Preserving the Somali Language in Britain

Britain is home to one of the largest Somali diaspora communities in Europe. In cities such as Cardiff, London, Birmingham, Leicester, Bristol and Manchester, Somali families have built lives, established organisations and businesses, and contributed to civic and community life over several generations.

A new generation has now emerged: young Somalis born and educated in Britain who see themselves as British, Welsh, Somali — or all three.

Yet many have limited confidence in speaking Somali, and fewer still have had the opportunity to read and write it to a high standard.

Unless immediate action is taken, the Somali language risks becoming progressively weaker among future generations of the diaspora.

Language is more than a means of communication. It carries history, poetry, humour, traditions, family relationships and collective memory. For a community with a rich oral and literary tradition, Somali is a central part of cultural identity.

Preserving the language should not be seen as looking backwards. It is about helping young people understand where they come from while enabling them to participate confidently in the society in which they live.

A young person growing up in Cardiff should not have to choose between being Somali, Welsh and British. These identities can coexist.

Cardiff already shows the demand

The demand for Somali-language education is already visible.

In Cardiff, Taageero Cymru runs Somali supplementary classes at Grange Pavilion, giving children and young people opportunities to strengthen their language and cultural knowledge.

More than 40 young people have attended the provision, demonstrating clear demand among families who want their children to retain and develop their mother tongue.

Cardiff is particularly well placed to take this issue forward. It has one of Britain’s longest-established Somali communities and a large generation of young people born in Wales.

English is naturally the main language of education and everyday life. Welsh is also an important part of national identity. There is therefore every reason to encourage young Somali people in Wales to become genuinely multilingual — confident in English, engaged with Welsh and able to speak, read and write Somali.

These languages should complement one another, not compete.

Community provision exists, but progression is limited

Cardiff is not alone.

Somali-language classes are delivered in several parts of Britain. The Somali Language Centre in East London provides teaching in speaking, reading and writing. Islington Somali Community runs supplementary education focused on language, culture and heritage. In Leicester, SOCOPA provides Somali alongside other educational subjects. Tower Hamlets Council also includes Somali within its Young Community Languages programme.

This shows that the problem is not a lack of interest.

Parents are enrolling their children. Community organisations are finding venues, recruiting tutors and volunteers, and developing learning opportunities.

What is missing is a recognised educational pathway.

The major gap is accreditation

As of September 2026, there is no Somali GCSE available.

A young person can therefore spend years learning Somali, develop substantial speaking, reading and writing skills, and still reach secondary-school age without access to a mainstream qualification recognising that achievement.

That is a significant gap.

In February 2026, the UK Department for Education confirmed in Parliament that awarding organisations including AQA, OCR, Pearson Edexcel and WJEC are free to develop a Somali GCSE. Decisions can take account of factors such as school demand and the size of the language-speaking population.

The door is therefore not closed.

There are recognised professional qualifications involving Somali for adults, particularly in public-service interpreting. These are valuable, but they do not provide the missing pathway for children and young people learning Somali as a heritage language.

Community classes should lead somewhere.

ACDA’s experience shows why bilingual capacity matters

The experience of the Advocacy & Capacity Development Association (ACDA) shows the practical importance of maintaining Somali language skills within community services.

ACDA delivers its programmes bilingually where appropriate, using Somali and English to ensure that families can engage fully with services and support.

The Founder and Acting CEO of ACDA has stressed that it is critical for community organisations to have bilingual staff and volunteers.

Bilingual capacity is about more than translation. It helps build trust, improves communication, reduces language barriers and strengthens links between generations.

It also shows younger people that Somali has value not only at home, but in professional and community settings.

ACDA strongly supports the call for formal accreditation of the Somali language and for the development of high-quality, professionally designed teaching materials.

Too often, supplementary schools and community organisations are expected to create their own resources with limited funding and little consistency between programmes.

