North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has urged the Education Secretary to support a campaign aimed at teaching about healthy relationships and domestic abuse.
- in the Assembly Chamber yesterday, Mr Isherwood, who has made repeated calls over the years for the Welsh Government to ensure delivery of healthy relationships education, championed Hafan Cymru’s Healthy Relationships campaign launched this week, and asked the Education Secretary how she will back this.
He said:
“You will recall in the last Assembly the three opposition parties then worked together to secure concessions from the Welsh Government. We took them to the line over the Violence against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act 2015, and that included a commitment from the Welsh Government, alongside support from Peter Black from your Party then, Jocelyn Davies from Plaid Cymru and myself, to involve stakeholders from the violence against women sector in developing healthy relationship education within the curriculum to be followed by all schools.
“During that time, I think both you and I referred to Hafan Cymru's Spectrum Project to educate pupils in schools and train teachers in schools about healthy relationships. How, therefore, will you be giving your support to the campaign being launched by Hafan Cymru on 3 February regarding Healthy Relationships? As they say, it will support vulnerable men, women and children, help men deal with loneliness and isolation through their Men's Sheds Project and, critically, teach children about healthy relationships and domestic abuse through their Spectrum Project?”
Replying, the Cabinet Secretary, Kirsty Williams AM, said:
“I want to take this opportunity to recognise your personal commitment to this agenda. I'm being as good as my word in Opposition as I am in Government in the fact that we have given a grant to Welsh Women's Aid to help develop resources for schools with regard to what safe, respectful and nurturing relationships look like. And I'm glad that we have a variety of voluntary organisations that are willing to work alongside us on this agenda.
“The health and well-being area of learning and experience working group that is looking to develop this is taking evidence and views from a wide range of stakeholders outside of the education system to inform their work.”