i ni edrych ar beth sy'n bosib. A hefyd, mae gennym ni amserlen o ran pryd bydd angen gwneud penderfyniadau, felly ym mis Tachwedd bydd yn rhaid gwneud penderfyniad o ran Eisteddfod arferol. Mi fydd yn rhaid wedi hynny, yn y gwanwyn, edrych os oes modd cael hybrid, lle mae yna ddigwyddiad byw llai, gyda digidol a phob dim, a gyda hynny, byddai'n rhaid i ni edrych ar y strwythurau fydd eu hangen ar gyfer eu gwireddu nhw. Felly, fel gyda phobl eraill, mae yna ansicrwydd mawr, oherwydd tan fod yna—. Mae yna gyfnod ehangach nawr o farciau cwestiwn o ran cloi, ac mae yna oblygiadau ar gyfer gwyliau oherwydd hynny. Felly mi fyddwn ni dros y misoedd nesaf yn edrych ar yr opsiynau ac wedyn yn penderfynu beth sydd ei angen ar gyfer eu gwireddu nhw.
At the moment, half of our staff are on furlough, and as you noted, that's to come to an end. One of the things that our board is looking at at the moment is options for 2021. So, there are seven options, looking from a traditional Eisteddfod all the way down to pure digital, and there are alternative AmGen options of different sizes down to that, because we do have to look at what's possible. And, of course, we do have a timetable in terms of when decisions have to be made. So in November we will have to make a decision on a traditional Eisteddfod, and in the spring we'll have to consider whether we can have a hybrid, where there's a smaller live event, with digital, and then we will need to look at the structures needed to deliver those. So, as with others, there is great uncertainty, because of course until—. There are now longer term question marks in terms of lockdown, and there are implications for festivals as a result of that. Over the next few months, we will look at the options and decide what we need to deliver those.
Diolch. Lowri.
Thank you. Lowri.
Diolch. Ie, mae yna ryw 300 o staff ar draws y mentrau fel arfer yn rhan o'n gweithlu. Mae yna ryw 200 o rheini wedi bod ar y cynllun furlough a chanran uchel o'r rheini wedi dychwelyd ym mis Medi achos bod canran uchel o'r gweithlu yna yn gweithio mewn gwasanaethau gofal plant ac yn y blaen, a busnesau fel caffis a siopau wedi ailagor yn raddol. Yn her efallai yn benodol gyda'n gwasanaethau gofal plant ni, gan fod y rheini'n agor yn eithaf graddol yn dibynnu ar sefyllfaoedd ysgolion a chyfyngiadau, yw os yw rhai o'r staff yna yn parhau ar y cynllun arbed swyddi a'n bod ni ddim wedi llwyddo i agor yn llawn ar ddiwedd hynny—ar ddiwedd Hydref—fe fydd rhai o'r mentrau mewn sefyllfaoedd heriol iawn o ran y swyddi hynny ac yn gorfod, o bosib, ystyried diswyddiadau.
Felly, dyna'r brif her i ni, gan ein bod ni'n aml iawn yn gorfod adlewyrchu cyfyngiadau o fewn ysgolion, a hefyd yn gweld heriau wrth fod achosion COVID yn codi, fod darpariaethau yn gorfod cau am gyfnod, wedyn yn ailagor. Ac wrth gwrs, wrth fod staff efallai yn cael profion neu yn sâl, mae rheoli darpariaeth wedyn yn mynd yn heriol iawn. Felly, fe fydd y cyfnod ar ôl mis Hydref yn anodd iawn os yw'r cynllun arbed swyddi'n dod i ben, fel dŷn ni'n disgwyl, o ran parhau i gynnal y gwasanaeth angenrheidiol yna i rieni, drwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg, sy'n ceisio dychwelyd i weithio neu'n cyfuno gweithio o gartref, ac yn y blaen. Ac, wrth gwrs, y gwerth mawr hefyd yw bod y swyddi yna'n swyddi cyfrwng Cymraeg o fewn sectorau penodol, a'n bod ni eisiau gweld gweithleoedd cyfrwng Cymraeg yn cynyddu, nid yn crebachu. Felly, sawl her inni dros y cyfnod nesaf rhwng nawr a'r flwyddyn newydd, yn sicr.
Thank you. Yes, we have some 300 staff across the mentrau as part of our workforce. Some 200 of those have been on furlough and a high percentage of those returned in September, because a high percentage worked in childcare and so on and so forth, and businesses such as cafes and shops, which gradually reopened. The particular challenge for our childcare services, as they are opening gradually and are reliant on the positions of schools and restrictions, is that if some of those staff continue on furlough and we haven't managed to reopen fully at the end of the scheme in October, then some of the mentrau will face very challenging situations in terms of those posts and may possibly have to consider redundancies.
So, those are the main challenges for us, as we very often have to reflect what's happening within schools, and we also see challenges as cases of COVID increase, that provision will again have to close down and then reopen. And of course, as staff are tested or become ill, then managing provision also becomes very challenging indeed. So, the period after October will be very difficult if the furlough programme comes to an end as expected, in terms of maintaining those necessary services for parents, through the medium of Welsh, who are seeking to return to the workplace or are combining working from home with childcare. And, of course, the great value is that those jobs are Welsh-medium jobs within particular sectors, and that we do want to see Welsh-medium workplaces increasing rather than disappearing. So, there are a number of challenges for us between now and the new year, certainly.
Diolch. Helgard.
Thank you. Helgard.
Roedd y cynllun ffyrlo yn help mawr i ni, yn bendant. Mae 45 o staff gyda ni, a tua hanner, ers y dechrau, wedi bod ar ffyrlo. Mae rhai wedi dod yn ôl yn rhan-amser, ond mae yna bryderon am beth sy'n digwydd pan mae'r cynllun yn dod i ben. Mae'r cyngor llyfrau yn un o'r sefydliadau sy'n rhedeg ei wasanaethau a gwaith gweinyddu yn gyfan gwbl drwy'r Gymraeg; mae 100 y cant o'n staff ni yn siarad Cymraeg a dŷn ni'n rhedeg popeth drwy'r Gymraeg. Ac, wrth gwrs, yn Aberystwyth, ble'r ydyn ni, dŷn ni'n gyflogwr reit mawr hefyd, so dwi'n poeni am beth fydd yr impact arnon ni fel sefydliad, ond hefyd i Geredigion.
Nawr, wrth gwrs, pan dŷch chi'n colli hanner gwerthiant, mae'n rhaid ichi edrych ar lefelau staffio, ond hefyd yr heriau sydd wedi dod gyda'r sgiliau newydd sydd eu hangen. So, dwi'n gobeithio y byddwn ni'n gallu ailhyfforddi staff i ddarparu gwasanaethau sydd eu hangen nawr yn hytrach na phethau eraill, ond mae'n heriol. Hefyd, gyda'r warws, gyda'r ganolfan ddosbarthu, mae'n rhaid ichi gael staff craidd beth bynnag yw'r gwerthiant, ac mae'n rhaid ichi ddarparu'r gwasanaethau. Ac i ni, y prif flaenoriaeth, ar ôl cadw'r staff yn ddiogel, oedd i gadw'r ganolfan ddosbarthu i fynd, achos os dŷn ni'n cau, does neb yn gallu cael gafael ar lyfrau Cymraeg—dyna yw'r gwir, achos ni sy'n cadw'r holl stoc o bron popeth. So, dŷn ni, ar hyn o bryd, er enghraifft, yn rhedeg dau dîm sydd byth yn cwrdd, jest i sicrhau os yw un rhan yn mynd yn sâl, dŷn ni ddim angen cau popeth i lawr. So, mae yn heriol.
Dŷn ni hefyd wedi dechrau siarad â staff am beth maen nhw'n moyn gwneud—os oes yna bobl sy'n moyn ymddeol yn gynnar neu dorri oriau, ac yn y blaen—cyn mynd drwy'r broses ffurfiol. Ond mae bendant angen wynebu bod yna—dŷn ni ddim yn mynd nôl i beth sydd wedi bod gyda ni, ac mae hwnna yn heriol, wrth gwrs.
The furlough programme was certainly a huge assistance to us. We have 45 staff and around half of those have been on furlough. Some have returned on a part-times basis, but there are concerns about what happens when the furlough programme comes to an end. Now, the Welsh Books Council is one of the only organisations running all our administration through the medium of Welsh; 100 per cent of our staff speak Welsh, and we run everything through the medium of Welsh. And in Aberystwyth we're quite a major employer, so I am concerned about the impact upon us as an institution, but also for Ceredigion too.
Of course, when you lose half of your sales, then you do have to look at your staffing levels, but also at the challenges in terms of the new skills required. So, I hope we'll be able to retrain staff so that they can provide the services that are required now, but it is challenging. And also, with our distribution centre and warehouse, we do have to have those core staff; whatever your sales are, you do have to provide those services. And for us, the main priority, after keeping staff safe, was to keep the distribution centre going, because if we close, then nobody can access Welsh-language publications—that's the reality, because we keep virtually all the stock. So, at the moment, we're running two teams that never meet, just to ensure that if one part of the operation falls ill, we don't have to close everything down. So, it is challenging.
We've also started speaking to staff about what they want to do—if there are people who want to retire early or to cut hours—before going through any formal processes. But we do certainly have to face up to the fact that we won't return to what we've had in the past, and this is hugely challenging, of course.
Diolch. John.
Thank you. John.
Thanks for that. Obviously, the furlough scheme is very important and has been very beneficial, but in terms of COVID grants, could you tell us to what extent you're in receipt of those grants—I know you've touched on some of that already—and particularly, what those moneys are being used for?
I'll just bring David in as well at this point. David. It's still mute.
Thank you, Chair. With your indulgence, and my apologies to John, I just wondered, on a previous question—. What the Chancellor is hinting at is there will be a sort of top-up scheme where previously furloughed workers would be brought back, and say 50 per cent of their salary will be paid by the Government, but 50 per cent would have to come from the organisations. Would that help you at all, or is there just a lack of activity for people to be employed meaningfully at the moment? So, on that scheme, which seems to be likely to be announced this afternoon, is it going to help you or not, or are we still facing these huge numbers of redundancies in this vital sector?
Os dŷch chi'n gallu ymateb i hwn, a wedyn down ni nôl at y grantiau COVID eraill y mae John wedi cyfeirio atyn nhw. Siân, fyddai hynny o help i chi?
If you could respond to that, and then we'll return to the other COVID grants that John mentioned. Siân, would that assist you?
Ddim wir, na. Dŷn ni angen edrych ar yn union beth fydd y cynnig cyn ein bod ni'n gallu rhoi rhyw fath o benderfyniad penodol am hyn. Ond, help byr dymor iawn yw hyn, a'n consyrn ni yn yr Urdd yw does gyda ni ddim y cyllid—dŷn ni ddim yn rhagweld y bydd gyda ni'r cyllid yn y flwyddyn neu ddwy i ddod i allu dalu'r bobl yma pan ddown nhw'n ôl. Dŷn ni wedi mynd drwy'r broses o redundancies, neu'r VRs, neu ymddiswyddo yn y cyfnod ffyrlo nawr, er mwyn inni allu arbed ychydig o arian i'r Urdd. Pe byddem ni'n parhau â'r gwaith a'u cyflogi nhw yn y tymor byr, does gyda ni ddim ceiniog i allu hyd yn oed talu 50 y cant o'u cyflogau yn ychwanegol. Hefyd, fel mae David wedi'i ddweud, mae yna elfen ar hyn o bryd, yn y cyfnod byr iawn, o fethu mynd mewn i ysgolion, methu cynnal gweithgareddau efo torf fawr o bobl. Faint mwy o staff am gyfnod byr dŷn ni eu hangen yn ystod y lockdown sydd yn digwydd? Felly, mewn ffordd, mae'n haws inni, os nag oes arian sylweddol yn dod mas o'r ffyrlo newydd yma, i dderbyn lle'r ydym ni, a pharhau efo'r proses staffio dŷn ni wedi rhoi yn ei lle ar gyfer y dyfodol. Pan ddown ni yn ôl, dyna'r her i ni: bydd gyda ni ddim y staff dŷn ni eu hangen i allu get back on track quick. Dyna'r her yn y tymor byr.
Not really, no. We need to look at exactly what the offer is before we can make any serious comments on this. But, this is short-term assistance, very short term, and our greatest concern in the Urdd is that we don't anticipate that we will have the finances in a year or two's time to continue to pay these people. So, we've gone through a redundancy programme and the VR in furlough now so that we can save some money. If we continue to employ staff in the short term, we don't have a penny available even to pay 50 per cent of those salaries. As David has said, there is an element at the moment, in the very short term, of not being able to go into schools, not being able to stage activities with large groups of people. So, how many staff in the short term do we need during lockdown? In a way, it's easier for us, unless there is significant funding in this new furlough, to accept the situation as it is and to continue with the staffing process that we have put in place for the future. When we return, that will be the challenge for us: we won't have the staff that we need to get back on track quick. That's the challenge in the short term.
Diolch. Betsan.
Thank you. Betsan.
Ie, yn sicr; dyna pam dŷn ni'n edrych ar yr opsiynau a beth fydd ei angen. Felly, wrth gwrs, gydag unrhyw gymorth pellach, mae'n golygu gwahaniaeth o ran gorfod gwneud penderfyniadau anodd a gallu cadw i fynd am flwyddyn yn hwy. Beth fydd rhaid inni edrych arno, dros y ddwy flynedd nesaf, yw fel y gall y corff weithredu, beth yw'r arian sydd ei angen, a hefyd beth yw'r incwm a fydd yn gallu dod. Felly, mae'r incwm yr oedd John yn sôn amdano yn hollbwysig, o ran y grantiau a fydd yn gallu helpu corff i weithredu yn y cyfnod anodd yma.
Yes, certainly; that's why we are looking at the options and what will be needed. So, with any further support, it will mean the difference in terms of having to make difficult decisions and being able to keep going for a year longer. But, what we'll have to look at in the next two years is how the organisation can operate, what funding is required, and what income can be generated. The income that John mentioned is crucially important, in terms of the grants that can assist organisations to operate during these difficult times.
Diolch. Helgard.
Thank you. Helgard.
I think that our situation is slightly different, in that the 50 per cent would make a small difference, but it's the commercial activity that we need in order to have people working. The biggest single impact that the Welsh Government could make is to buy books for schools and libraries, because we have products sitting in the warehouse. It's there. It's useful. It helps education and so forth. So, that would be far more impactful—and, dare I say, actually cheaper—for Government, because we are not talking about millions. Similar schemes have existed in the past of between £300,000 and £500,000 to invest in books for libraries and schools. So, we are, in that respect, very different. But, it's the commercial activity that is lacking, because none of our bookshops at the moment, for example, are fully open. They have reduced opening hours. So, it's just the throughput that we need. To answer John's question, we are not in receipt of any COVID grants. We are distributing them. So, what we would like to see is investment in a book-buying scheme, effectively. That's what would make a tangible difference for us.
Diolch. Ac yn glou, Lowri.
Thank you. And quickly, Lowri.
Yn debyg i sylwadau blaenorol, byddai cynllun o'r fath yn prynu rhywfaint o amser inni. Byddai hynny'n amrywio o fenter i fenter, ac o wasanaeth i wasanaeth, ond yn prynu amser ac yn ateb byr dymor iawn. Os dŷn ni ddim yn gallu ailagor y ddarpariaeth i gynhyrchu incwm ar gyfer y dyfodol, byddai'n gyfnod byr iawn o ran dod â'r staff yna nôl. Yr her fawr gyda hynny yw ein bod ni'n colli sgiliau gweithwyr cyfrwng Cymraeg, ac mae'n cymryd amser, yn aml, i adeiladu gweithlu cyfrwng Cymraeg gyda'r sgiliau a'r profiad. Felly, byddai'n ateb byr dymor iawn inni.
Similar to previous comments, such a scheme would buy us some time. That would vary from one menter to another, and one service to another. But, it would buy time and it would be a very short-term solution. Unless we can reopen provision and generate income for the future, then it would be a very brief period of bringing those staff back. The huge challenge of that is that we lose the skills of Welsh-medium staff, and it takes time very often to build a Welsh language workforce who have that skills and experience. So, it would be a very short-term solution for us.
