I qualified as a sign language interpreter 6 years ago and have really enjoyed my very varied career so far. I have always enjoyed community and medical interpreting as you are able to foster such great connections with the Deaf users. One of my favourite parts of the job.
I received an unexpected email from Involve Interpreter video interpreter service which took me a little bit by surprise. I had never considered it before and wasn’t sure how I would feel about losing that personal touch of face to face interpreting.
That aside, I was curious so decided to respond.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was contacted by a fellow BSL interpreter who was now working at Involve. She talked me through their service, what I would need to get set up and work from home, the payment structure and quality standards.
It was so reassuring to be greeted by someone who actually knows what it means to be a sign language interpreter. The spoken language agencies are all manned with phone robots who know nothing about interpreting and even less about BSL interpreting.
Involve keeps its standard in line with our national governing body NRCPD and offered flexible employment contracts with lots of employee benefits. I couldn’t believe it. I was entitled to holiday pay for the first time in 6 years!
In addition, I was supplied with all the equipment I needed and they offered a free CPD training package to help me stay up to date with relevant information for my work.
Learning to work remotely came far more naturally than I thought. I was still able to connect with Deaf clients over video and soon found that I was engaging with more clients via video than I ever could have done face to face!
It’s amazing to see this sort of technology in action. Not only does it work, but it saves time and money for everyone. No more waiting rooms, traffic jams and lunch on the go. My work/life balance has never been better!
I was really impressed with Involves grasp on ‘appropriate use’ for their service and they recognise that this is not a replacement for ALL face to face interpreting. It shows a lot of integrity in my book!
The fact is this country only has 900 or so Registered British Sign Language interpreters to serve and support nearly 250,000 BSL users. It is more crucial than ever that we find ways to promote more effective ways to use interpreters so that the growing demands can be met.
With Involve Video Interpreter Service….we can literally be everywhere all at once!
Thank you Involve Interpreter!
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