Service under the Spotlight: Scheduled Video Interpreting

Each month, we get you better acquainted with a TLS service; when and why you might need it, how to book it and how to make the most of the booking.

You may be new to the world of booking language support, or perhaps you book the same service each time because you don’t know what else is out there, or perhaps you have never considered that something different might work for you – this is for you!

It is for you if:

you need the flexibility of having the conversation with your service user in any location, eg working from home, or you and your service user are not geographically close.

It is not for you if:

you need to build trust or rapport with your service user and interpreter – in sensitive situations, eg a mental health appointment, it is usually better to talk in person.

When it works best:

scheduled video interpreting is best for relatively uncomplicated and uncontroversial conversations with people who are comfortable using screens to communicate.

Tips to get the most from your booking:

• Use our dedicated booking portal, to find and book your interpreter. This makes everything easy and quick. Once you know how to use it, you will be able to book a remote interpreter anywhere you have access to a computer.
• Make sure you’re familiar with the technology you’ll be using in the booking – how to share your screen, how to mute yourself, how to make sure there’s nothing confidential on show.
• Set parameters at the start of the booking. Most of us know how to behave in face to face situations, but remote meetings are still something of an unknown. Tell everyone how to interrupt politely, how to take turns, when to mute themselves.

If you would like to know more, call our bookings team for guidance and support on 0808 175 1230.