Diolch yn fawr iawn. Mae wir yn ddrwg gen i, Aelodau a thystion. Rŷm ni 10 munud dros ein hamser, ac mae gennym sesiwn arall i ddod. Mae cwpl o gwestiynau ychwanegol; gyda'ch caniatâd chi, dystion, a allwn ni sgwennu atoch chi a gofyn am atebion ar bapur? Hefyd, os oes unrhyw beth arall rŷch chi'n credu sy'n bwysig ein bod ni fel pwyllgor yn ei ddeall—argymhellion yr hoffech ein gweld ni yn eu gwneud i Lywodraeth Cymru yn y cyfnod yma—mae croeso cynnes i chi ychwanegu unrhyw sylwadau pellach yn ysgrifenedig, os gwelwch yn dda.
Dŷn ni'n hynod o ddiolchgar i chi am eich amser ac am aros am amser ychwanegol. Dwi'n siŵr bod fy nghyd-Aelodau yn cytuno ei bod wedi bod yn sesiwn hynod ddefnyddiol i ni. Byddwn yn anfon transgript i chi o'r cyfarfod er mwyn i chi sicrhau ein bod ni wedi'i gofnodi'n gywir. Felly, diolch yn fawr i chi a diolch yn fawr iawn eto am eich amser. Gyd-Aelodau, dwi'n mynd i awgrymu ein bod ni'n cymryd brêc o ryw saith munud, rhywbeth fel yna, a dod nôl am 10:50 os gwelwch yn dda. A yw hynny'n iawn gyda'r staff? Felly, os gallwn ni droi'r darlledu i ffwrdd os gwelwch yn dda.
Thank you very much. I do apologise to Members and witnesses. We have run over by 10 minutes, and we do have a further session this morning. There are some additional questions, and with your permission, we will write to you with those questions and ask for a written response. If there is anything else that you think it's important that we as a committee should understand—any recommendations that you would like to see us make to the Welsh Government during this period—then you would be more than welcome to add any further comments in written form.
We're extremely grateful to you for your time and for staying with us a little longer this morning. I'm sure that fellow Members will agree that it's been a useful session for us. We will send you a transcript of the meeting so that you can check it for accuracy. So, thank you very much, and thank you again for your time. Fellow Members, I will now suggest that we take a break of some seven minutes, and that we return at 10:50. Is that okay with the staff? So, if we could turn the broadcast off for the time being.
Gohiriwyd y cyfarfod rhwng 10:40 a 10:51.
The meeting adjourned between 10:40 and 10:51.
Croeso cynnes i'n tystion ni. Diolch yn fawr iawn i chi am ymuno â ni. Gwnaf ofyn i chi gyflwyno eich rolau, a gwnaf i fynd o gwmpas o fan hyn, yn dechrau gyda Bethan.
A very warm welcome to our witnesses. Thank you very much for joining us. I will ask you to introduce yourselves. Could we start with Bethan?
Bore da. Bethan Ruth ydw i. Fi yw cadeirydd Cymdeithas yr Iaith eleni.
Good morning. I'm Bethan Ruth. I am chair of Cymdeithas yr Iaith this year.
Croeso cynnes i chi, Bethan. Efa.
A very warm welcome to you, Bethan. Efa.
Efa Gruffudd Jones, prif weithredwr y Ganolfan Dysgu Cymraeg Genedlaethol.
Efa Gruffudd Jones, chief executive of the National Centre for Learning Welsh.
Diolch yn fawr iawn i chi, Efa. Tegwen.
Thank you very much, Efa. Tegwen.
Tegwen Morris, cyfarwyddwr cenedlaethol Merched y Wawr.
I'm Tegwen Morris, the national director of Merched y Wawr.
A Caryl.
And Caryl.
Bore da. Caryl Haf, is-gadeirydd Clybiau Ffermwyr Ifanc Cymru.
Good morning. Caryl Haf, vice-chair of Young Farmers Clubs Wales.
Croeso cynnes i chi, a diolch yn fawr iawn i chi am ymuno â ni y bore yma. Mae yna bach o oedi os bydd rhywun yn siarad Cymraeg ac mae'r cyfieithu yn mynd yn ei flaen. Mae'n cymryd cwpl o eiliadau i'r cyfieithu ddala lan â chi. So, os ydych chi'n dod mewn ar ôl cyfraniad Cymraeg ei iaith, os ydych chi'n gallu rhoi pause bach. Fel arfer mae'n cymryd hyn a hyn i 'unmute-o' eich hun, beth bynnag. Ond jest fel bod ni ddim yn siarad ar draws. Ydy pawb yn hapus gyda phethau technegol? Dwi'n siŵr ein bod ni i gyd wedi arfer â'r byd rhithiol yma. So, croeso eto, ac fe awn ni yn syth mewn i gwestiynau, os mae hynny'n iawn gyda chi. Fe wnawn ni ddechrau gyda John Griffiths.
A very warm welcome to you, and thank you very much for joining us this morning. There is a slight delay when Welsh language contributions are made. It takes a few seconds for the volume to catch up, so if you are coming in after a Welsh language contribution, if you could just pause just for a second. It takes a few seconds to unmute yourselves in any case, but just so that we don't miss anything. Is everyone content with the technical side of things? I'm sure that we're all well used to these virtual meetings now. So, welcome once again, and we'll move immediately to questions if we may, and we'll start with John Griffiths.
Diolch yn fawr, Cadeirydd. Unfortunately, we've seen the cancellation of a lot of events and festivals because of the pandemic, at a national level and a regional and local level. Obviously, this has had quite an impact in terms of the use of the Welsh language and its promotion. So I wonder if you could tell us something about that in terms of your members and stakeholders, and also of course the effect on the community.
Diolch. Dylwn i fod wedi dweud yn gynt—gwnaf eich galw chi mewn. Os ydych chi'n awyddus i ateb rhyw gwestiwn, jest dangoswch fel yna. Dwi ddim cweit wedi dysgu sut i ddefnyddio'r llaw bach melyn, mae gen i ofn—yn dangos fy oedran, siŵr iawn. Pwy sydd eisiau cychwyn efo cwestiwn John ynglŷn â digwyddiadau? Mae Bethan yn barod i ddod mewn.
Thank you. I should have said earlier that I will call you. If you're eager to respond to a question, then please indicate by showing your hand. I haven't quite learned how to use the little yellow hand indicator—a sign of my age, I suppose. But who'd like to start with John's question? Bethan has indicated.
Roedd y crebachu mewn digwyddiadau, wrth gwrs, yn glec ariannol yn sicr i ni fel cymdeithas, achos dydyn ni ddim yn derbyn unrhyw arian cyhoeddus. Mae hwnnw, wrth gwrs, er mwyn i ni aros yn driw i'n pwrpas ni o allu cadw pobl yn atebol a gallu herio yn wleidyddol. Ond ie, rydyn ni'n cynnal wythnos o gigs yn ystod yr Eisteddfod Genedlaethol fel arfer, sydd yn ein galluogi ni i ariannu'r ymgyrchoedd sydd ar gyfer y flwyddyn i ddod. Felly, roedd hwn yn sicr yn ddigwyddiad yr oedden ni'n ei weld fel colled mawr yn ein calendr ni yn flynyddol. Wrth gwrs, o ran digwyddiadau yn ehangach, rydyn ni'n poeni beth fyddai'r effaith hirdymor arnom ni petaem ni'n parhau ddim i allu cwrdd yn gymdeithasol, achos rydyn ni wedi colli'r gallu i ddenu aelodau. Wrth gwrs, mae llawer o bobl yn cael eu denu i'r gymdeithas ac yn cael eu hatynnu i weithgarwch oherwydd yr hwyl a'r profiadau wyneb i wyneb—y trafodaethau, yr athronyddu a'r sgwrs yna sy'n ceisio pedlo'r sgwrs am y Gymraeg yn ei flaen. Felly, rydyn ni wedi gweld ein bod ni efallai'n colli bach o'r hud o hynny, rywsut, o gwrdd yn rhithiol yn unig.
The cancellation of events was a financial blow to us because we don't receive any public funding, and that of course is because we want to stay true to our purpose in challenging and keeping people accountable. But we do hold a week of gigs during the National Eisteddfod, which enables to fund our campaigns for the coming year, and certainly that was a huge loss to our annual calendar. Of course, in terms of broader events, we are concerned about the long-term impact upon us if we weren't able to meet socially in the future, because we'd lose the ability to attract members. Of course, many people are attracted to our activity because of the fun and the face-to-face interaction—the debates, the philosophising, and trying to drive the conversation on the Welsh language forward. So, we have seen that we’ve lost some of the magic there by just meeting virtually, perhaps.
Diolch. Caryl.
Diolch. Ie, rhywbeth tebyg i fel oedd Bethan yn sôn gyda Chymdeithas yr Iaith, a bod yn onest. Mae'r holl ddigwyddiadau mae'r mudiad yn eu trefnu wedi cael eu gohirio yn ystod 2020, ac ar hyn o bryd mae yna rai gweithgareddau o flwyddyn nesaf ymlaen wedi cael eu gohirio hefyd oherwydd y cyfyngiadau sydd gyda ni ar hyn o bryd. Mae'n amlwg mai'r peth mwyaf sydd gyda ni fel ffermwyr ifainc yw'r Sioe Frenhinol Cymru yn Llanelwedd, ac mae hynny'n rhywbeth pwysig sy'n digwydd inni bob blwyddyn, lle rydyn ni'n cynnal y pentref ieuenctid ar gyfer y nos, ond hefyd y cystadlaethau yn ystod y dydd, lle mae holl aelodau ffermwyr ifanc Cymru yn dod at ei gilydd i gystadlu yn erbyn ei gilydd, ond hefyd i fwynhau a siarad â'i gilydd, ac yn y blaen. Felly mae hynny'n rhywbeth sydd wedi dod â cholled enfawr i ni fel mudiad yn ystod y flwyddyn ddiwethaf, ac yn ystod y misoedd diwethaf yn bendant.
Ond hefyd, wrth gwrs, mae cyhoeddiad wedi bod, rhyw fis a hanner yn ôl bellach, fod eisteddfod y ffermwyr ifanc wedi cael ei gohirio. Mae'r eisteddfod yn teithio o amgylch Cymru, a sir Brycheiniog oedd fod i gynnal yr eisteddfod eleni, ar faes y sioe yn Llanelwedd. Felly, roedd hynny'n rhywbeth roeddem ni fel ffermwyr ifanc yn ei annog, oherwydd ein bod ni'n mynd i ardal ychydig mwy Seisnigaidd na'r arfer. Felly, roedd yn rhywbeth roeddem ni fel mudiad yn edrych arno er mwyn hybu'r Gymraeg drwy'r eisteddfod. Mae yna gystadleuaeth ar gyfer dysgwyr wedi bod gyda ni fel ffermwyr ifanc yn ystod y blynyddoedd diwethaf, ac roedd hi'n rhywbeth roedden ni'n adeiladu arno. Mi fydd gyda ni eisteddfod rithiol ond, wrth gwrs, fel mae rhai wedi sôn yn barod, dyw pethau rhithiol, efallai, ddim cystal â gweld pobl wyneb yn wyneb. Mae yna bobl yn cuddio tu ôl i gamera, neu efallai ddim mor hapus i leisio eu barn neu i siarad trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg dros y cyfrifiadur, mewn rhyw ffordd. Felly mae hynny yn dipyn o ergyd i ni fel mudiad, ond hefyd yn darged i ni edrych arno ar gyfer y dyfodol. Ond, wrth gwrs, mae'n mynd i'n bwrw ni yn ariannol yn ystod y misoedd nesaf hefyd.
Thank you. Yes, the situation is similar to the situation outlined by Bethan. All of the events that the organisation stages have had to be cancelled during 2020 and, at the moment, some activities scheduled for next year have also been postponed because of the restrictions that we’re currently facing. Clearly, the main event for us as young farmers is the Royal Welsh Show in Llanelwedd, and that’s an important event for us annually, where we stage the youth village for evening events, but also competitions during the day, where all members of the young farmers' clubs in Wales come together to compete against each other but also to enjoy activities and to converse. So that has been a huge loss for us as an organisation over the past year, and over the past few months certainly.
But also the announcement made around a month and a half ago, namely that the young farmers eisteddfod had to be postponed. The eisteddfod does travel the length and breadth of Wales, and Breconshire was to stage it this year on the Royal Welsh showground. That was something that we as young farmers were encouraging because we were going to a slightly more Anglicised area than usual, and so it was something that we as an organisation were looking to to promote the Welsh language, through the eisteddfod. We’ve had a learners’ competition over the past few years, and it was something that we were building upon. We will have a virtual eisteddfod but, of course, as has already been mentioned, virtual events aren’t perhaps as positive as face-to-face events. People can hide behind their cameras and perhaps aren’t as willing to express their views or to contribute through the medium of Welsh over the internet. So, that is quite a blow for us as an organisation, but it does provide us with a target for the future as well. But it is going to hit us financially over the next few months also.
Diolch, Caryl. Tegwen.
Diolch ichi. Yn ariannol, yn sicr mae wedi cael effaith. Rydyn ni, fel mudiad, yn cynnal rhyw 3,000 o ddigwyddiadau yng Nghymru bob blwyddyn. Ac, wrth gwrs, o fis Mawrth ymlaen, mae wedi bod yn anodd iawn, iawn i gynnal unrhyw ddigwyddiad. Mae'r aelodau wedi bod yn ddyfeisgar a nifer wedi bod yn cyfarfod tu allan dros y mis diwethaf yma. Ond, efo misoedd y gaeaf o'n blaenau ni, rŷn ni'n gofidio'n fawr beth fydd y canllawiau newydd o ran medru defnyddio adeiladau cymunedol. Mae hwnna wedi bod yn rhwystredig ynddo'i hun, achos dyw'r canllawiau ddim wedi bod yn ddigon clir. A ydy grŵp o chwech yn gallu bod yn grŵp cymysg o'n haelodau ni, yn enwedig o ystyried pobl hŷn a phobl fregus?
Reit ar y cychwyn, gwnaethon ni ddechrau cynllun Ffoniwch Ffrind, a buodd hwnnw'n bwysig iawn, iawn yn y misoedd cyntaf. Mae'n dal i barhau yn bwysig achos mae nifer fawr o bobl yn dioddef o iselder a hefyd o unigrwydd, boed hynny'n unigrwydd cymdeithasol neu'n unigrwydd oherwydd nad ŷn nhw'n medru mynychu unrhyw beth o fewn eu cymdeithas—y capel, yr eglwys, Merched y Wawr, Sefydliad y Merched, ac yn y blaen. Felly mae effaith hynny hefyd yn cael sgil-effaith. Ydyn, rŷn ni wedi trosi nifer fawr o bethau i fod yn bethau ar-lein a rhithiol, ond, wrth gwrs, dyw ein cynulleidfa ni ddim yn gynulleidfa o bosib sy'n medru cymryd mantais o'r holl bethau sydd ar gael ar-lein.
Thank you. In financial terms, it’s certainly had an impact. We, as an organisation, hold some 3,000 events in Wales annually. Of course, from March onwards it’s been very difficult to stage any kind of event. Members have been very innovative and have been meeting outdoors over the past few months, but, with the winter months approaching, we are hugely concerned as to what the new guidance will be in terms of using community buildings. That’s been very frustrating, because the guidance hasn’t been sufficiently clear as to whether a group of six can be a mixed group of our members, particularly taking into account older people and vulnerable people.
At the very outset, we started the Ffoniwch Ffrind—Phone a Friend—programme. That was very important during the first few months, and it’s still important because many people are suffering loneliness and depression, be that as a result of social isolation or isolation because they can’t attend any events in their community—at the chapel or church, Merched y Wawr, the WI. So, the impact of that also has a knock-on effect. Yes, we’ve moved a number of things online and into a virtual context, but, of course, our audience perhaps isn’t an audience that can take full advantage of what’s available online.
Diolch. Efa.
