Friday October 23rd 2026
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
Efforts to promote the Gaelic language across the Scottish Borders continue to be pursued, councillors will learn next week.
When members of Scottish Borders Council’s Scrutiny & Petitions Committee meet on Thursday, October 29, they will receive an update on the implementation and progress of the Scottish Borders Gaelic Language Plan.
The Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005 was passed by the Scottish Parliament with a view to securing the status of the Gaelic language as an official language of Scotland commanding equal respect to the English language.
This provision was designed to ensure that the public sector in Scotland plays its part in creating a sustainable future for Gaelic by raising the status and profile of the language and creating practical opportunities for its use.
A pilot project in Galashiels successfully introduced Gaelic drama and music into the curriculum, in partnership with the Great Tapestry of Scotland. This is set to expand to other schools.
It is intended to continue to promote Gaelic as part of the 1+2 languages offer and encourage schools to consider Gaelic in their curriculum planning.
New partnerships have been established with local authorities (City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian) and national organisations (An Comunn Gàidhealach), supporting regional collaboration and event planning.
Gaelic teaching resources are also now available to all staff via the SBCway Launchpad and online portals.
SBC supports the aim of the National Gaelic Language Plan 2023-28 that “Gaelic is used more often, by more people and in a wider range of situations”.
The local authority is committed to achieving this aim by focussing on three priorities.
Firstly, to increase the use of Gaelic within the organisation and encouraging more people to use it more often when they interact with the local authority.
Secondly, by increasing the opportunity for people to learn Gaelic as part of day-to-day operations.
Finally, by promoting a positive image of Gaelic whenever it can as part of the operations of the organisation.
A community group in Peeblesshire has expressed interest in Gaelic Medium Education (GME) and the council has established a positive partnership with Comann nam Pàrant to support families interested in GME.
But a recent audit confirmed that no Borders school teach Gaelic as second language and that only one school teaches Gaelic as a third language
Members will be told that if the council does not complete the actions set out in the Borders Gaelic Plan it may receive a written warning from Bòrd na Gàidhlig (on behalf of the Scottish Government).
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