2018/12/01

Council under fire over inaccurate Welsh language signs in Wrexham

The Welsh Language Commissioner launched an investigation into the authority after receiving 14 complaints from members of the public.
They included concerns over signs which were only in English on the doors of the former People’s Market and Welsh text being displayed underneath English on a sign below a Christmas tree in Wrexham.
Meri Huws has now taken enforcement action to ensure that any text displayed on signs that are put up is shown correctly in Welsh.
She has also ordered the council to make certain that the Welsh wording is not treated less favourably than English.
In a report which found it had failed to comply with Welsh language standards, Ms Huws said: "The council has been under a duty to comply with these standards since 30 March 2016.
"I note that the mistakes referred to in complaints are often typos or highlight the lack of use of a circumflex accent on permanent signs.
"Whilst I acknowledge that mistakes can happen from time to time when dealing with text on a sign; it appears that where there are mistakes on Welsh versions, there are no mistakes on English versions.
"I acknowledge that the council has developed some guidance and has taken some steps to promote the requirements of the standards amongst staff.
"However, I am of the opinion that the steps taken have not been sufficient, in particular in the context of erecting signs to ensure full understanding of the impact of the standards and the culture change required in order to comply with them.
"It appears that English only signs and signs that treat the Welsh language less favourably that the English language continue to be erected by different departments of the council, and that this is happening when erecting both permanent and temporary signs."

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