Translation and Interpretation Services 2023/2024
Case reference FOI2024/02040
Received 6 December 2024
Published 17 December 2024
Request
I am writing in hopes of acquiring information to as part of research into LAs spending trends in different sectors. Spending on interpretation and translation services is one of those sectors.
I have already referred to the FOI Act and understand that the information requested below are not exempt from the public domain. As such, under the FOI Act, can we please ask for the following information at your earliest convenience to enable me conclude my project:
In the past 12 months, please confirm
1) The number of written translation requests and how many were met (e.g. January 2023 – 2 requests / 2 met)
2) The number of pre-booked telephone interpretation requests and how many were met?
3) The number of on-demand telephone interpretation requests and how many were met?
4) The number of face-to-face interpretation requests and how many were met?
5) A breakdown of the number of Face to Face Interpreter requests by language (e.g. January 2023: Polish 80 / Romanian 62 / Bulgarian 50 / Urdu 22 etc for each language each moth)
6) What % of Face to Face Interpreter requests were met?
7) How many Interpreters Did Not Attend their appointments?
8) How many end-users did not attend their appointment?
9) How many patients who did not attend appointments needed an interpreter?
10) How many bookings were cancelled by patients last minute?
11) What was the total spending for the year across all interpretation and translation services?
12) Who is the incumbent provider for the Council?
13) When did the current contract come into effect?
Response
I am writing in hopes of acquiring information to as part of research into LAs spending trends in different sectors. Spending on interpretation and translation services is one of those sectors.
I have already referred to the FOI Act and understand that the information requested below are not exempt from the public domain. As such, under the FOI Act, can we please ask for the following information at your earliest convenience to enable me conclude my project:
In the past 12 months, please confirm
1) The number of written translation requests and how many were met (e.g. January 2023 – 2 requests / 2 met)
Answer: The Service Area have advised we record our data in financial years.
This information is publically available on the Herefordshire Council website and can be viewed via the following link: Herefordshire Language Network statistics 2023-24. All translation requests were met.
As such we consider this information to be exempt under Section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 because it is reasonably accessible to you via other means. Please take this letter as a refusal notice under S17 of the Act.
2) The number of pre-booked telephone interpretation requests and how many were met?
Answer: The Service Area have advised we record our data in financial years.
This information is publically available on the Herefordshire Council website and can be viewed via the following link: Herefordshire Language Network statistics 2023-24. All translation requests were met.
As such we consider this information to be exempt under Section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 because it is reasonably accessible to you via other means. Please take this letter as a refusal notice under S17 of the Act.
3) The number of on-demand telephone interpretation requests and how many were met?
Answer: The Service Area have advised our records do not differentiate between pre-booked and on-demand.
4) The number of face-to-face interpretation requests and how many were met?
Answer: The Service Area have advised there were 1,159 face-to-face interpretation requests, and 1,145 were met. 14 were unfulfilled.
5) A breakdown of the number of Face-to-Face Interpreter requests by language (e.g. January 2023: Polish 80 / Romanian 62 / Bulgarian 50 / Urdu 22 etc. for each language each moth)
Answer: The Service Area have advised we record our data in financial years.
This information is publically available on the Herefordshire Council website and can be viewed via the following link: Herefordshire Language Network statistics 2023-24
As such we consider this information to be exempt under Section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 because it is reasonably accessible to you via other means. Please take this letter as a refusal notice under S17 of the Act.
6) What % of Face-to-Face Interpreter requests were met? Answer: The Service Area have advised 98.8% of face-to-face Interpreter requests were met.
7) How many Interpreters Did Not Attend their appointments?
Answer: The Service Area have advised in the financial year 2023/24, 6 Interpreters did not attend their appointments.
8) How many end-users did not attend their appointment?
Answer: The Service Area have advised this information is not held.
9) How many patients who did not attend appointments needed an interpreter?
Answer: The Service Area have advised as a local authority, we provide a service for service users/residents; we do not refer to our service users/residents as “patients”. We therefore cannot provide an answer to this question.
10) How many bookings were cancelled by patients last minute?
Answer: Please see the response above.
11) What was the total spending for the year across all interpretation and translation services?
Answer: The Service Area have advised we record our data in financial years.
This information is publically available on the Herefordshire Council website and can be viewed via the following link: Herefordshire Language Network statistics 2023-24
As such we consider this information to be exempt under Section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 because it is reasonably accessible to you via other means. Please take this letter as a refusal notice under S17 of the Act.
12) Who is the incumbent provider for the Council?
Answer: The Service Area have advised we have an in-house service.
13) When did the current contract come into effect?
Answer: N/A.
Documents
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