Mae'r cwestiwn efallai'n llai perthnasol i fi nag i bobl eraill yn yr ystafell, ond, yn sicr, ar hyn o bryd, yn amlwg, dim ond digwyddiadau ar-lein y gallwn ni eu cynnal, ac mae'r ganolfan yn trefnu'r math yna o ddigwyddiadau ar-lein. Ond mae'r pwynt mae Tegwen wedi ei wneud, wrth gwrs, yn un perthnasol, a dwi'n gwybod eich bod chi wedi clywed hynny'n gynharach heddiw, sef fod yna dlodi digidol yng Nghymru ac mae yna broblemau cysylltedd. Mewn gwirionedd, mae angen datrys y rheini cyn i bawb yng Nghymru allu manteisio ar bopeth sydd yn mynd i fod ar gael yn gymdeithasol dros y cyfnod nesaf.
The question is less pertinent to me than to others in the room, perhaps, but, certainly, at the moment, clearly, we can only hold online activities, and the centre has provided those online activities. But Tegwen’s point is very pertinent, and I know you heard that earlier today, namely that there is digital poverty and problems of connectivity in Wales. We need to resolve those issues before everyone in Wales can take advantage of everything that will be available online in the ensuing period.
Diolch yn fawr, Efa. John.
Would you say that the cancellation of events, particularly the local events, is especially damaging for parts of Wales where the language is relatively weak, because the opportunity to use the language during the days of the events is a rare opportunity perhaps in some communities, to use it and experience it? Is that something that you think is a particular problem?
Mae Efa eisiau dod mewn ar hyn i ddechrau.
Efa wants to come in on this first.
Ie, yn amlwg, mae'r mathau yma o ddigwyddiadau yn ddigwyddiadau lle mae dysgwyr yn gallu ymarfer eu Cymraeg, felly maen nhw wedi colli'r cyfle hynny, ond byddwn i hefyd yn dweud bod y mathau yna o ddigwyddiadau yn llefydd lle rŷn ni'n arfer recriwtio ar gyfer denu dysgwyr newydd ar gyfer y flwyddyn i ddod.
Fel mae'n digwydd—efallai wnaf fi ymhelaethu yn nes ymlaen—mae ein ffigurau recriwtio ni yn edrych yn dda iawn ar hyn o bryd, ond yn sicr mae ein darparwyr ni wedi gweld eisiau'r cyswllt personol yna, ac efallai fod hynny'n arbennig o wir mewn ardaloedd mwy difreintiedig, sydd yn tueddu i fod â llai o gysylltedd digidol beth bynnag. Rŷn ni wedi, wrth gwrs, gallu cyfrannu at bethau fel yr Eisteddfod AmGen ac mi oedd yna bentref dysgwyr yn rhan o'r ŵyl honno, a byddwn ni hefyd, ym mis Hydref, yn gwneud wythnos dathlu dysgu ar y cyd â Radio Cymru. Felly, mae yna gyfleoedd, ond, yn sicr, mae pobl wedi colli'r profiadau wyneb yn wyneb yna.
Yes, clearly, these kinds of events are events where learners can practise their Welsh language skills, so they've missed out on those opportunities, but I would also say that those kinds of events are places where we can recruit and attract new learners for the following year.
As it happens—I will perhaps expand on this later on—our recruitment figures do look very positive at the moment, but certainly our providers have missed that personal, face-to-face contact and that's particularly true perhaps in more deprived areas, which tend to have reduced digital connectivity. We have been able to contribute to things such as the Eisteddfod AmGen and there was a learners' village as part of that, but also, in October, we will be having a week to celebrate Welsh language learning in collaboration with Radio Cymru. So, there have been opportunities, but people have missed that face-to-face interaction.
Tegwen, ydych chi eisiau ychwanegu at hyn?
Tegwen, did you have anything to add?
Ydy, yn sicr, mae pobl wedi colli'r gymdeithas. Rŷn ni wedi cael sawl enghraifft o Ferched y Wawr yn ymateb yn bositif iawn i'r heriau—wedi bod yn medru cynllunio a chydblethu, fel bod rhywun yn medru siopa a chadw mewn cyswllt â'r bobl fwyaf bregus neu'r bobl hŷn o bosib. Ond y profiad yna o fedru cyfarfod ar y cyd a chael sgwrs wyneb yn wyneb—. Rŷn ni wedi datblygu nifer fawr o gynlluniau gwahanol, yn enwedig gyda Zoom. Mae wedi bod yn wych i'r bobl sydd â'r dechnoleg, ond gallwch chi byth â chymryd i ffwrdd yr agosatrwydd o gael cyfarfod wyneb yn wyneb.
Ac, mewn ambell ardaloedd, efallai mai ni yw'r unig fudiad sydd yn cyfarfod yn uniongyrchol trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg. Rydym yn croesawu dysgwyr gyda llaw agored, ond mae'r profiadau hynna hefyd wedi mynd ar goll. Felly, i'r dyfodol, dwi'n mawr obeithio bydd yr hyder cymunedol yn ailgychwyn. Ac eto, fy ngofid mawr i yw'r adeiladau cymunedol. Maen nhw’n fregus yn barod—mae nifer o'r ysgolion nawr yn mynd i orfod ailasesu, a neuaddau pentref. Os edrychwn wedyn ar neuaddau capeli ac eglwysi, ydyn nhw yn mynd i fedru agor yr adeiladau i grwpiau cymunedol? Felly, ble fydd y mannau cyfarfod hynny, o ystyried hefyd fod bygythiad i dai tafarn yn ogystal? Felly, mae lleoliadau mor, mor bwysig ac yn greiddiol i gymdeithas. Felly, efallai fod angen edrych hefyd ar yr elfen hynny o ba mor bwysig yw Cymreictod o edrych ar yr adeiladau cymunedol a'r mannau cyfarfod cymunedol.
Yes, certainly, people have missed out on the social element. We've had many examples of Merched y Wawr responding very positively to the challenges—planning ahead, so that someone was able to combine shopping and keeping in touch with the most vulnerable and the older members. But that experience of meeting together and having conversations face-to-face—. We have developed a number of different programmes particularly over Zoom. It's been wonderful for those people who have the technology, but you can never actually make up for face-to-face meetings.
And, in some areas, we are perhaps the only organisation meeting through the medium of Welsh. We welcome Welsh language learners with open arms, of course, but those experiences have also fallen to one side. So, for the future, I very much hope that community confidence can be regained. Again, my concern is community buildings. They're already vulnerable—a number of schools are having to reassess now, and village halls. If we look at chapel and church halls, will they be able to open to community groups? So, where will our meeting places be, considering that there is also a threat to pubs, too? So, venues are so very important and are at the heart of society. So, we perhaps need to look at that element too in terms of how important the Welsh language is in relation to those meeting places and community centres.
Bethan, oes gennych chi unrhyw beth i'w ychwanegu?
Bethan, do you have anything to add?
Roedd rhaid i ni hefyd ganslo digwyddiadau—penwythnosau i ddysgwyr—er ein bod ni wedi addasu sgyrsiau bore coffi wythnosol ar-lein. Ond mae un peth yn sicr, sef fod gofodau digidol ar-lein yn y cyd-destun presennol yn hollol allweddol o ran cynyddu nifer y siaradwyr a'r defnydd o'r iaith. Er bod rhai llwyddiannau eisoes yn digwydd yn y maes yma, dwi'n meddwl, gyda Chymraeg i oedolion i gyd yn cael ei gynnal ar-lein, rydym ni'n teimlo y byddai addasu'n llawn i'r oes ddigidol yn parhau i fod yn nod gwbl allweddol y tu hwnt i COVID, os yw'r iaith i barhau.
Felly, ar hyn o bryd, rhan o'n set o alwadau ni, gyda 'Mwy na Miliwn', i'r Llywodraeth nesaf yw sefydlu menter ddigidol Gymraeg ac rydym ni'n gofyn i hwnnw gomisiynu cynnwys a phrofiadau Cymraeg ar y we. Ac o ran defnydd o'r iaith ymhlith siaradwyr, mae yna astudiaeth yn dangos bod yna 84 y cant o siaradwyr Cymraeg yn dweud y byddent yn croesawu'r cyfle i dderbyn mwy yn y Gymraeg ar y we. Felly, mae'r galw yno, ond mae gwir angen corff fel hyn ar y Gymraeg rydym ni'n teimlo.
Ac mae yna astudiaeth yn amcangyfrif mai dim ond tua 250 o'r 7,000 o ieithoedd byw cyfredol fydd yn llwyddo i addasu'n ddigonol i'r oes ddigidol, tra bydd disgwyl i 2,500 o ieithoedd eraill na fydd wedi addasu'n ddigonol i'r oes ddigidol barhau i fodoli am ddim ond canrif arall.
Yes, we too had to cancel events—weekends for learners—although we adapted to holding weekly coffee mornings online. But, certainly, digital and online spaces are crucial in the current context in terms of increasing the number of Welsh speakers and usage of the language. Although there have been successes in this area with Welsh for adults all provided online, we do think that adapting fully to the digital sphere will be a crucial aim beyond COVID, if the language is to survive.
So, at the moment, part of our demands, as part of 'Mwy na Miliwn' for the Welsh Government is to establish a digital Welsh language initiative and that that should commission Welsh language content and experience online. And in terms of the use of the language among Welsh speakers, a study has shown that 84 per cent of Welsh speakers say that they would welcome the opportunity to have more Welsh-medium material online. So, the demand is there, but we need a body such as this for the Welsh language.
There's also a study that estimates that only 250 of the more than 7,000 current languages will adapt properly to digital, whilst 2,500 other languages that won't have adapted sufficiently to digital will be expected to survive for only a further century.
Byddwn yn cael cyfle i fynd yn ôl at bethau digidol, achos mae gennym ni gwestiynau penodol ar hyn, so byddwn ni'n hoffi clywed mwy am y syniad hwn o gorff pan ddown ni at hyn. Caryl, wyt ti eisiau ychwanegu at gwestiwn John ynglŷn â'r ardaloedd lle dyw'r Cymraeg ddim mor gryf fel iaith gymunedol? Roeddech chi'n cyfeirio at eisteddfod y ffermwyr ifanc, er enghraifft, lle roeddech chi'n bwriadu bod.
We'll have an opportunity to go back to digital, because we have specific questions on this, and so we would like to hear more about this idea of such a body when we come to those questions. Caryl, do you have anything to add to John's question on those areas where the Welsh language isn't necessarily as strong as a community language? You referred to the young farmers' eisteddfod, for example, where you were meant to be.
Ie, felly, fel oeddwn i'n sôn, roedd eisteddfod ffermwyr ifanc fod yn ardal Brycheiniog eleni. Mae'n rhywbeth pwysig i ni, fel mudiad, ein bod ni'n gallu hybu'r Gymraeg mewn amrywiol leoliadau ar draws Cymru, ac mae hynny'n rhywbeth pwysig rŷn ni'n dod ar ei draws hefyd ymhlith ein swyddogion ni, boed ar lefel Cymru neu ar lefel sirol. Rŷn ni yn trio eu hannog nhw, boed hynny'n groesawu neu'n ddiolchiadau, neu ryw ddarn arall yn ystod y diwrnod—bod hynny'n cael ei wneud trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg. Mae ein cadeirydd ni yng Nghymru ar hyn o bryd yn ddysgwraig ac mae hi yn bendant wedi datblygu ei Chymraeg yn ystod y blynyddoedd diwethaf fel swyddog yng Nghymru. Mae hi'n llawer mwy hapus i wneud unrhyw beth trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg, ac mae hynny'n braf i'w weld.
Mae gennym ni nifer o swyddogion yng Nghymru yn dysgu'r iaith Gymraeg, ac maen nhw'n falch o gael y cymorth a'r cyfle i wneud hynny ar blatfform Cymru neu ar blatfform eu sir nhw. A gobeithio, yn ystod y misoedd nesaf, gallwn ddatblygu hynny'n fwy. Ond, fel rŷn ni i gyd wedi sôn heddiw, mae yn anodd os nad ŷn ni'n gallu gweld y bobl yma'n weledol. A gobeithio gallwn ni ddatblygu hynny pan fydd pethau'n dechrau llacio a byddwn ni'n gallu mynd yn ôl i ryw fath o normalrwydd ac yn gallu denu pobl yn ôl atom ni. Fel yr oedd Tegwen yn sôn, mae yn mynd i fod yn gyfnod anodd i bobl yn ôl yn ein neuaddau, achos, fel rŷn ni'n sefyll ar hyn o bryd, dŷn ni, fel mudiad, ddim yn gallu cwrdd yn y neuaddau cymunedol a bydd nifer o'r neuaddau ddim yn agor. Felly, mae hynny'n ofid o ran ble fydd y mudiad yn gallu cwrdd pan fydd pethau'n llacio.
Ond mae'n rhaid inni gofio am yr unigrwydd o fewn amaethyddiaeth hefyd, lle mae pobl angen siarad, boed hynny trwy gyfrwng y Saesneg neu, wrth gwrs, trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg.
Well, yes, as I mentioned, we were to stage the young farmers' eisteddfod in Breconshire this year. It's important to us, as an organisation, that we can promote the Welsh language in various locations across Wales, and that's an important aspect that we come across in relation to our own officials, be that at a Wales level or a county level. We encourage them, whether in welcoming or thanking people, or by performing another element throughout the day—that that is carried out through the medium of Welsh. Our chair in Wales is a Welsh language learner and she has certainly developed her Welsh language skills over the past years as an official in Wales. She is far more comfortable in doing anything through the medium of Welsh now, and that's good to see.
We have a number of officers in Wales who are learning Welsh, and they are pleased to have the help and opportunity to use those skills on an all-Wales platform and on a county platform. And hopefully, over the next few months, we can develop that further. But, as we've all mentioned today, it is difficult when we can't see these people face-to-face. Hopefully, we can develop that when restrictions are eased and we will be able to go back to some sort of normality and attract people back. As Tegwen mentioned, it's going to be a very difficult time in getting people back into venues, because, at the moment, we, as a movement, can't meet in community halls and many of those venues won't reopen. So, that is a concern in terms of where we will be able to meet in future.
But we must also remember that people are lonely and isolated within agriculture, where people need to communicate, be that through the medium of Welsh or English.
Diolch, Caryl. John, oes gennych chi gwestiynau ychwanegol?
Thank you, Caryl. John, do you have any further questions?
Yes. On economic impact, what would you like to tell us about that economic impact of the cancellation and postponement of events during this year—the effect on businesses and suppliers and artists, on communities and also on your members and stakeholders?
Bethan, roeddech chi'n dechrau cyfeirio at hyn o ran fel mae Cymdeithas yr Iaith yn dibynnu lot ar y gigs yn ystod yr Eisteddfod i ariannu eich gweithgareddau trwy weddill y flwyddyn. Ŷch chi moyn dweud rhagor ynlgŷn â hyn?
Bethan, you referred to this in terms of how Cymdeithas yr Iaith is reliant on the Eisteddfod gigs to fund your activity through the rest of the year. Do you want to tell us more about that?
Ie, yn sicr, mae'r arian y mae'r gymdeithas yn ei gael yn dod yn unig o'n cefnogwyr ni, felly, ie, o ran pethau ymarferol, efallai fuasai'n help i grwpiau fel ni. Mae'n anodd meddwl am gymorth arbennig fuasai'n gallu dod o'r Llywodraeth, ond efallai fyddai gallu defnyddio gwagleoedd am ddim yn help, efallai petaem ni'n cynnal cyfarfodydd o glystyrau llai ond mewn lleoliadau mawr.
Efallai, ar yr ochr ddiwylliannol, gellid edrych i mewn i fwy o syniadau creadigol ar-lein. Buom ni'n gweithio, er enghraifft, gyda chynllun Noson Allan yn y gorffennol ar gyfer cynnal rhai gigs a digwyddiadau, ac efallai fod yna ryw fath o sgôp i ehangu hyn yn rhithiol.
Well, certainly, our funding comes solely from our supporters, so, in terms of practicalities, that could assist groups such as our own. It's difficult to think of any particular support that could be provided from Government, but perhaps using locations or venues free of charge would help, with reduced numbers in larger venues.
From a cultural perspective, perhaps we could look at more creative developments online. We worked, in the past, with the Night Out programme to stage certain events and gigs, and perhaps there would be scope to expand that virtually.
Diolch. Tegwen, ar yr impact economaidd sydd wedi bod.
Thank you. Tegwen, on the economic impact that has been felt.
