🔗 Share this article

The Ministry of Defence spends around one million pounds annually to place children to independent educational institutions in northern Wales because "public schools teach some or all classes 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 established policy.

A spokesperson said "service children can experience regular relocations" and the allowance "seeks to reduce disruption to their schooling".

Plaid Cymru described it as a "total misuse of funds" and "an insult to our tongue" while the Tory party argued parents should be able to select the medium in which their kids are taught.

The figures were obtained following a request under the Freedom of Information Act.

The online portal of the military installation on Anglesey tells its personnel, "for those residing and working in north Wales, where public schools provide various lessons in the Welsh language, you can opt to enroll your kids to an English-medium private institution".

"As long as you are joined by your family at your posting, you can utilize this allowance to pay for the cost of tuition fees, educational excursions/residential educational courses and regular commuting."

A defense ministry representative told, "the purpose of the educational stipend in the northern region (DSA-NW) is to assist military households posted to the area, where Welsh is the main language of public schooling".

"As mobility is a aspect of military career, service children can face regular transfers and the this allowance seeks to minimize interference to their learning."

"The ministry acknowledges the contributions military members, and their families make, and from the stipend assists with the expenses of independent day schooling given in the English language."

'Where teaching is bilingual or non-English'

The benefit includes school costs up to a maximum of £22,755 a year, £7,585 each semester, and is available to personnel living in the counties of Conwy, Denbighshire, the locality, the island or the district and serving in one of the following establishments:

• 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 qualifying independent institutions are Treffos school, the village, Anglesey; Rydal Penrhos Prep school in the town; St Gerard's school, the city and St David's institution, Llandudno.

The relevant military policy document states that "disbursement of the allowance is limited to those regions where instruction in the public system is on a dual-language or non-English foundation".

People stationed elsewhere in the three branches of the armed forces - the Army, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force - can claim a continuity of education allowance which contributes towards boarding and/or tuition fees up to a maximum rate, with a required family share of ten percent for each eligible child.

Tory Senedd member the politician said "members of the UK military move around the nation and the globe, and the MoD have always sought to ensure that their kids have access to consistency in education".

"While we fully support Welsh-medium education throughout the country, it's important to remember there are two official languages in our country, English and Welsh, and municipal authorities and education authorities should provide for both."

"Families should always have the option to decide the medium in which their children are instructed."

The Welsh party's learning representative Cefin Campbell MS stated "not just is this a complete waste of money, it is a slight to our language".

"It's hard to imagine any valid reason to be allocating such money every year, on preventing young people residing in Wales from having the opportunity to acquire the Welsh language."

"Dual-language ability enriches life and supports the growth of young people, but the British administration is clearly unaware to this."

"This money is a clear illustration of the attitude of the Westminster parties regarding Wales and the native tongue - namely unawareness and insults."