Plan for a Welsh Bac gets universal backing

Plans for a Welsh Baccalaureate have won overwhelming support from admissions chiefs in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

A survey of institutions outside Wales conducted by the Institute of Welsh Affairs found the proposed broad-based qualification was more popular than the government's Curriculum 2000 reforms for post-16 education.

The Welsh Assembly commissioned the survey to help it decide before the end of this year whether to go ahead with piloting the Welsh Baccalaureate, as proposed in its strategic plan unveiled in May.

Welsh Baccalaureate students would take core studies in a range of disciplines. These would include IT, theory of knowledge, global concerns and community action, and six subjects that must include maths and science and Welsh language or Wales studies, with three at higher level and three at standard level.