Mae'n eithriadol o anodd. Does dim un o'r prif ddigwyddiadau wedi cael eu cynnal eleni, fel rŷch chi'n gwybod, o Eisteddfod yr Urdd a'r Eisteddfod Genedlaethol i Sioe Frenhinol Cymru. Yn amlwg, mae gennym ni stondin ym mhob un o'r rheini. Mae'r ffair aeaf o'n blaenau ni, eto, wedi cael ei ohirio. Felly, mae wedi bod yn anodd iawn yn genedlaethol, ond, yn sicr, mae wedi bod yn anodd iawn yn lleol hefyd.
Ac mae'r digwyddiadau rydyn ni'n arfer eu cynnal, fel cynnal raffl fawr neu'r penwythnos preswyl, sydd fel arfer yn dod ag incwm o tua £10,000 i mewn i'r mudiad, does dim un o'r rheini wedi medru cael ei gynnal. Felly, yn amlwg, rŷn ni'n gorfod edrych ar ddefnyddio'r arian a oedd gyda ni wrth gefn i sicrhau bod y mudiad yn gallu parhau am y flwyddyn i ddod, a wedyn bydd sefyllfa economaidd anodd iawn yn ein hwynebu ni ymhen dwy flynedd hefyd. Y gobaith yw y gwnawn ni gadw nifer yr aelodau, ond mae'n debyg fe wnawn ni golli rhai yn ystod y flwyddyn yma gan fod dim o'r digwyddiadau, yn weledol, yn cael eu cynnal yr un peth ag arfer.
Ac o ran yr economi leol, dwi'n credu bod Merched y Wawr yn greiddiol i'w cymunedau lleol—yn gefnogol o'r siopau Cymraeg ac o'r siopau llyfrau lleol. Heb ddigwyddiadau, a heb yr economeg, mae'n anodd iawn. Rŷn ni'n cynnal cymaint o nosweithiau—3,000 o nosweithiau'r flwyddyn—efo llenorion a diddanwyr. Wel, yn amlwg, does dim un o'r rheini wedi cael eu cyflogi chwaith yn ystod y flwyddyn ddiwethaf yma. Felly, pryd fydd yr hyder yn cael ei ailadeiladu hefyd i ni fedru ailgychwyn yn hyderus? Ydyn ni'n mynd i orfod aros i chwistrelliad ddod, bod pawb yn teimlo eu bod nhw wedyn yn ddiogel i fedru dod at ei gilydd? Ond yn sicr, mae'r impact economaidd yn enfawr.
Well, it's extremely difficult. Not one of the major events was held this year, from Eisteddfod yr Urdd and the Eisteddfod Genedlaethol to the Royal Welsh Show. Obviously, we have stalls in all of those. The winter fair, again, has been postponed. So, it's been very difficult at a national level, but it's also been very difficult locally too.
And the events that we usually stage, such as our major raffle or the residential weekend, which usually bring around £10,000 into the organisation, not one of those has been held. So, clearly, we are having to look at using our reserves in order to ensure that the organisation can survive for the next 12 months, and then we will face a very difficult economic situation in two years' time. The hope is that we will retain our membership, but we are likely to lose some members during this year because none of our events are being staged as they usually would be.
And in terms of the local economy, I think Merched y Wawr is at the heart of local communities—they're supportive of Welsh shops and bookstores. Without events, and without the economic activity, it's very difficult. We hold so many events—3,000 per year—with writers and entertainers. Well, clearly, not one of those has been employed over the past year either. So, when will the confidence be rebuilt so that we can recommence with confidence? Are we going to have to wait for a vaccine until everyone feels safe in gathering? Certainly, the economic impact is huge.
Diolch. Caryl, ac wedyn gwnaf i fynd at Efa.
Thank you. Caryl, and then we'll move to Efa.
Diolch. Rhywbeth tebyg eto i fel roedd Tegwen yn sôn: mae'r holl ddigwyddiadau wedi cael eu gohirio ac mae hynny'n effeithio ar nifer o fusnesau, boed hynny'n genedlaethol neu ar lefel clybiau o fewn eu hardaloedd penodol nhw. Gan amlaf, os oes yna glwb yn cynnal rhywbeth yn eu neuadd cymunedol i godi arian, mae yna wastad angen te a bisgedi mewn beth bynnag sy'n digwydd, onid oes? Felly, maen nhw'n cefnogi'r siopau lleol. Dyw hynny ddim yn swnio'n nifer fawr o arian, ond pan rŷch chi'n cynnal nifer o bethau yn ystod y flwyddyn, mae hynny yn adeiladu i fyny ond mae hefyd yn gwneud yn siŵr bod pawb yn iawn yn eu cymunedau; gwneud yn siŵr bod pawb yn dod at ei gilydd a chyfle i bawb i gymdeithasu gyda'i gilydd a phawb i allu siarad gyda'i gilydd. Fel roedd Tegwen yn sôn, mae gyda nhw y to hŷn ac mae'r rheini'n ein cefnogi ni fel mudiad pan fo gyda ni amrywiol bethau yn ystod y flwyddyn ac mae'n braf iddyn nhw allu dod atom ni'r ifanc er mwyn cymdeithasu gyda ni.
Mae'r pentref ieuenctid, fel roeddwn i'n sôn gynnau, mae gyda ni fandiau sydd yn y sîn Gymraeg, ond hefyd rŷn ni'n cefnogi bandiau newydd, felly mae hynny hefyd yn mynd i fod yn bwrw ar y sefyllfa economaidd, lle mae yna fandiau newydd, efallai, ddim yn mynd i gael y cyfle hwnnw i fod ar blatfform sydd gan y mudiad ffermwyr ifanc neu Gymdeithas yr Iaith, yr Eisteddfod, pwy bynnag. Maen nhw yn mynd i golli allan ar y cyfle hwnnw ar gyfer gwneud hynny ac mae yn bwysig i nodi fod mudiad y ffermwyr ifanc wedi bod yn brysur iawn o fewn eu cymunedau'n gwylio ar ôl pobl sydd wedi bod yn gaeth i'w tai yn ystod y misoedd diwethaf. Mae yna nifer o aelodau gyda ni wedi bod yn gwneud siopa dros yr hen bobl neu unrhyw un oedd angen unrhyw gymorth, helpu ar ffermydd cyfagos neu unrhyw un oedd angen cymorth yn ystod yr adeg anodd yma.
Thank you. Yes, the situation is similar to what was outlined by Tegwen: all of the events have been cancelled and that has an impact on a number of businesses, be that at a national level or at the individual club level within their specific areas. Usually, if you have a club staging an event in a community hall to raise funds, then you'll always need tea and biscuits, of course, so they support local shops. Now, that doesn't sound like a huge amount of money, but when you hold many events over a period of 12 months, that does all build up. But it's also about ensuring that everyone's okay within their community, that everyone can come together and everyone has an opportunity to socialise and that everyone can communicate. As Tegwen mentioned, they have an older membership and they support us as an organisation when we have various events taking place, and it's good for them to engage with younger people and socialise with us.
The youth village, as I mentioned earlier, we have bands in the Welsh language scene, but we also support new and upcoming bands, so that too will have an impact economically where new bands aren't going to have those opportunities to appear on a platform provided by the young farmers or Cymdeithas yr Iaith, the Eisteddfod, whoever it may be. They are going to lose out on those opportunities and it is important to note that the young farmers have been very busy within their communities looking after people who have been shielding and confined to their homes in recent months. We have many members who have been shopping for older people or anyone who needed any support; they've been helping out on nearby farms and helping anyone who needed assistance during this most difficult time.
Diolch. Efa, ar yr effaith economaidd, yn enwedig o golli digwyddiadau.
Thank you. Efa, on the economic impact, particularly in terms of events.
Ie, dim impact economaidd ar ein sefydliad ni oherwydd methu mynd i ddigwyddiadau.
Well, there's been no economic impact on us as an institution because of the cancellation of events.
Diolch. Gwnaf i droi at Carwyn, felly, am y set nesaf o gwestiynau. Diolch.
Thank you. I'll turn now to Carwyn for the next set of questions. Thank you.
Diolch, Cadeirydd. Dwi'n moyn gofyn cwestiynau ynglŷn ag ailddechrau gweithgareddau a beth yw'r heriau. Beth mae'r heriau wedi bod a beth yw'r heriau ynglŷn â gwneud hynny, yn enwedig yr impact o geisio cynnal gweithgareddau a hefyd cadw pellter cymdeithasol? Ym mha ffordd ydy hwnna wedi cael impact ar eich gweithgareddau chi? A falle os gallaf i hefyd ofyn i Efa ynglŷn â Nant Gwrtheyrn ac ym mha ffordd mae Nant Gwrtheyrn wedi gweld gwahaniaeth o achos beth sydd wedi digwydd dros y misoedd diwethaf.
Thank you, Chair. I wanted to ask some questions on restarting activities and what are the challenges. What have been the challenges and what are the challenges in terms of restarting, particularly the impact of trying to maintain activities whilst keeping a social distance? How has that had an impact on your activities? And perhaps if I could ask Efa about Nant Gwrtheyrn and how Nant Gwrtheyrn has particularly been affected as a result of what's happened over the past few months.
Gwnawn ni ddechrau gyda Nant Gwrtheyrn ac wedyn troi at y mudiadau eraill. Efa.
We'll start with Nant Gwrtheyrn, then, and turn to the other organisations. Efa.
Wel, yn gyffredinol, wrth gwrs, mae yna heriau mawr wedi bod yn y cyfnod diwethaf ond hefyd cyfleoedd mawr, yn arbennig i'n sector ni. Y gwir yw bod ein sector ni wedi ymateb yn arbennig o sydyn reit ar ddechrau'r cyfnod clo gyda mwy neu lai'r holl ddysgu wedi newid i fod yn dysgu drwy dechnoleg, bron o'r wythnos gyntaf. Felly, yn yr ystyr honno, mae'r gweithgaredd wedi parhau'n gyfan gwbl yn ddi-dor, ond yn fwy na hynny, rŷn ni wedi gweld mwy o bobl yn dymuno dysgu Cymraeg a dechrau dysgu Cymraeg dros y cyfnod diwethaf, ac yn arbennig, efallai, yn y cyfnod oedd wirioneddol yn gyfnod clo. Gallaf i ymhelaethu am y ffigurau hynny tasech chi'n moyn. Ni nawr wedi—y mis yma—dychwelyd i ddechrau cyrsiau newydd am y flwyddyn ac yn y mwyafrif o achosion mae'r rheini'n mynd i fod yn ddosbarthiadau rhithiol.
Os ydych chi eisiau i fi ymhelaethu ar sefyllfa Nant Gwrtheyrn yn arbennig, yn amlwg, mae'r Nant wedi methu â darparu'r cyrsiau preswyl arferol. Fodd bynnag, mae'r Nant hefyd wedi addasu'n arbennig o dda i gynnig cyrsiau dwys rhithiol, wedi bod yn arbrofi gyda'r rheini dros yr haf, ac o dan y rhaglen Cymraeg Gwaith yn cynnig rhaglen o hyn ymlaen am y flwyddyn. Mae'r Nant yn dal i obeithio gallu cynnig cyrsiau preswyl ac yn parhau i'w hysbysebu nhw. Dwi'n meddwl efallai bod y sefyllfa wedi newid ychydig dros yr wythnos neu ddwy ddiwethaf o ran y posibilrwydd o allu gwneud hynny. Ond os na fyddan nhw'n gallu darparu wyneb yn wyneb, er mai dyna'u dymuniad nhw, yn sicr, beth rŷn ni'n gweithio arno fe ac wedi bod yn gweithio arno fe yw cynlluniau lle mae rhan o'r dysgu yn ddysgu rhithiol a rhan yn y Nant, ac os yw hwnna ddim yn gallu digwydd, gall y cyfan fod yn rhithiol. Ond ar ben y dysgu rhithiol, un o'r datblygiadau mawr sydd wedi digwydd dros y misoedd diwethaf—ac roedd e'n rhan o'n cynllun ni o'r cychwyn—yw rŷn ni wedi bod yn datblygu llu o adnoddau dysgu annibynnol ar-lein. Felly fe fydd y Nant yn gallu cynnig cyrsiau sy'n cynnwys dysgu annibynnol ar-lein gan gynnwys gwaith cartref, y math yna o beth; lot fawr o'r adnoddau digidol sydd gyda ni; dysgu rhithiol mewn dosbarth, ond efallai bydd yr holl ddysgu yna'n gorfod digwydd yn rhithiol am y tro. Felly, mae'r Nant yn dal i gynnig gwasanaeth arbennig. Mae dysgwyr yn ymateb yn dda i'r cynnig hwnnw, ond dwi'n meddwl bod dysgwyr—a'r Nant ei hun, wrth gwrs—yn edrych ymlaen at allu cael pobl yn ôl. Maen nhw wedi bod yn gallu darparu llety hunan-ddarpar dros y cyfnod yma ac wedi gallu creu rhywfaint o incwm drwy hynny.
Well, generally speaking, of course, there have been major challenges but also opportunities, particularly for our sector. The truth is that our sector has responded very swiftly from the very beginning of lockdown with more or less all teaching being carried out online almost from the first week. So, in that sense, the activity has continued without any break, but more than that we've seen an increased number of people wanting to learn Welsh and starting to learn Welsh over recent times, and particularly in the lockdown period. I can expand on those figures, if you like. Now, this month we have now started new courses for the year and in the majority of cases those are going to be virtual classrooms.
If you'd like me to expand on the situation in Nant Gwrtheyrn particularly, then clearly Nant Gwrtheyrn hasn't been able to conduct its usual residential courses. However, they have adapted particularly well in providing intensive virtual courses, which they've been experimenting with over the summer, and under the Cymraeg Gwaith programme they will be providing a programme throughout the year. They still hope to be able to offer residential courses and they continue to advertise them. I think the situation may have shifted a little over the past week or two in terms of the opportunities to do that. If they can't provide face to face, although that's their aspiration, what we have been working on is putting in place plans where part of the teaching is done virtually and part is done in Nant Gwrtheyrn, and if that can't happen, then it can all be done virtually. But on top of the virtual classrooms, one of the major developments that have taken place over the last few months—and it was part of our plan from the outset—is that we have been developing a whole host of independent learning resources available online. So, Nant Gwrtheyrn will be able to offer courses that include independent online learning, including home work and all sorts of other things; lots of the digital resources that we have; virtual classrooms, but all of that teaching might have to be virtual for the time being. So, Nant Gwrtheyrn continues to provide a very special service. Learners are responding positively to that offer, but I think that learners and the centre itself are looking forward to having people back in residence. They have been providing self-catering accommodation through this period and have generated some income through that.
Diolch. Tegwen, roeddech chi wedi sôn bod, er enghraifft, y neuaddau pentref wedi bod ar gau. Ydych chi wedi llwyddo i gwrdd wyneb yn wyneb o gwbl, y grwpiau lleol, neu ydy popeth wedi gorfod bod ar-lein hyd yn hyn?
Thank you. Tegwen, you mentioned the fact that village halls being closed was an issue for you. Have you been able to hold any face-to-face meetings in terms of your local groups, or has everything had to be online?
Fuodd o fis Mawrth tan fis Awst mwy neu lai pob dim ar-lein, ac fe wnaethon ni gynnal pob digwyddiad fydden ni'n arfer ei gynnal yn rhithiol, ac arbrofi llawer iawn gyda thudalennau newydd fel gweplyfr, pan symudon ni i dudalennau newydd fel Curo'r Corona'n Coginio, Curo'r Corona'n y Cartref, ac yn y blaen, ac mae'n braf i weld bod ymateb anhygoel wedi bod. Mae gennym ni jest dros 6,000 o aelodau, ond mae 16,000 o ddilynwyr ar Curo'r Corona'n Coginio, er enghraifft, a dros 1 miliwn o bobl ddoe wedi 'hoffi' eitemau ar y dudalen honno. Roedd hwnna'n rhywbeth mawr o ran cael pawb ynghyd; pobl o bob rhan o'r byd wedi dod yn rhan o'r dudalen yna.