A stronger system should provide age-appropriate learning materials, digital resources, teacher guidance, assessment tools and clearly defined levels of progression.

Wales has an opportunity to lead

Wales is well placed to take a lead.

There has already been public discussion about a Somali GCSE, and Cardiff has practical evidence of demand through the supplementary education already taking place.

The next step should be to build a clear evidence base.

Community organisations, schools, parents and education authorities should establish how many children and young people across Cardiff and Wales would study Somali if structured provision were available.

That evidence should include the number already attending supplementary classes, the number of schools with significant Somali pupil populations, and the number of young people who would take an accredited qualification if one existed.

This could form the basis of formal discussions with Qualifications Wales, WJEC, the Welsh Government and relevant education authorities.

Young people who invest time and effort in learning Somali should have a credible route to recognised achievement.

Cardiff should develop a Somali Language Programme

We should not wait for a GCSE before improving provision.

Cardiff could establish a structured Somali Language Programme bringing together community organisations, schools, educators and parents.

The programme could set clear levels in speaking, listening, reading and writing, improve teaching materials, support tutor development and introduce regular assessment.

Children could progress through defined stages rather than attending classes without a clear pathway.

Existing organisations such as Taageero Cymru, alongside bilingual organisations such as ACDA, provide a strong foundation for this work.

The aim should not be to replace community provision, but to strengthen it and connect it more closely with the wider education system.

Technology can support language preservation

Digital learning also offers important opportunities.

A young Somali person in Cardiff who understands Somali but lacks confidence speaking it could, through a properly supervised programme, practise with a student in Somaliland who wants to improve their English.

Both would benefit.

With appropriate safeguarding and teacher oversight, such exchanges could supplement classroom learning and strengthen practical language use.

Digital platforms could also provide reading materials, pronunciation exercises, spelling, storytelling, vocabulary, poetry, history and interactive activities.

Language preservation must adapt to the way young people now learn and communicate.

Language strengthens identity and belonging

The case for Somali-language education is not only cultural.

It is also about confidence, wellbeing and connection.

Young people in diaspora communities often move between several identities: family, community, Welsh or British, and increasingly global digital identities.

Knowing their heritage language can help connect those worlds.

It allows young people to communicate more deeply with parents and grandparents, understand family history and engage directly with Somali literature, poetry and traditions.

When a child loses the language spoken most comfortably by older generations, more than vocabulary can be lost. Stories, experiences and cultural knowledge can become harder to pass on.

A person can be proudly Somali and fully Welsh or British.

Integration should not require cultural disappearance.

A shared responsibility

The Somali language will not automatically survive from one generation to the next.

English dominates education, employment, entertainment, friendships, technology and social media. It is unrealistic to expect children to develop strong Somali literacy simply because the language is spoken at home.

Parents have an important role, but they cannot carry the responsibility alone.

Community organisations, schools, local authorities, educational institutions, funders and policymakers all have a part to play.

Cardiff should now pursue three practical priorities:

First, strengthen and expand existing Somali-language provision, building on work already being delivered by organisations such as Taageero Cymru.

Second, establish a structured Cardiff Somali Language Programme, with clear learning levels, assessment, tutor development and high-quality teaching materials.

Third, open a formal evidence-based discussion with Qualifications Wales and WJEC about a Somali GCSE or another recognised school-age qualification.

Languages are rarely lost overnight. They weaken gradually: one generation understands but speaks less, the next speaks only a little, and the generation after that may no longer possess the language at all.

The Somali community in Britain still has the opportunity to prevent that process.

The demand exists. Children are attending classes. Parents want provision. Community organisations are already doing much of the groundwork.

What is now needed is coordination, investment and formal recognition.

Preserving Somali is not simply about saving words.

It is about preserving memory, connecting generations, strengthening identity and giving young British Somalis the confidence to move forward without losing an important part of where they came from.

Cardiff has the history, the community and the foundations to help lead that effort.

The opportunity should not be missed.

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