English: However, we remain concerned about a lack of national direction in relation to ensuring that BSL provision is widely available in Welsh schools, and the Minister's response to our report indicates that this will largely remain at the discretion of individual schools and local authorities. Speaking frankly, it is currently difficult to see this as promising any significant step forward in improving the ability for pupils to access BSL through the curriculum. I urge the Minister to consider further how schools can be specifically encouraged to pursue this option in light of the formal recognition of BSL as a language in its own right. The committee has also called for the Welsh Government to explore the creation of a GCSE in BSL. After this was raised by Mike Hedges, the previous First Minister wrote to Qualifications Wales on this subject. The response indicated that Qualifications Wales does not consider it viable to develop such a GCSE solely for use in Wales. However, subsequently, the UK Government has indicated that it is giving consideration to the development of a BSL GCSE. We understand that Qualifications Wales is open to adopting any GCSE developed and we would urge them, and the Minister, to ensure that this happens quickly in order to avoid a situation where deaf pupils in Wales fall behind their counterparts in England. Access to appropriately qualified staff was also of significant concern to Deffo! They highlighted a number of statistics, including that pupils have just three hours of contact with a teacher of the deaf per week on average, far less than the target of 270 hours per year, and that significant numbers of appropriately qualified teachers are due to retire in the next 15 years. Deffo! suggest that many are being replaced by teaching assistants. In response, Ministers have referred to duties on local authorities to identify, assess and make provision for children with special educational needs. Again, however, the committee were concerned by a sense that there is insufficient impetus coming from the Welsh Government to make this the case in reality. It is unclear how the Government ensures that these duties are implemented sufficiently in practice. In our fourth recommendation, the committee urges the Government to engage with workforce planning issues and consider the long-term sustainability of support for deaf pupils. The Minister's response refers to welcome additional funding being provided. However, the National Deaf Children's Society has referred to this as a short-term solution to a growing problem, and we urge the Government to continue to focus on ensuring that Wales has an appropriately trained education workforce in relation to the needs of deaf pupils. The final aspect of the petition is a call for more services and resources to be accessible through BSL. Deffo! told the committee that many deaf young people fail to access services with the reasonable adjustments they are entitled to under equalities legislation. For example, witnesses noted that there is only one deaf youth worker for the whole of Wales. Deffo! want BSL users to be able to access information about services such as education, healthcare, social services and public transport in their preferred language. They told the committee that they felt demoralised by their inability to access such services. Ministers have noted that the Welsh Government does not have the power to legislate in relation to the provision of languages other than Welsh. However, the committee believes that our earlier recommendation in relation to the development of a national charter for the delivery of services and resources to deaf children and young people will help to address some of these issues if it is taken forward. Such a framework could help to improve consistency of service provision across public services and provide greater accountability where such provision does not meet suitable standards. Again, I urge the Minister to ensure that this is taken forward in a robust and meaningful way. In conclusion, Dirprwy Lywydd, I want to thank Deffo! again for bringing the petition forward and everyone else who has provided evidence to the committee. The issues raised by this petition are many and varied, and they challenge all of us here to seek to ensure that deaf children and young people in Wales are able to access the education and other services that they should be entitled to. I welcome the positive response received to our recommendations from the Minister, and I hope that, if they are taken forward, these actions result in improvements for deaf children and their families. Diolch yn fawr.