Ond o'n rhan ni fel grwpiau, o'r 270, mae rhyw 150 wedi llwyddo yn ystod y mis diwethaf i gynnal rhyw fath o gyfarfod allanol. Nawr, boed hynny'n daith gerdded wedi ymbellhau'n gymdeithasol i fod yn eistedd mewn maes parcio, i fod yn eistedd yng nghanol cae, maen nhw wedi bod yn reit ddyfeisgar, a hyd yn oed ym mart Bryncir, coeliwch neu beidio, fe wnaeth yr aelodau i gyd ddod ynghyd ac eistedd, gan ei bod hi'n noson lawog.
Mae'r cylchgrawn wedi cael ei ddosbarthu a dwi'n credu bod hynny wedi bod yn beth da i gyrraedd yr aelodau. Hynny yw, fethon ni wneud ym mis Mai—doedd hi ddim yn ddiogel i ni wneud—ond fe wnaethon ni hynny ym mis Medi. A'r gobaith mawr yw os bydd y canllawiau yn newid, mi fydd modd i ni edrych ar ble fyddwn ni'n medru cyfarfod. Y broblem fawr sydd gyda chi, os oes gyda chi grŵp o dros 30—ac mae gan nifer o'n canghennau ni dros 30 o aelodau—dyw hi ddim yn bosib cwrdd tu allan na thu fewn ar hyn o bryd, ac mae gan bob un o'r capeli, yr eglwysi, y neuaddau pentref, y neuaddau preifat a'r tai tafarn wahanol ganllawiau a gwahanol agweddau hylendid a glendid, felly mae'r grŵp lleol yn gorfod cael trafodaeth gyda'r darparwr lleol, mewn ffordd, i sicrhau beth sy'n bosib.
O'n rhan ni yn y ganolfan genedlaethol yn Aberystwyth, rŷn ni wedi ailagor, ond i grwpiau angenrheidiol: hynny yw, Urdd Sant Ioan sydd yn moyn dysgu oedolion, sy'n helpu yn y llinell flaen, maen nhw nawr yn cael grwpiau o dri pherson i mewn. Felly'n amlwg mae'n incwm ni mwy neu lai wedi diflannu dros nos, ond rŷn ni'n dechrau cael y grwpiau llai nôl ar gyfer pobl fregus fel mediation ac fel dyslecsia gyda phlant sy'n reit ddifrifol. Felly mae'r tri grŵp yna wedi dod nôl, ond rŷn ni wedi stopio'r grwpiau eraill i gyd, oherwydd dyw'r canllawiau ddim yn ddigon clir i ddweud a ydyn ni'n medru cael mwy o bobl nôl yn ein canolfan gymunedol.
From March until August, virtually everything was online, and we staged every event that we would usually stage in a virtual manner, and we experimented a great deal with things such as Facebook, when we established Facebook pages like Curo'r Corona'n Coginio, Curo'r Corona'n y Cartref, and so on and so forth, so there's been an incredible response. We have just over 6,000 members, but we have 16,000 on that Facebook page, for example, and 1 million people yesterday 'liked' items on that page. So that was a major development in bringing people together, people from all parts of the world got involved with that Facebook page.
But in terms of our groups, of the 270, some 150 have managed over the past month to hold some sort of outdoor meeting. Now, be that a socially distanced walking tour, or sitting in a car park, or sitting in the middle of a field, they have been quite innovative, even in the Bryncir market, believe it or not, all of the members came together and sat, as it was a wet evening.
The magazine has been distributed and I think that that has been a great thing in reaching out to members. We couldn't do in May—it wasn't safe for us to do so—but we did it in September. The hope is that if the guidelines do change, then we will be able to look at where we will be able to meet. The problem that you have is that if you have a group of over 30—and many of our branches have more than 30 members—then it's not possible to meet outdoors or indoors at the moment, and every chapel, every church, every village hall, every private hall and every pub has different guidance in place and they all have different requirements in terms of hygiene, so the local group would have to have discussions with the local provider to decide what's possible.
In terms of our national centre in Aberystwyth, we have now reopened, but only for essential groups. St John's Ambulance, who want to train adults helping in the front line, they can have now have groups of three people in. So, obviously, our income has virtually disappeared overnight, but we are starting to get those smaller groups back for vulnerable people, such as mediation and a group for children with severe dyslexia. So those three groups have been back, but we have stopped all of the other groups, because the guidance isn't sufficiently clear to say whether we're able to get more people involved in our community centres.
Diolch. Bethan.
Thank you. Bethan.
Ie, felly yn debyg iawn i'r grwpiau cynt, rili, mae'r grwpiau a'r celloedd a chyfarfod misol ein senedd genedlaethol ni wedi bod yn cwrdd ar-lein. Mae hefyd gennym ni gylchgrawn Y Tafod sydd wedi parhau i fynd allan i'n haelodau—mae tua 10,000 o aelodau gyda ni. Rydym wedi addasu i gwrdd yn rhithiol ac rydym ni hefyd wedi bod yn ymchwilio i mewn i fath o TED Talks Cymraeg o ran ymgyrchu neu am ein hymgyrchoedd ni, ac rydym ni wedi bod yn cynnal sgyrsiau panel a'r digwyddiadau buasem ni wedi bod yn eu cynnal yn ystod yr Eisteddfod Genedlaethol ar ein stondin ni, rydym ni wedi bod yn eu cynnal nhw'n rhithiol. Ac rydym ni wedi bod yn creu fideos ymgyrchu. Er enghraifft, buon ni'n gweithio gyda mudiadau ymgyrchu ieithoedd lleiafrifol yn yr Alban, Ynys Manaw, Cernyw ac Iwerddon, ac yn gwneud fideo ar y cyd. Felly, am y tro cyntaf, oherwydd yr oes ddigidol, rydym ni wedi dod at ein gilydd i greu ymgyrch ar y cyd fel hynny, felly mae hynny'n gyffrous i unioni fel lleisiau.
Ond, yn sicr, mae yna bryderon wedi cael eu codi yn ystod y cyfnod, ac mi fuasem ni'n sicr wedi gweithredu'n wahanol petai ni ddim mewn lockdown. Codwyd llawer o bryderon yn ein grŵp addysg bod plant o gartrefi heb y Gymraeg yn cael ei siarad ar yr aelwyd, sef 84 y cant o blant Cymru, felly eu bod nhw—roedd yna bryderon eu bod nhw wedi colli sgiliau ieithyddol o beidio â bod yn yr ysgol, ac roeddem ni'n poeni nad oes yna ddigon o gefnogaeth neu adnoddau wedi bod i'w cefnogi nhw. Roeddem ni wedi clywed lot gan rieni oedd wir wedi stryglo efo'r mater yma, a rhai ohonyn nhw wedi ystyried tynnu eu plant o addysg Gymraeg o ganlyniad. Ac wedyn roedd y grŵp hawl hefyd wedi cael sawl achos yn sôn bod y comisiynydd yn ymchwilio i lai o gwynion, a bod sefydliadau cyhoeddus yn defnyddio'r pandemig fel esgus i anwybyddu eu dyletswyddau cyfreithiol o dan y safonau. So, roedd hwn yn rhywbeth a oedd wedi achosi pryder mawr. Ac efallai'n draddodiadol byddem ni wedi bod yn edrych i wneud gweithredu uniongyrchol neu rywbeth mwy cyhoeddus, a chwrdd yn gyhoeddus er mwyn cynnal y sgwrs yna gyda'r cyhoedd, gyda phobl Cymru, am yr anghyfiawnder.
Ond, ie, efallai yn y mater o'n bod ni'n methu gwneud hynny, rydym ni'n ddibynnol iawn ar y cyfryngau er mwyn cyfathrebu'r negeseuon rydym ni eisiau eu rhoi. Ond, dwi'n meddwl bod y cyfnod gwir wedi rhoi—mae o wedi amlygu bod gwir angen, efallai, i'r cyfryngau i ddal i fyny ac i addasu i'r oes ddatganoledig yma. Mae'n hanfodol bwysig bod y cyhoedd yn gwybod yn union pwy sy'n gyfrifol am ba benderfyniadau, ac mae'r atebolrwydd yma'n egwyddor ddemocrataidd cwbl sylfaenol yn ein barn ni. Oherwydd bod yna ddim atebolrwydd neu dryloywder, mae'n anoddach, efallai, sgrwtineiddio'r Llywodraeth a'u dwyn i gyfrif os oes yna benderfyniadau anghywir.
Er ein bod wedi gweld platfform cyhoeddus mawr i'r Prif Weinidog yn ystod y pandemig, roeddem ni'n meddwl bod perygl i'r platfform hwn gael ei golli yn y dyfodol, ac yn yr hirdymor os ydym ni eisiau gweld pobl Cymru'n wybodus ynglŷn â'r broses wleidyddol, eu bod nhw'n gallu sgrwtineiddio'r Llywodraeth, a hynny drwy ddatganoli darlledu, ac mae hwnna'n rhywbeth rydym ni wedi bod yn ymgyrchu amdano fo.
Yes, so as others have said, our groups, cells, and our national senedd have been meeting online. We also have Y Tafod magazine, which is still being sent to our 10,000 members. We have adapted to virtual meetings and we've also been looking at some kind of Welsh language TED Talks in terms of campaigning or about our campaigns, and we've also been having panel discussions and the events that we would have held during the Eisteddfod Genedlaethol at our stall, we've been holding those virtually. And we've also been creating campaigning videos. For example, we worked with minority language campaigners in Scotland, the Isle of Man, Cornwall and Ireland, and we jointly produced a video. So, for the first time, because of the digital opportunities, we have been able to campaign jointly, so that is very exciting.
But, certainly, concerns have been raised during this period, and we would have operated differently, of course, if we hadn't been in lockdown. There have been a number of concerns in our education group that children in families where the Welsh language isn't a language at home—that's 84 per cent—there were concerns that they would have lost some language skills from not having attended schools, and we were concerned that there haven't been sufficient resources to support them. And we've heard a great deal from parents who had really struggled with this issue, and some had considered withdrawing their children from Welsh-medium education as a result. And the hawl group also saw a number of cases that heard that the commissioner was looking at fewer complaints, and that public institutions were using the pandemic as an excuse for not complying with their responsibilities under the standards. So, that caused great concern. And perhaps traditionally, we would have been looking at direct action or doing something more public, and holding public meetings in order to maintain that conversation with the public and the people of Wales on these injustices.
On the issue of not being able to do that, we are highly reliant on the media in order to communicate our messages. But I do think that this period really has highlighted the fact that we need the media to catch-up and to adapt to the devolution era. It's hugely important that the public are aware of who is responsible for what, and that's a fundamental democratic principle in our view in terms of accountability. Because without accountability and transparency, it's more difficult to scrutinise the Government and to hold the Government to account if poor decisions are made.
So, we've seen the First Minister has had a major public platform during the pandemic. We thought there was a risk that that could be lost for the future, and in the longer term if we want to see the people of Wales being more educated and informed about the democratic process, they should be able to scrutinise Government, and that could best be done by devolving broadcasting, which is something that we've been campaigning for.
Pwyntiau pwysig. Diolch, Bethan. Jest i ddod â ni nôl at weithgareddau fel oedden nhw. Caryl, ydy'r grwpiau ffermwyr ifanc wedi bod yn gallu cwrdd yn y byd iawn yn ogystal â'r rhithiol o gwbl, neu ar-lein ydych chi'n gorfod bod?
Important points. Thank you, Bethan. Okay, if I could bring us back to activities as they were. Caryl, have young farmers groups been able to meet in the real world as well as virtually, or have you had to do everything online?
Ar hyn o bryd, dim ond cnewyllyn bach, yn anffodus, o glybiau sydd yn cwrdd y tu allan gyda ni, ac wrth gwrs dyw'r tywydd—efallai ein bod ni wedi cael rhyw bum niwrnod nawr—ond dyw'r tywydd ddim wedi bod wrth ein hochr ni yn anffodus rhyw lawer ers cael y cyhoeddiad ein bod ni'n gallu cael rhyw 30 tu allan. Ac mae'r clybiau hefyd yn eithaf gwyliadwrus o beth maen nhw'n gallu ei wneud y tu allan. Mae'n amlwg bod yn rhaid cadw'r pellter o 2m ac yn y blaen, ac mae hynny'n rhywbeth mae clybiau'n cymryd i ystyriaeth.
Mae nifer o wahanol syniadau yn cael eu rhoi gan amrywiol siroedd gyda ni ar hyn o bryd, yn y gobaith y byddwn ni'n gweld newidiadau yn ystod y misoedd nesaf lle bydd yna gyfle i glybiau i fedru cwrdd. Mae yna ambell glwb wedi bod yn gwneud noson sinema, lle maen nhw'n rhoi rhywbeth ar y wal tu allan i'w neuadd gymunedol, lle mae eu wal nhw'n wyn ac maen nhw'n 'project-o' y ffilm ar honno a phawb yn eistedd yng nghanol cae ar eu stôl fach ac yn hapus eu byd, ond maen nhw wedi bod yn lwcus iawn o ran y tywydd. Ac mae nifer o glybiau wedi bod yn cwrdd dros Zoom, yn cael farm tours ac yn y blaen, felly dwi'n credu bod ambell ffermwr yn eithaf hapus yn eistedd ar ei soffa gartref yn gallu edrych ar ryw fferm arall. Ond, eto, dyw e ddim yn berffaith.
Mae angen y cyfle yma ar aelodau i gwrdd â'i gilydd, i weld ei gilydd yn weledol. A hefyd, mae'n rhaid cofio, mae'r rhain yn gweithio o ddydd i ddydd, maen nhw angen gweld pobl yn weledol er mwyn gallu cyfleu sut maen nhw'n teimlo a siarad â'i gilydd ac yn y blaen.
Ond y peth sy'n gofidio ni yw y cymysgu. Mae gyda ni aelodau sydd mewn efallai dwy, dair ysgol ond sydd yn mynd i'r un clwb, ac mae hynny'n rhywbeth sydd yn cael ei ddweud ar hyn o bryd—i ni, os dŷn ni'n gallu, beidio â chymysgu gyda phobl o ardaloedd eraill. Felly, mae hynny'n rhywbeth sydd yn ein gofidio ni fel mudiad ar hyn o bryd, wrth ailddechrau clybiau mewn ardaloedd, boed hynny tu allan ar hyn o bryd—bod yna gymysgfa o aelodau yn mynd i fod gyda'i gilydd. Felly, mae hynny'n rhywbeth, gobeithio yn ystod yr wythnosau nesaf, y gallwn ni gael ychydig o eglurhad arno fe, a gallu datblygu hynny gyda'r clybiau wedyn—eu bod nhw'n gallu cwrdd tu allan.
At the moment, only a very small number of clubs, unfortunately, do meet outdoors, and of course we might have had some five days of fine weather, but the weather hasn't been on our side since the announcement that we could meet as a group of 30 outdoors. And the clubs are quite mindful of what can be done outside. Clearly, you have to keep the 2m social distancing and so on and so forth, and that is something that clubs do take into account.
There are a number of different ideas being put forward by various counties in the hope that we will see changes over the next few months where there will be opportunities for clubs to meet. A few clubs have been having cinema nights, where they actually will project something onto a community hall, where the wall is white, and then people can sit in the middle of a field on their own little stool and watch a film, and they're more than happy, but they've been very fortunate in terms of the weather. Many clubs have been meeting over Zoom and having farm tours over Zoom, so I think some farmers are quite happy sitting on their sofas at home and just having a look at other farms. But, again, it's not perfect by any means.
Our members need to opportunity to meet each other and to see each other. And, of course, we do need to bear in mind that these are working people, they need to see people in order to convey their feelings and to discuss and converse.
But what worries us is social mixing. We have members in two or three schools but attend the same club, and that is a point being made at the moment—to not have that mixing with people from other schools or other areas. That is very worrying for us as an organisation, as we recommence clubs' activities in areas, albeit outdoors at the moment—that we will have a mix of members from various areas or schools. So, hopefully, that is something that we can have some clarity on over the next few weeks, so that we can develop that with our clubs—so that they can meet outdoors.
Diolch. Dwi jest yn ymwybodol iawn o amser. Os ydyn ni'n rhedeg drosodd o ryw bum munud neu rywbeth fel yna, ydy'r tystion yn gallu aros gyda ni? Ydy hynny'n iawn? Cyn inni symud ymlaen at gwestiynau ynglŷn â'r maes digidol gan Carwyn nawr, rwy'n jest gofyn i bobl drio bod yn eithaf cryno yn y cwestiynau a'r atebion. Carwyn.
