Interpreters – Experiences of Justice: seeking legal help for immigration and asylum in Wales

Migration
ReportsResourcesJanuary 2nd, 2025

Edition 5 of the Bevan Foundation’s new series of reports highlights issues with interpreters and people’s experiences of using them while attempting to access immigration justice in Wales.

Part 5: Experiences of Justice series- Interpreters (6 Parts)

In this fifth edition of our six-part series of reports into lived experiences at the heart of the immigration legal services crisis, we explore people’s experiences of using interpreters and how this impacts their ability to access justice.  

Our study found multiple concerns with the ways in which interpreters are trained and appointed, levels of accountability, and the impact that poor interpretation can have on legal outcomes. Putting mistakes right can be a long and difficult process that comes at high personal cost. People told us about:

  • crucial mistakes in interpretation not being picked up by legal representatives or the Home Office
  • people having their cases refused, being detained, or being threatened with deportation as a result of inaccurate interpretation
  • the Home Office appointing interpreters who speak a strongly different dialect from the people they are interpreting for, or who have not learned the language they are interpreting to a high enough standard 
  • interpreters being paid commission by solicitor firms controlling access to legal help and sometimes asking for financial or sexual favours in return for solicitor appointments.

Some people found their interpreters to be supportive and were given key contacts or advice from this source. Many people found interpretation services offered via both the Home Office and legal representatives to be inadequate and/or damaging to their legal case.

The full series of reports on Experiences of Justice is listed below. Links will be added as editions are published. 

We have supported our Experts by Experience working group to review the research findings and develop their own recommendations for improving access to justice for people seeking sanctuary in Wales. Their report is published as Appendix A to this report. 

We will hold a webinar to share the study’s findings on Wednesday 26th February 2025 at 13:00 – 13:45. 

Other editions in this series: 

EditionTitle
Part 1 Summary Report
Part 2 Barriers to Access
Part 3 Client Care
Part 4 Rights
Part 5 (this edition)Interpreters
Part 6Impacts
APPENDIX ARecommendations of the Experts by Experience Working Group
APPENDIX BProject Participants

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Tagged with: BAME & migrants

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