Commentary on Sections Local plans Section 32 - Approval of local Welsh in education strategic plans
136.This section relates to the approval process for local Welsh in education strategic plans, including the steps that local authorities must take in submitting their draft plan to the Welsh Ministers.
137.Section 32(2) states that the local authority is required, when submitting its draft plan, to include a summary of responses it has received during the consultation period, along with the local authority’s response to the consultation.
138.Section 32(3) and (4) outlines the options the Welsh Ministers have in relation to a draft plan after receiving it. There are three options namely:
139.In accordance with section 32(4), if the Welsh Ministers decide to reject a draft plan, they must provide the local authority with reasons for that decision and direct it to reconsider its plan. In addition, they must set out a date by when a local authority must resubmit its draft plan.
140.Section 32(5) confirms that section 32(3) to (4) applies to a further draft plan (e.g. a plan that is resubmitted). This means that a local authority may need to resubmit a plan more than once if Welsh Ministers remain of the view that they cannot approve the draft plan.
141.Similar to the process for approving schools’ Welsh language education delivery plans, section 32 has been drawn up with the intention that all local authorities and Welsh Ministers will agree on the content of the local Welsh in education strategic plans. It is not therefore possible for Welsh Ministers, under this section, to insist on the specific content of any local strategic plan. But in this regard they must, as public bodies, act reasonably. If a local authority acts unreasonably during the approval process, the Welsh Ministers may consider whether it is necessary to exercise their powers of intervention under Part 2 of the School Standards and Organisation (Wales) Act 2013 (see also section 50).