Written question WQ88830

The Welsh Government is taking action to support the availability of a variety of Welsh-medium content, including for younger audiences. In 2022, Creative Wales launched a Young Content Fund, delivered through funding from the Welsh Government’s Co-operation Agreement with Plaid Cymru. The Fund required a bilingual focus from all projects, demonstrating its commitment to increasing the levels of Welsh language content, and supported a total of eight projects to develop new bilingual content for children and young people. Creative Wales’ support for the gaming sector is also supporting content, with support provided to Maid of Sker, a game featuring the Welsh language and based on Welsh mythology. This work complements Creative Wales’ core activities to support Welsh-medium content, including through its Production Fund, which has supported a number of Welsh language and back-to back productions including Pen ar y Bryn/Tree on a Hill and Un Nos Ola Leuad. Its Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with the BBC and S4C are also supporting Welsh language content development, with the commitments set out in the MOU with S4C resulting in support for Welsh language film in partnership with Ffilm Cymru. In addition, Cymraeg 2050’s MOU with S4C is supporting the use of S4C content as an educational resource.

Recognising the role of online channels and streaming platforms in younger audience viewing habits, Creative Wales is keen to capitalise on its good relationship with global platforms such as Netflix and Disney, as a direct result of bringing productions such as Sex Education and Willow to Wales. Creative Wales is seeking to explore opportunities to increase provision of Welsh language content on these platforms in future, building on the recent example of the purchase of the Dal y Mellt licence from S4C as the first Welsh language programme purchased by Netflix. We also continue to work with the UK Government to press for the needs of Welsh language speakers to be promoted and protected on more digital and online channels as the regulatory framework evolves and the UK Government takes forward the proposals set out in its Media White Paper and draft Media Bill.

To note, the age-demographic breakdown of S4C viewing figures in ‘A new future for broadcasting and communications in Wales’ are Barb figures for 2022, and do not include viewing on all wider platforms typically used by younger people to connect with content. S4C’s 2022/23 Annual Report provides further detail on younger audience engagement with S4C content and demonstrates the highest number of viewers between the ages of 16-44 for a decade. The Welsh Government is committed to continued work with S4C as it delivers its strategy to invest in and expand digital provision and services, and its reach to younger audiences, through Creative Wales’ MOU with the broadcaster.