Thank you. I'm very aware of time. If we do run over by five minutes or so, can the witnesses stay with us? Is that okay? Before we move on to questions on digital from Carwyn, if I could just ask people to be as succinct as they can, both in the questions and the answers. Carwyn.
Diolch, Cadeirydd. Felly, gweithgareddau digidol—tri pheth i'w ofyn. Yn gyntaf, faint mor gynaliadwy ydyn nhw? Yn ail, pa fath o impact sydd wedi bod yn y niferoedd sydd yn chwarae rhan mewn gweithgareddau? A pha adnoddau ydych chi wedi gorfod ffeindio er mwyn sicrhau eich bod chi'n gallu cynnal digwyddiadau a gweithgareddau digidol?
Thank you, Chair. So, digital activities—three things to ask. First, how sustainable are they? Secondly, what kind of impact has that had on participation in activities? And what resources have you had to find in order to ensure that you're able to stage events and activities digitally?
Fe wnaf i ddechrau gyda chi, Efa, achos rŷch chi wedi bod yn sôn yn barod am gynnydd mawr mewn pobl yn chwilio am gyfleoedd i ddysgu ar-lein. So, fe wnawn ni ddechrau gyda chi.
I'll start with you, Efa, because you've already mentioned the large increase in the numbers of people looking for online learning opportunities. So, we'll start with you.
Iawn, grêt. Yr ateb i'r cwestiwn, 'Pa mor gynaliadwy yw e?', yw: mae e'n bendant yn gynaliadwy. Ac yn fwy na hynny, dwi'n meddwl bod y sector wedi newid am byth. Mae'r cyfnod diwethaf wedi bod yn drawsnewidiol. Mae wedi ein gorfodi ni i fod yn arloesol ac yn flaengar, ac felly byddwn ni eisiau cadw'r gorau o'r cyfleoedd digidol i'r dyfodol, tra hefyd yn derbyn bod rhai dysgwyr a thiwtoriaid, wrth gwrs, wrth eu bodd yn dysgu mewn dosbarth.
Ond mae dysgu ar-lein a dysgu yn rhithiol yn rhoi cyfleoedd i bobl sy'n gweithio siffts, sydd ddim eisiau mynd mas ar noson oer yn y gaeaf. Hefyd, mae'r cyfleoedd hunanastudio rŷn ni wedi'u datblygu yn golygu y gall rhywun ddysgu unrhyw amser maen nhw eisiau. Felly, mae'r dyfodol yn gyffrous.
Dwi'n meddwl bod y ganolfan wedi bod ar y trywydd yma wrth sefydlu fframwaith dysgu digidol pan y'n sefydlwyd ni, ond bod y cyfnod diwethaf wedi prysuro'r gwaith hynny dipyn. Ac o hyn ymlaen, yn sicr, byddwn ni am weld parhau i fuddsoddi yn yr adnoddau digidol, er mwyn hwyluso dysgu rhithiol, er mwyn caniatáu i fwy o bobl allu hunanastudio, fel arfer gyda chymorth tiwtor. Ond hefyd byddem ni wrth gwrs eisiau cynnig dosbarthiadau wyneb yn wyneb i'r rheini sy'n dymuno. Felly, mae'r cyd-destun wedi newid, ac fe fydd e wedi newid am byth.
O ran yr impact o ran niferoedd, yn sicr rŷn ni wedi colli rhai dysgwyr oedd ddim â'r offer cywir, ddim â'r cysylltiadau cywir—mae hynny'n wir. Ar y llaw arall, rŷn ni wedi denu llawer o ddysgwyr i ddysgu gyda ni. Gan ein bod ni wedi gallu datblygu 25 y cant o'r cwrs ar-lein, fe wnaethon ni farchnata cwrs newydd sbon, i ddechau mis Mai, a wnaeth ddenu 1,000 o bobl i ddechrau dysgu cwrs mynediad yn rhithiol—89 dosbarth wedi'u sefydlu ar yr adeg honno, ac wedi bod yn llwyddiannus. Mae'r rheini nawr yn dechrau dysgu ymhellach o nawr ymlaen.
Hefyd, fe gawsom ni bron i 9,000 o bobl yn cofrestru i ddysgu ac i ddilyn ein cyrsiau blasu ar-lein ni, ac mae hynny'n fwy o bobl nag oedd wedi cofrestru yn y tair blynedd ers iddyn nhw gael eu sefydlu gyda'i gilydd. Felly, mae yna alw am ddysgu ar-lein. Yn sicr, yn y cyfnod clo, roedd mwy o amser gan bobl. Felly, mae amser yn amlwg yn rhwystr i bobl sydd am ddysgu'r iaith. Pan oedd amser gan bobl, roedden nhw'n troi aton ni er mwyn gallu dysgu'r iaith.
O ran adnoddau, dwi ddim yn meddwl ei fod e mor syml â dweud, 'Mae popeth ar-lein, felly mae'n rhatach.' Ar hyn o bryd, dyw hwnna ddim yn wir, gan ein bod ni nawr mewn cyfnod lle mae angen buddsoddi yn yr adnoddau dysgu digidol. Mae yna gost i hynny. Gall fod arbediad maes o law oherwydd hynny, yn enwedig os ŷn ni'n mynd i lawr y trywydd o hunanddysgu, yn arbennig gyda'r cynllun Cymraeg Gwaith a wnaeth golli incwm sylweddol iawn ar ddechrau'r cyfnod yma. Felly, rŷn ni wedi cael ein gorfodi i feddwl yn greadigol, ac rŷn ni yn gobeithio y bydd y cyllid ar gyfer y cynllun Cymraeg Gwaith yn dod nôl aton ni. Mae yna, yn sicr, alw gan gyflogwyr am y cynllun yna, gan gynnwys staff mewn byrddau iechyd sydd wedi cysylltu yn ddiweddar, felly er gwaethaf prysurdeb y gwasanaeth iechyd, maen nhw'n dal i alw am wasanaethau i ddysgu Cymraeg i'w staff nhw.
Rŷn ni felly wedi gallu buddsoddi nawr mewn 60 awr ar gyfer ein dysgu digidol o dan y cynllun Cymraeg Gwaith, ond byddem ni am weld lefelau yn mynd lan drwy hynny. Felly, mae angen buddsoddiad, ac mae hefyd—[Anghlywadwy.]—yn obeithiol iawn o ran yr impact ar y niferoedd—
Yes, great. The answer to the question, 'How sustainable is it?', is: it's certainly sustainable. And more than that, I think the sector has been transformed forever. The last period has been transformational. We've had to be innovative and bold, and we will want to keep the best of those digital opportunities for the future, whilst also accepting that some learners and tutors do enjoy classroom-based learning.
But online and virtual learning does give opportunities to people who are shift workers, who don't want to go out on a cold winter's evening. Also, there are opportunities for studying alone that we've developed, so that people can study whenever they choose. So, the future is very exciting.
I think the centre has been on this pathway in developing a digital learning framework when we were established, but recent events have hastened those developments. And from here on in, we would certainly want to see continued investment in digital resources, so that we can facilitate virtual teaching, to allow more people to study, usually with the support of a tutor. But, of course, we would also want to offer face-to-face classrooms for those who want them. So, the context is transformed, and it has been transformed forever.
In terms of the impact on numbers, certainly we've lost some learners who didn't have the necessary equipment or the right connectivity—that is true. On the other hand, we have attracted a number of new learners. As we were able to develop 25 per cent of the course online, we marketed a brand-new course, which started in May, and 1,000 learners took our access class virtually—89 classes established there, which have been very successful. Those are now continuing with their learning.
We also had almost 9,000 registering to take online taster courses, and that is more people than had registered in the three years since they were originally established. So, there is demand for online learning. Certainly, in lockdown, people had more time. Time is a barrier for those people who want to learn the language. When they did have time, they did turn to us in order to learn the language.
In terms of resources, I don't think it's as simple as to say, 'Everything's online, so it's cheaper.' At the moment, that isn't the case, because we are now in a period where we need investment in the digital learning resources. There are costs to that. There could be savings in due time, particularly if we go down the route of self-learning, particularly with the Cymraeg Gwaith scheme that lost significant income at the beginning of this period. So, we've been forced to think creatively, and we do hope that the funding for Cymraeg Gwaith will be restored. There is certainly demand from employers for that scheme. Health boards have been in touch recently, so despite the fact that the health service has been under huge pressures, they still want those Welsh language learning resources for their staff.
We've also been able to invest in 60 hours of digital learning under the Cymraeg Gwaith scheme, but we would want to see levels enhanced through that. So, we do need investment, and we are very hopeful in terms of the impact in terms of numbers—
Mae'n ddrwg gen i i dorri ar eich traws chi, ond dwi'n clywed sŵn yn y cefndir gan rywun, ond ddim y bobl sydd ar fy sgrin, so allaf i jest ofyn i'r bobl dechnegol sicrhau bod meics pawb arall sydd ddim ar y sgrin ar mute? Sori, Efa, cariwch ymlaen, os gwelwch yn dda.
I'm sorry, I'm hearing some background noise here. It's none of the people on my screen, but if I could just ask the technicians to ensure that everyone else who isn't appearing on the screen is muted. Sorry, Efa, do continue.
Na, popeth yn iawn. Y neges dwi eisiau ei throsglwyddo mewn gwirionedd yw bod dysgu digidol yma i aros, bod angen buddsoddi yn y dysgu digidol hwnnw, a fy mod i am weld adfer yn y gyllideb y gwnaethon ni ei cholli ar ddechrau'r pandemig.
No, it's okay. The message I was seeking to convey was that digital learning is here to stay, that we need investment in that digital learning, and that I do want to see the budget that we lost at the beginning of the pandemic restored.
Diolch yn fawr. Tegwen, byddwn i'n tybio—rŷch chi wedi sôn am hyn yn barod—bod rhai o'ch aelodau chi ddim yn bobl a oedd wedi dechrau'r pandemig gyda lot o ddealltwriaeth o'r pethau technegol yma, a dwi'n cynnwys fy hunan achos dwi'n rhan o'r oedran yna, ac yn aelod, fel mae'n digwydd. Sut dŷch chi wedi gallu ymateb i'r byd o weithredu'n ddigidol a sut mae hynny wedi effeithio ar bobl yn cymryd rhan?
Thank you. Tegwen, you perhaps have already mentioned this, but I would assume that some of your members weren't people who went into the pandemic with a huge understanding of these technical issues, and I include myself in this because I am captured within that age group, and I'm a member, as it happens. But how have you been able to respond to digital and how has that had an impact on participation?
Rŷn ni wedi bod yn gwneud lot fawr o waith gydag unigolion i gael yr hyder iddyn nhw fedru defnyddio Zoom. Mae pob un o'n cyfarfodydd cenedlaethol ni bellach yn digwydd dros gyfrwng Zoom, ac mae wedi bod yn broses fuddiol iawn, ond mae wedi bod yn broses hir, efallai, a llafurus ar adegau. Ond wedi dweud hynny, mae'r trawsnewid yn hyder nifer fawr o'r unigolion a oedd yn berchen ar iPad, ffôn digidol neu gyfrifiadur wedi bod yn anhygoel. Rŷn ni wedi bod yn ffodus iawn i gael nawdd gan y Loteri Genedlaethol i weithio ar broject am ddwy flynedd, ond beth sy'n fy mhryderu i'n fawr yw'r syniad oedd ein bod ni'n mynd allan at unigolion i'w gosod nhw i fyny a'u helpu nhw i gael yr hyder i ddefnyddio mwy o dechnoleg. Felly, yn amlwg bydd yn rhaid inni addasu ychydig ar hynny.
Beth fyddwn i'n licio gweld yw bod mwy o adnoddau i bobl gael mynediad i dechnoleg. Nawr, yn y gorffennol, roedd modd iddyn nhw fynd i'r llyfrgell leol—dyw hynna ddim yn bodoli yn y rhan fwyaf o lefydd ar hyn o bryd. Mae angen cyrraedd yr unigolion yma. Mae yna enghreifftiau gwych. Mae un aelod yn 95, mae ar gyfrifiadur bob dydd, mae'n rhoi pethau ar Facebook, mae'n ein diweddaru ni ar beth sy'n mynd ymlaen ar y platfform digidol, ac mae'n wych gweld bod pobl o unrhyw oedran yn medru defnyddio'r dechnoleg. Weithiau, rŷn ni'n meddwl mai'r genhedlaeth hŷn yw'r unig rai sydd ddim â'r dechnoleg, ond mae pobl lot iau hefyd heb gael y profiad o fynd ar y dechnoleg chwaith.
O'n rhan ni, rŷn ni wedi bod yn ddyddiol yn rhoi eitemau newydd i fyny. Rŷn ni wedi cael dilyniant anhygoel ar bum tudalen Facebook, dwy wefan ac yn y blaen. Felly, mae yna ymateb positif iawn. Gwnaethon ni ofyn i bobl ysgrifennu 100 gair am y corona a chawsom ni 60 yn ymateb yn syth—lot o'r rhain yn bobl a oedd ddim wedi defnyddio technoleg o'r blaen, ond chwaith ddim yn hyderus yn eu Cymraeg nac, o bosib, wedi ysgrifennu'n greadigol o'r blaen. Felly, denu pobl i weld bod yna sgiliau elfennol, syml maen nhw'n medru datblygu, a'r hyder—hyder yw'r peth mawr iawn. Mae dysgwyr yr un peth—maen nhw'n meddwl bod eu Cymraeg nhw ddim yn ddigon da: 'Ŷch chi'n fodlon edrych drosto fe?' Wrth gwrs ein bod ni'n fodlon edrych dros rywbeth cyn ei gyhoeddi fe. Felly, rhoi'r hyder yna.
Ond dwi wir yn meddwl bod angen mwy o fuddsoddiad mewn technoleg ac mewn meddalwedd. Prin iawn yw'r feddalwedd sydd ar gael trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg yn rhad ac am ddim. Dwi wir yn meddwl bod angen gwneud hynny. A Zoom. Tybed a fyddai modd edrych ar Zoom fel rhywbeth y gallai'r Llywodraeth fod yn buddsoddi ynddo i roi i'r trydydd sector neu fudiadau a sefydliadau i'w ddefnyddio ar blatfform cenedlaethol?
We've been doing a huge amount of work with individuals so that they can have the confidence to use Zoom. Every one of our national meetings now happens via Zoom, and it's been a very beneficial process, but it's been a long, drawn-out process too at times. But having said that, the transformation in the confidence of many of those individuals who did have an iPad, a mobile phone or computer has been incredible. We've been fortunate to get funding from the National Lottery to work on a two-year project. The idea was that we would go out to individuals so that we could set them up and give them the confidence to use technology, but, clearly, we'll have to adapt that now.
What we would like to see is that there would be more resources available so that people can access technology. Now, in the past, they could go to the local library—they can't do that in most areas now. We need to reach these individuals. There are excellent examples. We have one 95-year-old member who is online every day. She posts on Facebook, she updates us on what's happening and it's wonderful to see that people of any age can use this technology. Sometimes, we think it's the older generation who don't have this technology, but there are younger people who don't have access to this technology too.
From our perspective, on a daily basis, we've been posting new items. We've had an excellent following on our five Facebook pages and our two websites. So, there has been a very positive response. We asked people to write 100 words about corona and we had 60 responses straight away—many of these people had never used technology and weren't, perhaps, confident in using the Welsh language or confident in creative writing. So, we're attracting people so that they understand that they have this skill and they have the confidence. Learners are the same—they think their Welsh language isn't good enough, and they ask us to look over material that they've produced, and of course we're willing to do that before we publish. So, we need to give that confidence.
But I also think that we need more investment in technology and in software. There's very little software available through the medium of Welsh free of charge. And I do think that that needs to be addressed. And Zoom. I wonder if we could look at Zoom as something that the Government could invest in so that the third sector and organisations can use it on a national level.
Diolch, Tegwen. Caryl—mi ddof i atoch chi mewn munud, Bethan, achos rwy'n gwybod bod gyda chi pethau penodol i'w dweud i ateb y cwestiwn yma, ond af i at Caryl yn gyntaf.
