REDDITCH, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oxford City Council announces a new partnership with Language Services Associates (LSA) to improve the provision of language services for its linguistically diverse community. Through this new partnership, Limited English Proficient (LEP) residents of Oxford will have greater access to on-demand interpretation support in more than 200 languages for all enquiries related to Council services, including housing services, community safety and tourism.
“We were keen to engage with a language provider who would aim for excellence in terms of responsiveness in user information / tools and also management reporting and data regarding the use of the service,” said a Council spokesperson. “After taking references from a prominent London Local Authority, where LSA currently provides telephone interpreting services, together, with a competitive quote, we felt that working in partnership with LSA would lead to real opportunities to deliver a great language service to the citizens of Oxford.”
According to 2011 Census data, international migration has been the key driving factor in the city of Oxford’s population growth, resulting in an increase in ethnic and linguistic diversity and, thus, the number of LEP residents relying on the Council for culturally and linguistically accessible services. Out of Oxford’s total population of 151,900, 28% were born outside of the UK (compared to 19% in 2001), with the most common non-UK countries of birth being Poland, the United States, India, Germany and Pakistan.
Via LSA’s premier INTERPRETALK® Interpreting by Telephone service, Council Customer Services Officers will be able to access a qualified telephonic Interpreter within seconds when faced with a language barrier. These new and improved interpretation services are currently available for the LEP residents of Oxford when making any enquiry through the Contact Centre and / or visiting the St Aldate’s Customer Service Centre for in-person Council services support.
“The Council is extremely progressive in its aim to create greater accessibility to public services, and their drive to be efficient in doing so will always present a challenge to any specialist partner,” commented LSA’s European Commercial Director, Jon Potter. “Particularly pleasing was the natural synergy between the way the Council wanted to move forward, and the methods LSA routinely employs to support Authorities in exactly this way. The benefits have already begun to emerge, and we’re looking forward towards facilitating greater ‘equality’ in a city that represents such heritage.”
About LSA
LSA is proud to offer a full range of premier language-based services, including Translation and Localisation, Video Remote Interpreting, INTERPRETALK® Interpreting by Telephone, Face-to-Face Interpreting, British Sign Language and Intercultural Consulting. For more information on LSA, EMEA, please call 0808.234.1917 or visit www.lsaweb.co.uk.