Welsh: Fodd bynnag, rydym yn dal i fod yn bryderus ynglŷn â diffyg cyfeiriad cenedlaethol mewn perthynas â sicrhau bod darpariaeth BSL ar gael yn eang mewn ysgolion yng Nghymru, ac mae ymateb y Gweinidog i'n hadroddiad yn awgrymu y bydd hyn yn parhau i fod yn ôl disgresiwn ysgolion unigol ac awdurdodau lleol i raddau helaeth. A siarad yn blwmp ac yn blaen, ar hyn o bryd mae'n anodd gweld bod hyn yn addo unrhyw gam sylweddol ymlaen o ran gwella gallu disgyblion i gael mynediad at BSL drwy'r cwricwlwm. Rwy'n annog y Gweinidog i roi ystyriaeth bellach i sut y gellir annog ysgolion yn benodol i fynd ar drywydd yr opsiwn hwn yng ngoleuni'r ffaith bod BSL wedi cael ei chydnabod yn ffurfiol fel iaith yn ei hawl ei hun. Mae'r pwyllgor hefyd wedi galw ar Lywodraeth Cymru i ystyried creu TGAU mewn BSL. Ar ôl i Mike Hedges godi'r mater hwn, ysgrifennodd y Prif Weinidog blaenorol at Cymwysterau Cymru ynglŷn â'r mater hwn. Roedd yr ymateb yn awgrymu nad yw Cymwysterau Cymru yn ystyried ei bod hi'n bosibl datblygu TGAU o'r fath i'w ddefnyddio yng Nghymru yn unig. Fodd bynnag, ers hynny, mae Llywodraeth y DU wedi nodi ei bod yn ystyried datblygu TGAU mewn BSL. Rydym yn deall bod Cymwysterau Cymru yn agored i fabwysiadu unrhyw TGAU a ddatblygir a byddem yn eu hannog hwy a'r Gweinidog i sicrhau bod hyn yn digwydd yn gyflym er mwyn osgoi sefyllfa lle mae disgyblion byddar yng Nghymru ar ei hôl hi o'u cymharu â'u cymheiriaid yn Lloegr. Roedd mynediad at staff â chymwysterau priodol hefyd yn peri pryder sylweddol i Deffo! Roeddent yn tynnu sylw at nifer o ystadegau, gan gynnwys y ffaith nad yw disgyblion ond yn cael tair awr o gyswllt gydag athro i rai byddar bob wythnos ar gyfartaledd, llai o lawer na'r targed o 270 awr y flwyddyn, a bod nifer sylweddol o athrawon sydd wedi cymhwyso'n briodol yn mynd i ymddeol yn ystod y 15 mlynedd nesaf. Mae Deffo! yn credu bod cynorthwywyr addysgu yn cael eu defnyddio yn lle llawer o'r rhain. Wrth ymateb, cyfeiriodd Gweinidogion at ddyletswyddau awdurdodau lleol i nodi, asesu a darparu ar gyfer plant ag anghenion addysgol arbennig. Unwaith eto, fodd bynnag, roedd y pwyllgor yn pryderu nad yw Llywodraeth Cymru yn gwneud digon i wireddu hyn mewn gwirionedd. Nid yw'n glir sut y mae'r Llywodraeth yn sicrhau bod y dyletswyddau hyn yn cael eu gweithredu'n ddigonol yn ymarferol. Yn ein pedwerydd argymhelliad, mae'r pwyllgor yn annog y Llywodraeth i edrych ar broblemau cynllunio'r gweithlu ac ystyried cynaliadwyedd hirdymor y cymorth ar gyfer disgyblion byddar. Mae ymateb y Gweinidog yn cyfeirio at ddarparu arian ychwanegol ac mae hynny i'w groesawu. Fodd bynnag, mae'r Gymdeithas Genedlaethol i Blant Byddar wedi cyfeirio at hyn fel ateb tymor byr i broblem gynyddol, ac rydym yn annog y Llywodraeth i barhau i ganolbwyntio ar sicrhau bod gan Gymru weithlu addysg sydd wedi'i hyfforddi'n briodol mewn perthynas ag anghenion disgyblion byddar. Elfen olaf y ddeiseb yw galwad am wneud mwy o wasanaethau ac adnoddau yn hygyrch drwy gyfrwng BSL. Dywedodd Deffo! wrth y pwyllgor fod llawer o bobl ifanc fyddar yn methu cael mynediad at wasanaethau sydd â'r addasiadau rhesymol y mae ganddynt hawl iddynt o dan y ddeddfwriaeth gydraddoldeb. Er enghraifft, nododd tystion mai un gweithiwr ieuenctid ar gyfer pobl fyddar a geir drwy Gymru gyfan. Mae Deffo! eisiau i ddefnyddwyr BSL allu cael gafael ar wybodaeth am wasanaethau fel addysg, gofal iechyd, gwasanaethau cymdeithasol a thrafnidiaeth gyhoeddus yn eu dewis iaith. Dywedasant wrth y pwyllgor fod methu cael mynediad at wasanaethau o'r fath yn eu digalonni. Mae Gweinidogion wedi nodi nad oes gan Lywodraeth Cymru bŵer i ddeddfu mewn perthynas â darparu ieithoedd heblaw'r Gymraeg. Fodd bynnag, mae'r pwyllgor yn credu y bydd ein hargymhelliad blaenorol mewn perthynas â datblygu siarter genedlaethol ar gyfer darparu gwasanaethau ac adnoddau i blant a phobl ifanc fyddar yn helpu i fynd i'r afael â rhai o'r materion hyn os caiff ei datblygu. Gallai fframwaith o'r fath helpu i wella cysondeb y ddarpariaeth ar draws y gwasanaethau cyhoeddus a darparu mwy o atebolrwydd lle nad yw darpariaeth o'r fath yn bodloni safonau addas. Unwaith eto, rwy'n annog y Gweinidog i sicrhau bod hyn yn cael ei ddatblygu mewn ffordd gadarn ac ystyrlon. I gloi, Ddirprwy Lywydd, hoffwn ddiolch i Deffo! unwaith eto am gyflwyno'r ddeiseb ac i bawb arall sydd wedi darparu tystiolaeth i'r pwyllgor. Mae'r materion a godwyd yn sgil y ddeiseb hon yn niferus ac yn amrywiol, ac maent yn herio pob un ohonom yma i geisio sicrhau bod plant a phobl ifanc byddar Cymru yn gallu cael mynediad at yr addysg a'r gwasanaethau eraill y dylai fod ganddynt hawl iddynt. Rwy'n croesawu ymateb cadarnhaol y Gweinidog i'n hargymhellion, ac rwy'n gobeithio, os cânt eu datblygu, y bydd y camau hyn yn arwain at welliannau ar gyfer plant byddar a'u teuluoedd. Diolch yn fawr.