Translation Services for Local Authorities

How professional translation, interpreting and transcription services can support UK local authorities.

Posted on May 15, 2025 by Silvia Del Corso

In several areas of the UK, Local authorities face unique language challenges due to their highly diverse populations, where English-speaking residents may be outnumbered by speakers of other languages.

This linguistic diversity, as well as offering many opportunities, can put significant strain on council resources, as they strive to meet the needs of all their residents while maintaining efficient service delivery.

The changing linguistic landscape

Many areas of the UK are home to vibrant communities with residents from multiple cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

In Peterborough, for example, over 100 languages are spoken, reflecting the area’s rich cultural diversity. Similarly, Birmingham, as one of the UK’s largest cities, has a significant proportion of residents who speak languages other than English. In the 2021 Census, the London Borough of Newham had the highest percentage in the country (34.6%) of residents whose first language was something other than English.

This diversity enriches the cultural fabric of these areas, but can also be complex to manage when it comes to communication and ensuring that everyone has equal access to the services provided in the area that they live in.

Language challenges for local authorities

Local authorities are acutely aware of their responsibility to ensure that all their community members, including non-native English speakers, enjoy equal access to vital public information, services and opportunities.

Communication Barriers: Councils have a duty to ensure that all residents can access vital information, from public health updates to housing services, which often requires translating documents and providing interpretation services.
Education and Integration: Schools in diverse areas often have high numbers of pupils who speak English as an Additional Language (EAL). While some may be highly proficient in English (EAL denotes that the language they mainly speak at home is not English, and doesn’t measure English language proficiency), many of these students need additional support, such as bilingual teaching assistants and tailored learning materials while they develop their English language skills.
Healthcare Access: Language and cultural barriers can make it difficult for people to access healthcare services, and local authorities and healthcare providers increasingly require professional linguistic support to bridge these gaps.
Community Cohesion: The more diverse a community is, the more effort local authorities are making to promote social integration. Where multiple languages are needed, professional translation and interpretation helps to bridge communication gaps and ensure that varying cultural nuances are taken into account.
Administrative Strain: Professional linguistic services help to reduce the administrative burden on busy communication teams, and to minimise the risk of translation errors and miscommunications

By investing in professional translation and interpretation services, local authorities are able to offer cost-effective and flexible services including telephone and face-to-face interpreting, as well as ensuring that essential information is translated into the languages used by their communities, to ensure that residents can access services regardless of their language.

How Language Link UK can help

From our team of over 5,000 qualified linguists, proficient in around 200 languages and dialects, we carefully select local authority translators, interpreters and transcribers not only for their linguistic skills but also for their specialist expertise in relevant terminology and practices.

In addition, our comprehensive vetting process also ensures that any relevant checks (e.g. DBS) are in place to ensure the safety of any vulnerable members of your community.

We’re proud of our reputation for delivering the highest standards of accuracy, professionalism, and clarity, and understand the importance of ensuring that all your communications must resonate with the diverse cultures who rely on you.

Learn more about our services

We are known for the quality of our customer support and relationships as much as for the quality and accuracy of our translations. Our dedicated staff take the time to get to know your needs so that we can provide flexible and competitively priced solutions, whether you need one-off support or an ongoing service.

We hold European Quality Standard BSEN15038:2006, and serve many overseas embassies that only accept language translations certified by Language Link UK, as well as holding ISO 9001:2015 (QMS) Quality Management System certification, demonstrating our commitment to excellence in customer service and to continuous improvement.