AN ENGLISH medium primary school has been awarded for encouraging the Welsh language and culture among its pupils.

Ysgol Gellifor, in Ruthin, is celebrating after receiving the Cymraeg Campus Bronze Award, given to English medium schools in Wales which complete the Welsh language charter set up by local authority education alliance ERW.

The charter, which is endorsed by the Welsh Government as part of its plan for one million Welsh speakers in Wales by 2050, asks schools to use Welsh in assemblies and lessons, as well as set up a pupil-led committee, Criw Cymraeg, to encourage their peers to learn the language.

Over the last year, Ysgol Gellifor's pupil committee has led weekly assemblies, greeted their peers in Welsh, introduced Welsh hymns and prayers, and awarded pupils selected by teachers for their use of Welsh during the week.

Pupils have also promoted Welsh playground games and created posters to advertise Welsh games and apps to play at home.

Denbighshire Free Press:

Gareth Williams, Welsh Advisory Team (left) hands the award to Ysgol Gellifor headteacher Richard Monteiro and pupils.

Gareth Williams, from Denbighshire’s Welsh Advisory Team, handed the award to the school on April 1.

Richard Monteiro, Ysgol Gellifor headteacher, said: “I’m extremely proud. The Welsh language is a very difficult language to learn and the award reflects the hard work the staff and pupils have put in as we are, in reality, an English medium school where Welsh is not spoken at home.

“England is one of the few monolingual countries in the world so it is important for our pupils to recognise that Wales is a country that has its own history and identity.

"By encouraging a willingness to learn other languages we will hopefully ensure that our pupils understand the importance of appreciating different cultures.”