Breakdown by use of Welsh Language

This year, 116,038 pupils from 1,000 schools in Wales took part in the 2022 Sport Wales School Sport Survey. This document shares the data by use of Welsh Language, highlighting key figures and patterns. We define pupils who speak Welsh as those who self-identify as being able to speak fluently in Welsh, or can chat confidently or simply in Welsh. 

We’ve structured this around the Vision for Sport in Wales: ‘An active nation where everyone can have a lifelong enjoyment of sport’. We want as many people as possible to be inspired to be active through sport, where everyone feels able to take part no matter their sporting background, in a sporting landscape that responds to the needs of people at different stages of their life, to create a wide range of positive experiences. 

Active Nation

The Vision for Sport in Wales is to create an active nation. We want as many people as possible to be inspired to be active through sport. This section explores participation by frequency, setting and sports, as well as volunteering. 

• Pupils who speak Welsh are more likely than pupils who do not speak Welsh to participate in sport outside of the curriculum three or more times per week (Future Generations Indicator 38). 46% of pupils who speak Welsh participate in sport outside of the curriculum three or more times per week, compared to 35% of pupils who do not speak Welsh. 
• Pupils who speak Welsh are more likely than pupils who do not speak Welsh to participate in sport in both an extracurricular and community club setting at least once a week. 
• The top three sports that pupils who speak Welsh participate in at least once a week in a community club setting are football, swimming, and rugby. 
• Pupils who speak Welsh are more likely to volunteer or help with sport at school or in their community than pupils who do not speak Welsh. 28% of pupils who speak Welsh volunteer or help with sport at school or in their community, compared to 21% of pupils who do not speak Welsh. 

Everyone 

The Vision is for everyone. From people who don’t see themselves as sporty to people who win medals, across all demographics. This section explores participation within Regional Sport Partnerships. 

Table 1: The percentage of pupils who participate in sport three or more times per week, by Welsh Language use and Regional Sport Partnership.

Lifelong

The Vision is for life. It responds to the needs of people at different stages of their life. This section explores demand and motivators/enablers to do more sport. 

• 50% of pupils who speak Welsh have unmet demand for sport 
• The top three sports in demand for pupils who speak Welsh are swimming, cycling and basketball.
• The 2022 School Sport Survey asked pupils to select responses to the question ‘I would do more sport if…’. The top three selected responses from pupils who speak Welsh are ‘If I had more time’, ‘If there were more sport opportunities that suited me’ and ‘If I was more confident’. 

Footnote: Unmet demand refers to those who do not participate in sport three or more times a week, yet have a demand to do more sport.

Enjoyment

The Vision focuses on creating a wide range of positive experiences so everyone can enjoy sport. This section explores enjoyment and confidence. 

• Pupils who speak Welsh enjoy sport in PE lessons ‘a lot’ more than they do in extracurricular or community clubs.

Table 2: Enjoyment of sport in different settings, by use of Welsh language. 

• Across all settings, pupils who speak Welsh are more likely to enjoy sport than pupils who do not speak Welsh.
• Pupils who speak Welsh are more likely than pupils who do not speak Welsh to feel ‘very confident’ in trying new sports. 31% of pupils who speak Welsh feel ‘very confident’ in trying new sports, compared to 25% of pupils who do not speak Welsh.