Every public body to which a notice is given under section 7 of the Welsh Language Act 1993 is required to provide services to the public in Welsh, or exercises statutory functions in relation to the provision by other public bodies of services to the public in Wales. They shall prepare their own scheme specifying the measures which it proposes to take, for the purpose mentioned in the scheme as to the use of the Welsh language in connection with the provision of those services.
We fully comply with the requirements of the Welsh Language Act and would be able to provide all of your material in Welsh or advise you on the best possible methodology to produce it.
Proven Experience of Welsh Translation
K International has demonstrated through the Crown Commercial frameworks RM1092, RM987 and through Home Office sponsored agreements 05/GEN/25 and 11/GEN/25 that we can provide Welsh language services for translation and transcription to the MoJ.
Over the past 5 years we have translated over 30 million words from English into/out of Welsh. This has been mostly for Government agencies but also includes independent bodies and private/listed companies. A large percentage of this work has been driven (primarily) by the need to comply with the Welsh Language Act 1993.
We have supported many Government departments with their policies to help them to gain compliance with the Welsh Language Act 1993. This takes the form of auditing and advising on policies that influence language and later providing language services into Welsh. This helps not only to comply with the Welsh Language Act but also actively communicate in a native language of the UK.
Government departments to whom we provide Welsh translations on a daily basis include: DVLA Welsh Language Unit, Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Environment Agency, Equality & Human Rights Commission, Financial Services Compensation Scheme, Food Standards Agency, Heritage Lottery Fund, Home Office, Independent Complaints Reviewer, Independent Foster Care Service, IPCC, Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), Intellectual Property Office, LOCOG, Maritime & Coastguard Agency, Natural Resources Wales, Office for Nuclear Development, Office of Rail Regulation, Olympic Delivery Authority, Parliamentary & Health Service Ombudsman, Public Health England, Serious Fraud Office, The Disclosure & Barring Service, The Electoral Commission, The Stationery Office Ltd (TSO), Vehicle & Operator Services Agency (VOSA) and Visit Wales – Croeso Cymru.
For all of these we have been able to create bilingual templates, which help save time and reduce costs.
All Welsh projects have involved translation and proofreading by native Welsh translators. They all adhere to the Welsh Language Act and are briefed on the specific client’s own language scheme upon recruitment and selection.
The projects we undertake are diverse, they include:
- Translation of the Annual Monitoring Report to the Welsh Language Commissioner for the Money Advice Service (June 2013, 2014 and 2015) including full translation of the Money Advice Service website, and regular content updates into Welsh, standardising terms relevant to the client.
- Translation of the Welsh Language Scheme Monitoring Report 2011-12 for the Olympic Delivery Authority.
- Translation of the IPCC Welsh Language Scheme Annual Report to Welsh Language Commissioner, April 2014 to March 2015.
- Disclosure & Barring Service – Translation of the DBS Welsh Language Scheme Annual Report into Welsh. Under their Welsh Language Scheme it specifies that the drafted report will be submitted to DBS Senior Management Team and a bilingual copy of the report sent to the Welsh Language Commissioner.
- Visit Wales – Mini tender competition – awarded the whole translation process of the publication Wales Holiday Magazine 2016 which is currently in production.
- DVLA (Welsh) – translation of registration applications, driving licences, etc into Welsh. Standardising terms relevant to the client.
Welsh Translation Capability
We now regularly work with around 40 Welsh translators & interpreters and 12 Welsh transcribers. The details of every Welsh project we have undertaken since 1989 is kept on our database. We work every day on a variety of projects for a variety of clients. All translation memories kept up to date and updated when new legislation is released.
Our team of Welsh translators are members of Cymdeithas Cyfieithwyr Cymru, the association of Welsh translators and interpreters. Its aim is to ensure professional translation standards in Welsh/English translation and interpreting, as well as ensuring that the translation industry develops effectively as part of the process of promoting the Welsh language and bilingualism.
We’ve chosen to partner with this association to allow us to:
- Reinvest in the Welsh Translation Industry, providing support, guidance (for example our CEO is speaking to translation students at Swansea University on the 14th November about the differences between work and academic life).
- Develop technologies and innovations to help improve Welsh translation over time. We’ve been fundamental in adding in Welsh support to translation tools which are now used all over the translation community.
