MoD Spends Large Sums on Private Schools to Avoid Welsh Teaching
The Ministry of Defence allocates approximately one million pounds annually to send students to private educational institutions in north Wales because "state schools provide some or all lessons in the Welsh language".
It paid £1,019,000 in day school allowance in the northern region for 83 children of military families in 2024-2025, and £942,000 for 79 children in 2023-2024 under a longstanding practice.
An official representative stated "military families' children can face frequent moves" and the stipend "aims to minimize interruption to their schooling".
The Welsh party described it as a "total misuse of funds" and "an insult to our tongue" while the Conservatives argued parents should be able to choose the medium in which their children are educated.
These numbers were acquired following a request under the Freedom of Information Act.
The online portal of the military installation on the island informs its personnel, "for those residing and working in north Wales, where state schools teach various lessons in the Welsh tongue, you may choose to send your kids to an English-language private institution".
"Provided you are joined by your household at your duty station, you can utilize this benefit to pay for the expense of school charges, educational excursions/residential educational courses and regular commuting."
A defense ministry representative explained, "the aim of Day School Allowance in the northern region (DSA-NW) is to assist service families stationed to the area, where the Welsh tongue is the primary medium of public schooling".
"Since relocation is a part of service life, military kids can face frequent moves and the this allowance aims to minimize disruption to their learning."
"The ministry supports the sacrifices military members, and their families undertake, and from DSA-NW assists with the expenses of independent day schooling provided in English."
'Where teaching is bilingual or non-English'
The benefit includes school costs up to a limit of twenty-two thousand seven hundred fifty-five pounds a year, £7,585 each semester, and is available to people residing in the counties of the county, the area, Gwynedd, Anglesey or Flintshire and working in these specific locations:
- The military base, Anglesey
- Joint Services Mountain Training Centre, the island
- The joint military mountain unit, Llanrwst
- The university military training program (the corps), Bangor detachment, the city
The eligible private schools are Treffos school, Llansadwrn, Anglesey; Rydal Penrhos preparatory institution in the town; St Gerard's, the city and St David's institution, Llandudno.
The applicable military policy document confirms that "payment of the allowance is restricted to those regions where instruction in the state sector is on a dual-language or non-English basis".
Personnel serving in other locations in the multiple services of the armed forces - the ground forces, the Royal Navy and the air service - can apply for a continuity of education allowance which helps with boarding and/or tuition fees up to a cap, with a required family share of ten percent for each eligible child.
Welsh Conservative assembly representative the politician said "personnel of the UK military move around the nation and the globe, and the ministry has always sought to ensure that their children have availability to consistency in schooling".
"Although we fully support Welsh-language teaching across Wales, it's crucial to recognize there are two official languages in our nation, English and Welsh, and municipal authorities and school boards should accommodate both."
"Parents should always have the option to decide the medium in which their kids are instructed."
The Welsh party's learning representative Cefin Campbell MS said "not just is this a complete waste of funding, it is a slight to our language".
"I cannot think of any valid reason to be spending such money annually, on preventing youth living in Wales from having the opportunity to learn the Welsh language."
"Dual-language ability enriches experience and aids the growth of young people, but the UK government is obviously unaware to this."
"This money is a clear illustration of the attitude of the UK political groups regarding Wales and the native tongue - namely ignorance and disrespect."
