30.08.23 – ‘Good’ rating for SOT Adult and Learning team, Digital Interpreter Devices at UHNM
Written by Hitmix Local News on 30 August 2023
Learners, staff and governors are celebrating as Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s Adult and Community Learning (post 16) team is rated ‘Good’ across all areas in its recent Ofsted inspection.
The Adult and Community Learning (post 16) service, which offers language and numeracy training and vocational courses offering a direct route to employment opportunities, was inspected by Ofsted between 4 and 6 July 2023.
The inspection found that services for adult learners, apprentices and learners aged 16-18 following traineeships had improved substantially since it was last rated as ‘Requires improvement’ in 2021.
Learners and apprentices were found to enjoy their learning, having a ‘positive attitude to education and being ‘ambitious for their futures’. Through the service, individuals are also offered the opportunity to address social isolation issues and improve their mental health and wellbeing.
This good news comes as the city council’s Virtual School has been shortlisted for a Children & Young People Now Award in the Children in Care category, the winners will be announced in November.
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Patients from University Hospitals of North Midlands (UHNM) are set to benefit from ‘digital interpreter devices’ following a successful trial.
The ‘Insight’ devices allow staff to break down the language barrier with patients through on-demand video calls to live interpreters.
Wards and departments from across UHNM worked with the Trust’s Patient Advice and Liaison Service known as ‘PALS’ to utilise the benefits of the service, which provides access to video interpreters in more than 40 languages, audio interpreting in more than 200 languages as well as British Sign Language.
The device which is essentially an ‘interpreter on wheels’ allows wards and departments to access one-touch, on-demand video access to live interpreters.
