NRPSI Interpreters - still being called? Thread poster: Susanna Garcia
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I'm NRPSI-registered and had a very busy time last year, mainly Wales and the West Country, carrying out court and police station interpreting. Since about July however, nothing until a booking for December yesterday.
Has anyone else noticed a drop and, if so, why do you think this is? I'm hearing substantiated tales of certain agencies putting unqualified interpreters into court and telling them to fabricate registration details and using other interpreters' ID cards, so not urba... See more I'm NRPSI-registered and had a very busy time last year, mainly Wales and the West Country, carrying out court and police station interpreting. Since about July however, nothing until a booking for December yesterday.
Has anyone else noticed a drop and, if so, why do you think this is? I'm hearing substantiated tales of certain agencies putting unqualified interpreters into court and telling them to fabricate registration details and using other interpreters' ID cards, so not urban myth sadly.
I've also seen witness statements where the person needing the intepreter has been permitted to use a friend, causing problems in court at a later date with poor translations and omissions.
I'm really proud to give people a voice, whatever they've done, and am concerned as professional standards are further eroded.
Any thoughts on this? ▲ Collapse
| | | | Aline C.
Local time: 09:01
English to Finnish
| Some suggestions | Oct 14, 2008 |
Hi Susanna,
First of all if I were you I would remove my NRPSI number from my CV. In that way you will prevent anybody in your area from using your data while presenting themselves to the courts. (How else do you think is it possible to fabricate registration details?)
Second of all, have you contacted listing offices in the courts you used to interpret for and ask them why you are no longer called? Maybe, simply, there have been no defendants/witnesses needing your pa... See more Hi Susanna,
First of all if I were you I would remove my NRPSI number from my CV. In that way you will prevent anybody in your area from using your data while presenting themselves to the courts. (How else do you think is it possible to fabricate registration details?)
Second of all, have you contacted listing offices in the courts you used to interpret for and ask them why you are no longer called? Maybe, simply, there have been no defendants/witnesses needing your particular language skills. I always find people working in the listing offices very helpful. You can ask them if they still call interpreters direct or if they use an agency. If they use an agency, ask for its name and check if it subscribes to NRPSI, if not - raise this problem with the NRPSI and the Home Office. As you know if courts use interpreters that are not NRPSI-registered, they are breaking government guidelines and you can point this out to them. That usually helps.
I hope this this helpful.
And by the way - I have not noticed any drop in calls but I accept court work may be quite seasonal.
Kasia ▲ Collapse
| | | | Susanna Garcia 
Local time: 09:01
Italian to English
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TOPIC STARTER In memoriam | Registration no. | Oct 14, 2008 |
How dull am I! Thank you very much - I've removed it straightaway.
Excellent suggestions, too. I'll ring around although, of course, it could just be that all my interpreting language speakers are behaving at the moment.
Suzi
| | | | Oleg Osipov
Russian Federation
Local time: 11:01
English to Russian
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Susanna Garcia wrote:
I'm hearing substantiated tales of certain agencies putting unqualified interpreters into court and telling them to fabricate registration details and using other interpreters' ID cards, so not urban myth sadly.
I am shocked. Is that really possible in the UK?
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Susanna Garcia
Local time: 09:01
Italian to English
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TOPIC STARTER In memoriam
How odd - after posting this, I've now had two bookings come in. How spooky!
And yes, it does happen here, sadly.
| | | | Aline C.
Local time: 09:01
English to Finnish
| Response to Oleg | Oct 21, 2008 |
Oleg, why are you shocked? Surely, fraud and fraudsters exist everywhere and in every profession. Why do you think that court interpreting in the UK should be immune?
I would be shocked if such fraud went undetected and unpunished. But I believe there are proper mechanisms in place to prevent it. At least one case of such fraud is being actively investigated by the police - that is why it is so important to report it when we spot it.
I also think that such fraudsters ... See more Oleg, why are you shocked? Surely, fraud and fraudsters exist everywhere and in every profession. Why do you think that court interpreting in the UK should be immune?
I would be shocked if such fraud went undetected and unpunished. But I believe there are proper mechanisms in place to prevent it. At least one case of such fraud is being actively investigated by the police - that is why it is so important to report it when we spot it.
I also think that such fraudsters fulfil an important function - they expose gaps in the existing system and ultimately lead to improvements.
As you see Oleg - there is nothing to be shocked about - really.
Best wishes
Kasia ▲ Collapse
| | | | Kati Bumbera
France
Local time: 10:01
Hungarian to English
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| Not a single call | Feb 21, 2009 |
I haven't had a single call since I registered two months ago - I wonder if it's normal for my language pair (Spanish-English).
| | | | Aline C.
Local time: 09:01
English to Finnish
| Some suggestions | Feb 22, 2009 |
Dear Kati,
You can ask NRPSI how many interpreters in your language combination(s) are registered in your area/region/county - remember to ask for data in neighbouring counties as well. This should give you an indication what competition you are up against and maybe - if competition is tough - think of other ways of promoting yourself.
Two months is a very short period of time, I think.
Best of luck
Kasia
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Kati Bumbera
France
Local time: 10:01
Hungarian to English
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| thanks Kasia | Feb 22, 2009 |
OK I'll check that.
The thing is, I do get Spanish work through agencies and from what I see the Spanish-speaking community is fairly large, so I wouldn't normally think there is a shortage of work even if the number of interpreters in this pair is also high.
Also, even if I knew that there are x other interpreters I have to compete with, that doesn't tell me anything about what I have to do to stand out. Have more experience, move somewhere else, get a different kind ... See more OK I'll check that.
The thing is, I do get Spanish work through agencies and from what I see the Spanish-speaking community is fairly large, so I wouldn't normally think there is a shortage of work even if the number of interpreters in this pair is also high.
Also, even if I knew that there are x other interpreters I have to compete with, that doesn't tell me anything about what I have to do to stand out. Have more experience, move somewhere else, get a different kind of CRB, specialise in something else...? There is hardly any guidance available around these issues, that's why I hang out here. (Sorry I don't mean to be grumpy with the only person who actually helps - I really value your thoughts, thanks!)
Maybe two months is early days but frankly I'm a bit disheartened. I'm considering doing the Met Test in my other language pair (English/Hungarian) but if the situation is anything like with Spanish I'm not sure if it's worth the investment. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Police intrepreting contracts awarded to agency | Apr 14, 2009 |
I think you'll find a large part of the reason for your lack of work in the thread below. Basically, things aren't looking very good for NRPSI-registered interpreters, I'm afraid to say.
http://www.iol.org.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=1250
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