Having moved to West Wales from England several years ago, David and I are very pleased to receive this award for enterprise in Wales:
https://smenews.digital/winners/phonics-international-ltd/
Much of the work of our company, Phonics International Ltd, is free, extensive and (arguably) outstanding. See here for the full range of our work including both commercial and ‘free’:
I have to say Wales is sorely in need of research-informed and practice-informed reading instruction. Tragically, the Welsh Labour political party is in power and those in authority are either plain ignorant about the most advisable reading instruction – or I’ve even heard they’re deliberately determined NOT to follow in the footsteps of England’s political developments over the years (that is, the implementation of ‘systematic synthetic phonics’ provision and introduction of a statutory Year One Phonics Screening Check).
You can read about the current scenario in Wales via the FORUM of the International Foundation for Effective Reading Instruction below:
‘Wales UK: Rhys Williams raises the issue of damaging multi-cueing in Wales failing children’
If you scroll quickly through the various posts to the latest developments in 2025, you will read how badly Elizabeth Nonweiler, chair of the UK Reading Reform Foundation, has been treated despite her role on Wales’ ‘Expert Panel for Literacy’ – to the extent she felt forced to resign:
https://iferi.org/iferi_forum/viewtopic.php?t=1481
The reading standards in Wales are abysmal. The very first (and obvious) step would be for infant schools to utilise the free Year One Phonics Screening Check materials which are ‘statutory’ in England. This would then inform the schools and officials in Wales about the relative effectiveness of early reading instruction in Wales compared to around 16,000 schools in England. Currently, it’s not hard to see that teachers in Wales can continue in ignorant bliss because they may work hard, and they may think they are teaching effectively, but without objective comparative assessment, they don’t really know the reality.
And meanwhile, the Wales Labour government looks like it is pouring £8.2 million into projects that are ill-advised and informed by people with approaches that have in some cases actually been discredited by the prevailing research into reading instruction and leading-edge practice.
One of the people Wales considers to be a leading authority is Professor Dominic Wyse (also on the ‘Expert Panel’), but his work and approach has been critiqued with great dismay by academics and others internationally, see here:
https://iferi.org/iferi_forum/viewtopic.php?t=1482
Is there any hope for Wales with the Labour party in charge of education?
I’ve written to Welsh Education Secretary, Lynne Neagles, twice suggesting a conversation with me about reading instruction in Wales. No reply as yet – more about this later.
PLEASE NOTE: This is the ‘Manifesto’ provided by the advisors of ‘Impact Wales’ (December 2025) – which is recommended reading for any educators, parents and carers – and the general public – living in Wales, UK:
‘From Evidence to Equity: A Manifesto for Lasting Impact’
‘As Wales prepares for the 2026 Senedd elections, this manifesto offers ten clear, actionable steps to help policymakers and practitioners alike close the gap between aspiration and achievement. Each step draws on the strongest available evidence – the “best bets” for improving outcomes – and emphasises the importance of targeted support for the learners who need it most.’
https://www.impact.wales/manifesto/