- Develop an Internship programme. We subscribe to the Elia Exchange model for translation internships. In our industry there are other opportunities for careers (as in any industry careers can be varied). We promote this through our internship programs and work we do in academia.
Welsh speakers are on standby to deal with any telephone enquiries (in Welsh) which may come in from any of our clients. We also have 24/7 telephone and video interpreting services which is integrated into any of our clients’ operations.
We have the management, processes and systems in place already and feel sure that K International can fully meet your requirements under the Welsh Language Act.
The Welsh Language Act
The Act did three main things for the Welsh Language:
- Set up the Welsh Language Board, with the duty of promoting the Welsh language and ensuring compliance throughout the public sector.
- Gave all Welsh speakers the absolute right to speak Welsh in courts under all circumstances.
- Obliged all organisations in the public sector providing services to the Public in Wales to treat Welsh and English on an equal basis. Meaning any official literature and publicity such as road signs, minutes, information leaflets etc… must be supplied bilingually, as well as all public events and meetings be interpreted.
Since its conception in 1993 the Welsh Language board has rallied thousands in support of the increased usage of the Welsh language. So much so that the UK Government has ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority languages in respect of Welsh and they have ruled it to be one of the languages which is sufficient for naturalisation purposes in the UK.
To date, the most significant Act by far to be passed is The Welsh Language Act 1993.
A milestone in the modern history of the Welsh language, this Act was the first to put Welsh and English on an equal footing within the public sector.
The Act did three main things for the Welsh Language:
- Set up the Welsh Language Board, with the duty of promoting the Welsh language and ensuring compliance throughout the public sector.
- Gave all Welsh speakers the absolute right to speak Welsh in courts under all circumstances.
- Obliged all organisations in the public sector providing services to the Public in Wales to treat Welsh and English on an equal basis. Meaning any official literature and publicity such as road signs, minutes, information leaflets etc… must be supplied bilingually, as well as all public events and meetings be interpreted.
Since its conception in 1993 the Welsh Language board has rallied thousands in support of the increased usage of the Welsh language. So much so that the UK Government has ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority languages in respect of Welsh and they have ruled it to be one of the languages which is sufficient for naturalisation purposes in the UK.
K International’s Welsh translation service helps many UK Government departments and local businesses to communicate to Welsh speakers.
What a load of rubbish the welsh so called language holds children back in education as it is too old eg.. batris/siocs etc etc come on fools get a grip the language is a joke and most people even the welsh yes the welsh only use it for a laugh.. children are finishing school and leaving wales in their droves wake up and smell the coffee the language is long gone.. wenglish the new language is slang thats all.. what fools you all are!
Funniest of late – BACPACIO whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat hahaha
Johno, I am 28 years old. A YOUNG woman. I speak fluent Welsh and use it every single day in conversation, at work and at home, with both family and friends- because it’s our first language. My sister and brother, both teenagers, are also fluent speakers. We weren’t “taught” to speak Welsh- we’ve been speaking Welsh from the cradle, we will continue to do so until the grave, and in the meantime we’ll be passing the language to our own children, by speaking it to them on a day-to-day basis at home and by sending them to Welsh-medium schools. I can promise you that I’ve known hundreds of people throughout my life who absolutely do not use the language for a laugh- we use it as naturally and as fluently as you do English (although, judging by the standard of your written English, I suspect my comparison might be somewhat counter-productive). As for the language holding children back: I have a degree, I’ve been employed continuously since I graduated with rarely a day spent unemployed, I earn a very good wage- and all because I’m fortunate enough to be able to provide a service for which employers in Wales are increasingly grateful: bilingualism. May I suggest that you take a “bacpacio” trip to a community such as Bala in North Wales. I dare you to express your views in any of the local pubs when you get there.
I am Welsh but have no desire to speak the language whatsoever, in fact quite the opposite as I dislike the sound of it. However although I think we should live and let live I also think Johno above has a point in as much as it can hold back children’s education by forcing them to learn and speak a language that is of no use whatsoever outside Wales and little use in it. I have lived in Wales all my life but don’t think that of all of the people I know here I can recall even one or two who can speak it. It would be interesting to see how far some of these die hard Welsh entheusiasts would get if they just spoke Welsh and nothing else – even in Wales. I notice that most of the adverts on S4C are in English as well – !