Thank you, Tegwen. Caryl—I'll come to you in a few moments, Bethan, because I know that you have specific things to say in response to this question, but I'll go to Caryl first.
Diolch. Fel roeddwn i'n sôn yn gynharach, mae'r mudiad wedi bod yn defnyddio'r platfform ar gyfer eu cyfarfodydd nhw yn ystod y misoedd diwethaf. Wrth gwrs, y penwythnos diwethaf fe gynhaliodd Clybiau Ffermwyr Ifanc Cymru eu cyfarfod blynyddol ar blatfform Zoom, ond hefyd fe wnaethon ni wneud yn siŵr bod yr aelodau'n gallu lleisio'u barn ac yn medru bwrw eu pleidlais dros Zoom hefyd. Felly, mae hynny'n rhywbeth rŷn ni wedi ei ddatblygu fel mudiad yn ystod y misoedd diwethaf. Pwy fyddai'n meddwl, flwyddyn i nawr, y byddem ni i gyd yn eistedd yn ein cartrefi neu yn ein busnesau ni yn cael ein trafodaethau dros Zoom ac yn bwrw pleidlais dros Zoom? Felly, mae hynny'n rhywbeth rŷn ni wedi ei ddatblygu, ond, eto, mae yna le i ddatblygu eto. Mae yna blatfformau ar draws y cyfrifiaduron yma nad ŷn ni i gyd wedi'u darganfod eto, yn fy marn i, ac mae angen y cymorth yna er mwyn datblygu sgiliau. Yn bendant, yn ein staff ni yng Nghymru, rŷn ni angen y gefnogaeth yna er mwyn gallu eu dysgu nhw ymhellach am beth sydd ar gael a faint mor bell allwn ni fynd â'r trafodaethau yma, ond hefyd ar gyfer yr hyfforddiant sydd ar gael ar eu cyfer nhw.
Mae ein haelodau ni wedi bod yn cystadlu yn rhithiol yn ystod y Sioe Frenhinol, fel roeddwn i'n sôn yn gynharach. Ond, eto, mi fyddan nhw yn cystadlu yn rhithiol ar gyfer yr eisteddfod. Felly, mae hynny'n rhywbeth sydd angen ei ddatblygu'n bellach yn ddigidol—beth y gall ein haelodau ni ei wneud yn ddigidol? Mae'n ddigon rhwydd gwasgu 'record' ar ein ffonau symudol neu ar ein iPads ac yn y blaen, ond dwi'n siŵr bod yna fwy y gall ein haelodau ni ei wneud. Fel roedd Tegwen yn sôn yn gynharach, nid y to hŷn yn unig sydd efallai ddim yn real up to speed, fel maen nhw'n ei ddweud, ar dechnoleg, ond mae yna bobl ifanc hefyd sydd ddim efallai â'r wybodaeth dechnegol sydd gan nifer o bobl eraill.
Ond un broblem rŷn ni'n ei chael, yn bendant fel mudiad, yw'r signal ar gyfer y we. Mae nifer o'n ffermwyr ni, nifer o'n haelodau ni, yn byw mewn mannau lle does yna ddim signal ffeibr. Mae sbid y broadband—wel, dwi'n credu y gallwn i gerdded yn gyflymach nag e yn ambell i fan, ac mae hynny yn rhwystro ein haelodau ni rhag ymuno ag ambell i gyfarfod. Roedd gyda fi gyfarfod neithiwr—dim ond chwech ohonon ni oedd yna, ond roedd yna dri ohonyn nhw, y mwyafrif o'r amser, wedi rhewi ar ein sgrin ni oherwydd bod dim signal gyda nhw. Ac mae hynny'n rhywbeth sydd yn rhwystredig iawn—i feddwl ein bod ni yn y flwyddyn 2020 a bod pob un ddim yn gallu mynd ar lwyfan ffeibr. Mae hynny'n codi ofn, i ddweud y gwir. A gobeithio, yn ystod y misoedd nesaf, y bydd yna rywbeth y gall y Llywodraeth ei wneud er mwyn cyflymu pethau o ran ei gael e ond hefyd cyflymu sbid y we hefyd.
Felly, mae hynny'n rhywbeth sy'n rhwystredig iawn, iawn, iawn i nifer o'n haelodau ni, a dwi'n siŵr bod hynny ar draws pob mudiad ar draws Cymru ar hyn o bryd. Ond gobeithio, yn edrych ymlaen i'r dyfodol, y gallwn ni ddatblygu mwy a mwy. Fel roedd Efa yn sôn yn gynharach, mae yna botensial i wneud mwy ar Zoom, ac mae'n bwysig ein bod ni'n symud ymlaen gyda'r amser a gwneud y mwyaf o beth sydd gyda ni ar hyn o bryd.
Thank you. As I mentioned earlier, the organisation has been using the platform for its meetings over the past few months. Of course, last weekend the Wales Federation of Young Farmers Clubs held its annual meeting on Zoom, but we also ensured that members could express their views and could cast a vote over Zoom too. So, that is something that we as an organisation have developed over the past few months. And who would have thought a year ago that we would all be sitting at home or in our places of work having discussions on Zoom and even casting a vote on Zoom? So, that is something that we have been able to develop, but, again, there is scope for further development. There are platforms across the board that haven't yet been discovered, in my view, and we need that support in order to develop skills, particularly among our own staff in Wales. We need that support in order to train them in terms of what's available and how far we can go in terms of these technologies and the training available for them.
Our members have been competing virtually during the Royal Welsh, as I mentioned earlier. But, again, they will be competing virtually for the eisteddfod too. So, that's something that we need to develop further in terms of what our members can do digitally. It's easy to press 'record' on our mobile phones or our iPads and so on, but I'm sure that there is more that our members could do. As Tegwen mentioned earlier, it's not just the older generation who aren't properly up to speed with technology; there are also younger people who perhaps don't have the technical expertise that many others do have.
One problem that we're seeing, certainly as an organisation, is the internet signal. Many of our farmers and many of our members live in areas where there is no fibre provision, and the broadband speeds—well, I think I could walk more quickly than the broadband speeds in certain areas, and that is a barrier to our members in terms of participating in meetings. I had a meeting yesterday evening—there were only six of us there, but three of them were frozen on our screens for the majority of the meeting because they didn't have a signal. That is hugely frustrating, given that we are now in 2020 and everyone can access fibre broadband, and that is quite frightening. Hopefully, over the next few months, there will be something that the Government can do in order to hasten these processes in terms of providing access, but also speeding up online connectivity.
So, that's very, very frustrating to many of our members, and I'm sure that's true across all organisations and across the whole of Wales at the moment. But, hopefully, and looking to the future, I hope we can continue to develop. As Efa mentioned earlier, there is potential to do more on Zoom, and it is important that we move forward and make the most of what we have available.
Diolch, Caryl. Bethan.
Thank you, Caryl. Bethan.
Diolch. Gwnaf i drio bod yn gryno. Mae'n galonogol clywed am y niferoedd a'r dystiolaeth gan y grwpiau eraill yn y maes yma. O ran y gymdeithas, dŷn ni fel arfer gyda senedd deithiol bob mis, ac roedd y niferoedd yn amrywio gyda hynny, ond pwrpas hynny oedd ceisio mynd at yr aelodau. Ond, yn sicr, ers bod ar-lein, dŷn ni wedi gweld bod y niferoedd wedi cynyddu yn sylweddol a bod pobl o bob rhan o Gymru yn ymuno. Ac mae ein staff ni hefyd wedi bod yn cynnig cymorth i aelodau ar gyfer cael yr hyder i ymuno â'n cyfarfodydd. Efallai bod hynny wedi eithrio eraill hefyd, efallai, ond yn sicr o ran y niferodd, maen nhw'n sicr wedi cynyddu.
Yn fewnol, dŷn ni eisiau buddsoddi mewn pethau fel offer dylunio ac offer cyfathrebu. Ond, ie, y peth pwysig i ni fydd pwyso'n allanol am fenter ddigidol Gymraeg. Mae gwir angen buddsoddiad yn y maes yma. Dwi'n meddwl bod hwnna'n glir o'r dystiolaeth heddiw. Mae dylanwad llwyfannau cyfryngol newydd fel YouTube yn cael effaith fawr ar ddefnydd iaith, yn enwedig ymysg pobl ifanc, ac mae ein haelodau ni, yn enwedig y rhai sydd â phlant, wedi sylwi ar yr effaith yma, gan nad oes cynnwys mewn nifer o achosion—cynnwys rhad iawn ei natur—yn cael ei gynhyrchu yn y Gymraeg, a bod y cynnwys Cymraeg sydd yn bodoli yn anweledig iawn mewn nifer o achosion, oherwydd, wel, efallai algorithmau y llwyfannau hynny.
Felly, dŷn ni'n credu dylid gwario hyd at £9 miliwn ar sefydlu a chynnal menter ddigidol Cymraeg, a hynny gyda'r nod o gynyddu cyfleoedd i weld, clywed a chreu a defnyddio'r Gymraeg ar y we yn ddigidol ar draws llwyfannau. Hefyd, byddai hynny law yn llaw yn grymuso ac arfogi pobl ar lawr gwlad i greu deunydd, yn hytrach na chanolbwyntio ar greu deunydd eu hunain yn unig. Dŷn ni'n cynnig y gellir codi arian ar gyfer y project yma a gwariant arall drwy godi ardoll newydd ar gwmnïau digidol a thelethrebu. Dŷn ni'n amcangyfrif y gallech chi godi tua £50 miliwn y flwyddyn drwy'r ardoll newydd yma, ac mae yna fwy o fanylion ar hynny yn ein papur ni, sydd yn benodol ar sefydlu’r fenter. Mae gennym ni bapur arall sydd yn cyd-fynd â hwnnw, 'Datganoli Darlledu', ar ein gwefan, a buaswn i'n falch iawn o rannu hynny gyda chi wedi'r cyfarfod heddiw.235
Thank you. I'll try and be brief. It's very encouraging to hear the evidence of the other groups involved this morning. In terms of Cymdeithas yr Iaith, we usually have a peripatetic senedd, and the numbers vary there, but the purpose was to take our activities to our membership. But, certainly, since working online, we've seen an increase in numbers, and people in all parts of Wales are joining our activities. And our staff have also been providing support to members so that they have the confidence to join our meetings. Now, perhaps that has been a barrier to others, but in terms of numbers, our numbers have certainly increased.
In terms of resources internally, we want to invest in design and communications equipment, but the important thing for us is to put pressure on establishing a Welsh language digital initiative. We really need investment in that area, and I think that's become clear from the evidence that you've received today. The influence of platforms like YouTube has a huge impact on language usage among young people, and our members, particularly those with children, have noticed this impact, because, very often, there is no free-of-charge content produced through the medium of Welsh, and the Welsh language content that is produced is hidden in many cases because of the algorithms used by those platforms.
So, we believe that up to £9 million that up to £9 million should be spent on establishing and maintaining a Welsh language digital initiative, with the aim of providing opportunities to see, hear and use the Welsh language digitally across platforms. That would also empower people on the ground to create their own material, rather than focusing on self-produced materials. So, we propose that funding could be raised for this project and other expenditure by charging a levy on telecommunications and digital companies. We estimate that you could raise some £50 million per annum through this levy, and there are more details on that available in our paper, which specifically covers this issue. We have another paper, which goes along with that, on the devolution of broadcasting, which is on our website, and we'd be more than happy to share those with you after today's meeting.
Byddai hynny'n ddefnyddiol iawn. Diolch yn fawr, Bethan. Dŷn ni wastad yn hoffi cael syniadau penodol. Carwyn, oes cwestiynau ychwanegol gyda chi?
That would be most useful. Thank you very much, Bethan. We always like to hear specific ideas. Carwyn, do you have additional questions?
Na, mae hynny'n iawn. Diolch, Cadeirydd.
No, I'm finished. Thank you, Chair.
Iawn. Grêt. Diolch yn fawr. David—David Melding.
Okay. Thank you. David—David Melding.
Can you hear me?
Yes, we've got you now.
Okay. It follows on from the last point a bit—some interesting ideas; whatever you think about them, at least people are thinking about or proposing innovative schemes. I just wonder how the organisations this morning have interacted with Welsh Government, because the Government is reordering a lot of its grant giving to meet the incredible shift in priorities that has occurred. I just wonder how you think that's going and how you've been able to influence it, and then perhaps you could frame your remarks, given the fact that we've had an incredibly grim week, I think, in terms of the economic indicators, the increase in infection and the Prime Minister saying that we need to look at the current situation lasting something like six months. So, perhaps you could frame your remarks in that context. And, Chair, that's the only question I want to put at this time.
Thank you. I'll start with Efa if I may—discussions with the Government and future impact.
Felly, rwyf fi'n meddwl, reit ar ddechrau'r cyfnod, bu'n rhaid inni gael trafodaethau anodd iawn. Mi oedden ni, wrth gwrs, yn sylweddoli pam fod y Llywodraeth yn dymuno, a derbyn, cael yr arian yma'n ôl. Ond rŷn ni'n teimlo bod beth rŷn ni'n ei gynnig hefyd yn cyfoethogi bywydau pobl. Felly, yn sicr, ar ôl inni ddod i gytundeb am yr arian roedd y Llywodraeth angen ei gael yn ôl, mae'r trafodaethau wedi bod yn adeiladol ac rŷn ni'n wedi gallu trafod sut rŷn ni'n symud ymlaen o fan hyn.
Byddwn i'n hoffi dadlau'n gryf na fydden ni'n gallu ymdopi gyda thoriad pellach heb newid yn sylfaenol ein gweithgareddau ni. Rŷn ni wedi gallu addasu, rŷn ni wedi gallu denu mwy o bobl i ddysgu, ond mae angen y cyllid arnom ni, ac mae angen inni barhau i fuddsoddi er mwyn sicrhau'r pum mlynedd nesaf o ddysgu. Felly, tra'n bod ni'n deall pam ein bod ni wedi gorfod dychwelyd arian—ac mae yna gynlluniau penodol gwerthfawr, yn ein barn ni, wedi cael eu colli—rŷn ni yn gwneud y gorau o'r cyllid sydd ar gael inni nawr, ond yn gobeithio y gallwn ni drafod dychwelyd i'r drefn arferol, gan dderbyn bod y sefyllfa economaidd y tu hwnt i'n dwylo ni i gyd, mae'n debyg. Felly, amser a ddengys, ond dwi'n gobeithio ein bod ni wedi gallu dangos ein bod ni'n gallu gwneud defnydd synhwyrol a darbodus o'r arian drwy fuddsoddi mewn pethau mewn ffordd synhwyrol, ond hefyd bod yna alw am ein gwasanaethau ni, felly mae'n iawn i gynnig i bobl Cymru bethau maen nhw hefyd yn eu gwerthfawrogi a hynny i safon uchel a safonau proffesiynol. Rŷn ni wrthi ar hyn o bryd yn hyfforddi ein tiwtoriaid ni i gyd mewn dysgu rhithiol, a dwi'n meddwl ein bod ni ar flaen y gad o ran hynny. Felly, rŷn ni'n cymryd ein gwaith o ddifrif, rŷn ni'n gwneud y defnydd gorau o'r arian sydd gyda ni, ond rŷn ni wir yn gweld gawl cynyddol am ein gwasanaethau ni, a byddem ni'n hoffi cael y cyllidebau yn ôl i'r lefelau roedden nhw cyn dechrau'r cyfnod yma.
Rŷn ni hefyd, jest i ychwanegu, efallai, wedi datblygu llawer iawn o adnoddau addysgol, er enghraifft, allai fod o fudd i ysgolion. Rŷn ni wedi dechrau'r drafodaeth honno gyda'r Llywodraeth. Felly, rŷn ni'n gobeithio y byddwn ni'n gallu cynnig y pethau yma tu hwn i'n sector ni, gan ein bod ni wedi gallu busoddi ynddyn nhw, ac rŷn ni'n meddwl eu bod nhw'n dda, ac bydden ni am drafod gyda'r sector addysg a oes defnydd y gallwn nhw eu wneud o'r adnoddau—efallai addasu ychydig, ond fyddai'r gost addasu ddim yn debyg i'r gost o'u cynhyrchu nhw i ddechrau.
