Select a region
Guernsey's External Affairs Minister has visited Caen in Normandy to sign an agreement aimed at strengthening educational links with the region.
The agreement should allow France and the Channel Islands to work more closely with each other to develop an educational partnership.
Deputy Jonathan Le Tocq and Jersey Deputy Jeremy Maçon attended the event in Caen to sign the agreement.
"The Channel Islands have a strong cultural and historical link with the region of Normandy and in recent years we have been working hard across government to improve links in a wide number of areas with our closest European neighbour," Deputy Le Tocq said.
"Education, sports, culture and heritage was an area that was identified as a priority for joint working in the original cooperation agreement that was signed in 2015 and I am pleased to have attended the ceremony in Caen to sign this agreement on behalf of the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture, which aims to provide greater opportunities for exchange for islanders and Normans alike.”
The agreement itself outlines a number of initiatives to explore and develop educational links between Normandy and the Channel Islands to provide greater opportunities for students to exchange and develop their language skills, as well as gain a greater understanding of different cultures. This includes:
Improving educational links between the Channel Islands and France also forms a key part of the cooperation agreement that was originally signed between Guernsey, Jersey, the region of Normandy and the department of La Manche in 2015.
The document was also signed by Mr Denis Rolland, Recteur of Normandy, Mrs Christine Lebacheley, Vice- President in charge of Education and Youth at the Departmental Council of La Manche, and Mr Jean-Marie Bernard, Regional Councillor and President of the Commission for Economic Development and Higher Eduation for the region of Normandy.
Matt Fallaize, President of ESC.
President of Guernsey's Education, Sport & Culture Committee, Deputy Matt Fallaize, said they were committed to improving educational oppurtunies for all of Guernsey's students, something this agreement was working toward.
"The signing of this agreement provides additional opportunities for greater links with schools in Normandy to work together on activities in language learning as well as cultural and sporting projects," he said.
"Work has already been undertaken to offer suggested itineraries for French schools visiting the island, and we will continue to work with our Norman partners to improve educational outcomes for all our students.”
Pictured top: L-R Christine Lebacheley, Deputy Jeremy Maçon, Denis Rolland, Deputy Jonathan Le Tocq, Jean-Marie Bernand.
Comments
Comments on this story express the views of the commentator only, not Bailiwick Publishing. We are unable to guarantee the accuracy of any of those comments.