PUPILS in West Dunbartonshire will now be offered the opportunity to learn a third language.

West Dunbartonshire Council has announced that pupils from primary 1 to S3 will be given the opportunity to learn an additional language as a way of developing their global communication skills.

All schools in the local authority already offer pupils options to learn more than one language. 

The council has developed a virtual 'anytime learning' platform to access online courses, assist with pronunciation, help embed languages into lessons and develop effective teaching strategies to help support teachers.

Councillor Clare Steel, convener of Educational Services, said: “Our children and young people are living in an increasingly globalised world making learning languages an important part of the curriculum offered in our schools, besides being a fun and engaging part of the Curriculum for Excellence.

"Our schools have done a wonderful job supporting our children and young people in their learning and in today's world, where business and travel are worldwide, it is important children can learn additional languages which will be an invaluable skill in their future paths.”

Councillor John Millar, vice convener of Educational Services, said: "We want to ensure the enthusiasm for languages starts at an early stage in a child's education.

"Learning additional languages has the potential to open doors and offer experiences all around the world and I thank the schools for everything they are doing to ensure our children and young people are equipped with the languages required to compete around the world.”