I think, at the very beginning of this period, we did have to have some very difficult discussions. We, of course, realised why the Government wanted to see this funding returned, but we feel that what we offer also enhances the lives of people. So, certainly, having come to an agreement on the funding that the Government needed to recoup, then the discussions have been constructive, and we've been able to discuss how to move forward from this particular point.
I would argue strongly that we couldn't cope with a further reduction in funding without fundamentally changing our activities. We have been able to adapt, we have been able to attract more learners, but we do need that funding, and we need to continue to invest in order to secure the next five years of learning and teaching. So, whilst we understand why we have had to return funds—and there are specific and valuable programmes that have been lost, in our view—we are making the most of the funding available to us now. But we do hope that we can discuss returning to business as usual, accepting that the economic situation is out of our hands. Time will tell, but I hope that we have been able to show that we can make sensible use of this funding and can be prudent in our use of funding, but also that there is demand for our services, so it's right to provide to the people of Wales those things that they do appreciate and to provide those to very high professional standards. We are currently training all of our tutors in virtual teaching, and I think we are in the vanguard in that respect. So, we take our work very seriously, we make best use of the funds available to us, but we are seeing increasing demand for our services, and we would like to see our budgets restored to the levels at which they stood before the beginning of this period.
Just to add, we have developed many educational resources that could benefit schools. We have started that discussion with Government, so we hope that we will be able to offer these things outwith our sector, because we have invested in them and we think that they're of high quality and we would want to discuss with the education sector whether there is any use that they could make of these resources. They may need to be adapted, but the cost of adaptation would not be anywhere near the cost of initial production.
Diolch. Tegwen.
Thank you. Tegwen.
Rŷn ni bob amser wedi trio torri'r got yn ôl y brethyn, os dywedan nhw, ac, er ein bod ni'n fudiad cenedlaethol, mae'n staff ni bron i gyd yn gweithio'n rhan amser, sy'n gyfatebol efo chwech aelod o staff llawn amser ar draws Cymru. Felly, o ran yr arian, os byddai yna doriad pellach, dwi ddim yn gwybod beth fyddai dyfodol ein mudiad ni, ein helusen ni. Ond roedd y drafodaeth gawson ni gyda'r Llywodraeth reit ar y cychwyn yn fuddiol iawn. Cawson ni ein hannog i roi rhai o'r staff ar ffyrlo. Fethon ni â gwneud hynny achos roedden ni'n rhy brysur ar y pryd; roedd y cynlluniau i gyd yn eu lle—'ffoniwch ffrind' ac yn y blaen—a buon ni'n eithriadol o brysur yn cefnogi'n cymunedau.
Felly, ym mhryder mawr i heddiw, o glywed y cyhoeddiad bydd y bobl hynny sydd ar ffyrlo o bosib yn cael grant ychwanegol, neu nawdd ychwanegol am y misoedd nesaf, ble mae hynny'n gadael elusennau fel ni, wnaeth ddim rhoi'n staff ar ffyrlo yn y lle cyntaf? A fydd yna unrhyw fath o gymorth ar gael i elusennau fel ein rhai ni, neu na fydd? A dyna, mewn ffordd—bydd yn rhaid i ni weld beth sy'n dod i'r dyfodol wedyn.
Well, we've always tried to behave prudently, and, although we're a national organisation, almost all of our staff work part time. We only have six full-time equivalent staff across Wales. So, in terms of funding, if there were to be a further cut in funding, I don't know what the future of our charity would be. But the discussion that we had with the Government at the very outset was very beneficial. We were encouraged to place some of our staff on furlough. We were too busy to do so at the time; we had all of the programmes in place, such as 'phone a friend', and we were very busy in supporting our communities.
So, my major concern today, in hearing that those people on furlough will see an additional grant for the next few months, is, well, where does that leave charities such as our own that didn't place their staff on furlough in the first instance? Will there be any support available to charities such as ours or not? And we will, of course, have to wait and see what happens for the future.
Diolch. Bethan.
Thank you. Bethan.
Wel, byddai fe'n bryder mawr gweld y Gymraeg yn dioddef o'r sefyllfa. O ran ein trafodaethau ni gyda'r Llywodraeth, wrth gwrs, dŷn ni ddim yn ddibynnol yn ariannol ar grantiau, ond, wrth gwrs, dŷn ni yn gwneud sylwadau ar y rheini maen nhw yn eu hariannu. Felly, o'n safbwynt ni, o ystyried bod brwydr dros y Gymraeg yn rhan o frwydr ehangach dros gyfiawnder cymdeithasol, yn enwedig yng nghyd-destun iechyd a gofal cymdeithasol pan fydd pobl yn teimlo'n fwyaf bregus a fwyaf anghenus, fe wnaeth ein is-grŵp iechyd ysgrifennu at Jane Hutt, yn ei hannog hi i ymestyn ei grŵp cynghori ar faterion moesol a moesegol COVID i gynnwys arbenigwyr ychwanegol i gynghori ar ofynion cyfreithiol a moesegol sy'n ymwneud â darparu gwasanaethau Cymraeg ar draws y sector. Mae iaith yn fater hollbwysig, dŷn ni'n teimlo, ym mhob achos o reoli argyfwng, ac dyw'r gallu i gyfathrebu â dinasyddion yn eu hiaith eu hunain er mwyn rhannu gwybodaeth a rhoi cyfarwyddiadau a thawelu meddwl, a chael pobl i ymddiried mewn awdurdodau cyhoeddus, ddim yn rhywbeth ail beth.
Felly, mae'r ffordd mae'r awdurodau cyhoeddus, a gwahanol ddarparwyr iechyd a gwasanaethau cymdeithasol, yn ymdopi â chydymffurfiaeth yn y ystod y cyfnod hwn o ansefydlogrwydd yn bwysig iawn. A dŷn ni'n hollol ymwybodol bod awdurdodau cyhoeddus a chyflenwyr o dan bwysau aruthrol i ymdopi â'r sefyllfa argyfyngus o ddydd i ddydd. Ond dŷn ni yn credu yn gryf fod yn rhaid parchu'r safonau iaith, ochr yn ochr â safonau eraill yn y sector, a ddaru inni ysgrifennu i Sefydliad Iechyd y Byd gyda enghreifftiau rhyngwladol o'r angen yma, a bod angen gwneud datganiad cyhoeddus yn amlinellu pwysigrwydd y gwasanaethau iaith ar draws y sector yn ystod yr argyfwng hwn. Rŷn ni wedi clywed gan ein haelodau ni esiamplau o ddisgyblion ysgol—bod popeth yn ymwneud â phrofiad COVID wedi bod yn uniaith Gymraeg, a bod unrhyw wybodaeth a rhoddwyd iddyn nhw am y prawf hefyd wedi bod yn uniaith Saesneg.
Felly, mater arall, wrth gwrs, wnes i gyfeirio ato yn gynt oedd bod lot o bryderon wedi codi bod plant o gartrefi heb y Gymraeg wedi colli sgiliau. Felly, ddaru inni ysgrifennu i'r Llywodraeth. Doedden ni ddim yn teimlo eu bod nhw wir wedi mynd i'r afael â hyn i gefnogi teuluoedd. Roedd ymateb eithaf gwan, roedden ni'n teimlo, gan Weinidog y Gymraeg, fod plant yn gallu sgwrsio yn y Gymraeg gyda'i gilydd dros Xbox. Ac roedden ni hefyd—. Cawson ni ymateb bach mwy calonogol gan y Gweinidog Addysg mewn llythyrau gyda hi, ond yn dal efallai yn eithaf gwan. Wedyn, rŷn ni'n galw am gymryd camau penodol.
Well, it would be a major concern to see the Welsh language suffering as a result of this situation. In terms of our discussions with Government, of course, we're not reliant on grants, but we do comment on those that they fund. So, from our perspective, given that the battle for the Welsh language is part of a broader battle for social justice, particularly in the context of health and social care when people are most vulnerable and their needs are greatest, our health group wrote to Jane Hutt, encouraging the extension of the advisory group on ethical and moral issues around COVID to include additional specialists to provide advice on legal and ethical issues related services in the Welsh language across the sector. Language is crucial in all crisis management, and the ability to communicate with citizens in the language of their choice in order to share information and to allay fears, and in ensuring that people have trust in public authorities, is no small thing.
So, yes, the way that public authorities, and different health providers and social care providers, are coping with complying during this period of instability is very important indeed. And we are highly aware that public authorities and suppliers are under huge pressures in coping with this crisis on a day-to-day basis, but we do strongly believe that we have to respect the language standards, alongside other standards in the sector, and we wrote to the World Health Organization with international examples of this need, and we believe that a public statement needs to be made outlining the importance of language services across the sector during this crisis. We've heard from our own members about examples of school pupils—that everything related to COVID tests has been only through the medium of English, and all information has been provided only in English.
So, another issue I referred to earlier was that there were huge concerns raised that children, where parents didn't speak Welsh, had been deskilled. So, we wrote to Government. We didn't feel that they truly addressed the issue of supporting families. We got quite a weak response from the Welsh language Minister, who said that children could converse in Welsh over Xbox. We had a more encouraging response in correspondence with the education Minister, but it was still relatively weak. So, we're asking for specific steps to be taken.
Diolch. Caryl.
Thank you. Caryl.
Ie, diolch. Felly, oes, mae yna drafodaethau wedi bod rhwng y mudiadau ffermwyr ifanc â'r Cynulliad. Yn anffodus—. Rŷn ni'n teimlo bod y mudiad yn rhoi gymaint i ardaloedd cefn gwlad, ac ardaloedd o Gymru. Nid yn unig mae'r clybiau yma'n cwrdd yn wythnosol, neu yn sirol, neu gyda ni yng Nghymru, maen nhw'n gwneud gymaint yn eu cymunedau. Maen nhw'n rhan o'r cymunedau hynny. A heb mudiad y ffermwyr ifanc, byddai mwyafrif o'n cymunedau ni yn eithaf gwag, i ddweud y gwir. Ac mae'n bwysig inni gofio hynny. Fel y gwnes i sôn yn gynharach, mae'n aelodau ni wedi bod yn brysur ofnadwy o fewn eu cymunedau yn gwneud hyn a'r llall dros y rheini sydd wedi bod yn cysgodi yn ystod y cyfnod COVID yma. Mae nifer y siaradwyr Cymraeg sydd gyda ni o fewn y mudiad yn cynyddu yn flynyddol, ac mae yn rhan o waith un o'n staff ni gyda'r mudiad i hybu'r iaith Gymraeg o fewn y mudiad, ond hefyd yn ehangach o fewn eu cymunedau nhw. Mae'n gweithio yn agos iawn efo staff bob sir ac yn creu targedau ar gyfer hynny. Felly, heb y cymorth ariannol rŷn ni'n ei gael ar hyn o bryd, fyddai hynny ddim yn gweithio more effeithiol â beth mae fe ar hyn o bryd.
Mae hynny'n rhywbeth y byddwn ni'n ddatblygu yn ystod y misoedd nesaf ac yn ystod y blynyddoedd nesaf, er mwyn inni'n gallu mynd â beth rŷm ni'n ei wneud ar hyn o bryd gyda'r targedau, ond mynd â'r rheini yn bellach ymlaen eto ar gyfer y dyfodol a gwneud yn siŵr bod yr aelodau yn cadw'r iaith Gymraeg i fynd ar ôl iddyn nhw fynd dros oedran y mudiad, ac eu bod nhw yn datblygu hynny o fewn eu cymunedau nhw. Felly, mae hynny yn rhywbeth y byddwn ni'n edrych arno yn ystod y blynyddoedd nesaf fel mudiad, felly mae e'n hollol, hollol bwysig ein bod ni yn cael y gefnogaeth yma yn ystod yr amser sydd o'n blaenau ni.
Yes, thank you. There have been discussions between the young farmers movement and the Assembly. Unfortunately—. We feel that the organisation does give so much to rural areas and other areas of Wales. Not only do these clubs meet on a weekly basis, on a county or a national level, they do so much within their communities. They are part of those communities. And without the young farmers, most of our communities would be missing out. And it's important that we bear that in mind. As I mentioned earlier, our members have been very active within their communities, doing all sorts of different things for those people who have been shielding during this COVID crisis. The number of Welsh speakers that we have within the organisation is increasing on annual basis, and it's the responsibility of one member of staff within the organisation to promote the Welsh language, but also more broadly within communities. They work very closely with staff in all counties and creates targets for those counties. So, without the financial support that we currently receive, that wouldn't work as effectively as it does at the moment.
It is something that we are developing and are to develop over the next few months and years, so that we can take it forward and we can also take those targets forward for the future and ensure that members do keep the Welsh language going once they are over age in terms of our organisation, and continue to use the Welsh language in their communities. That's something that we will be looking at as an organisation over the next few years, so it's crucial that we receive this support during this ensuing period.
Diolch yn fawr iawn. Mae yna gwpwl o gwestiynau ychwanegol, ond yn anffodus rydyn ni wedi rhedeg allan o amser. Os yw hynny'n iawn gyda chi, y tystion, gwnawn ni ysgrifennu atoch chi gyda'r cwpwl o gwestiynau olaf a gallwch chi ddod nôl atom ni. Ac mae hynny wedyn, wrth gwrs, yn gyfle i chi, os oes yna bwyntiau rydych chi heb wedi gallu eu cyfro heddiw, neu os oes yna bethau ychwanegol rydych chi am eu hychwanegu—Bethan, roeddech chi'n cyfeirio at ambell i bapur y gallwch chi rannu gyda ni. So, diolch yn fawr iawn am eich amser heddiw. Byddwn ni, wrth gwrs, yn anfon transcript atoch chi fel eich bod chi'n gallu gweld ein bod ni wedi cofnodi popeth rydych chi wedi ei ddweud yn gywir. Ac rydyn ni'n gwerthfawrogi eich amser chi yn fawr iawn. So, diolch yn fawr a da boch chi. Hwyl fawr. So, dyna ni—croeso ichi ein gadael ni nawr.
Thank you very much. There are some additional questions, but unfortunately we have run out of time. If our witnesses are agreed, then we will write to you with those few final questions and you can respond in writing. Of course, there's an opportunity for you to cover any points that you haven't been able to cover today, or if there's anything that you want to add—Bethan, you mentioned a few papers that you could share with us—then please do that. But thank you very much for your time today. Of course, we will send you a transcript of the meeting so that you can check it for accuracy, and we appreciate your time this morning. So, thank you very much and goodbye. You're welcome to leave us at this point.
Rydyn ni'n symud at eitem 4, papur i'w nodi, sef ymateb Llywodraeth Cymru i'r adroddiad ar impact COVID ar dreftadaeth ac archifau. Ydyn ni'n hapus jest i nodi hynny ac rydyn ni'n gallu trafod ymhellach, os oes angen, yn y sesiwn preifat? Iawn.
We move now to item 4, paper to note, a response by the Welsh Government to our report on the impact of COVID on heritage, museums and archives. So, are we content to note that? We can discuss it further in private session, if necessary. Everyone agreed? Yes.
Cynnig:
bod y pwyllgor yn penderfynu gwahardd y cyhoedd o weddill y cyfarfod yn unol â Rheol Sefydlog 17.42(ix).
Motion:
that the committee resolves to exclude the public from the remainder of the meeting in accordance with Standing Order 17.42(ix).
Cynigiwyd y cynnig.
Motion moved.
Ocê, rydyn ni'n symud at eitem 5, felly. O dan Reol Sefydlog 17.42(ix) dwi'n cynnig ein bod ni'n gwahardd y cyhoedd o weddill y cyfarfod—hynny yw, bod y darlledu yn dod i ben. Ydy Aelodau yn hapus i wneud hynny? Felly, dwi'n gofyn ichi ddod â'r darlledu i ben.
Okay, we move to item 5, and I move a motion under Standing Order 17.42(ix) to resolve to exclude the public from the remainder of the meeting, and that the broadcast ceases. Are Members content? So, I would request that you bring the broadcast to an end.
Can you bring the broadcast to an end, please?
Derbyniwyd y cynnig.
Daeth rhan gyhoeddus y cyfarfod i ben am 11:53.
Motion agreed.
The public part of the meeting ended at 11:53.