What a year it has been
As we mark the end of 2015 and begin to look at what lies ahead in 2016, its time to take a look back at the journey so far.
At the beginning of this year we entered a formal partnership with POhWER. This would ensure that all communities in East Sussex were able to receive professional support, enabling them to have a voice and speak out about their wishes and needs. So far this union has been able to benefit vulnerable people living all across East Sussex.
We now have more fully qualified interpreters than ever, in over 100 different languages. Thanks to Dominique MacNeill who has led both the community interpreting course and the conversion course. The 10 week community interpreting course trained bilingual individuals to become freelance professionals. Whereas the conversion course, tailored for advocates who want to gain the Level 3 accreditation in Community Interpreting, was a great opportunity for those who participated to become more versatile in their skills.
DRI, Vandu’s sister organisation, also introduced its Acquiring Skills for the Workplace program. This employability course included real life work experience, interview skills and an accredited qualification on completion of the course. The course was hugely successful and great experience for participants with many securing a new job from the program.
We also had to make room in the office as the team grew this year. Whilst we welcomed two new apprentices; Amy and Poppy, former apprentice Fletcher became our translations co-ordinator. Amy oversees the bookings desk whilst Poppy manages the Social Media and Digital Marketing. The apprenticeship means they receive external training whilst learning new skills and gaining experience in the office day to day.
Ze Zook, Digital Marketing lecturer at the London Metropolitan University has also joined Vandu. The office have been working closely with Ze to optimise the marketing strategy whilst gaining valuable knowledge and experience.
One of the highlights of the year was Vandu marking 16 years of business. The event, which was held on the 28th of November at Eastbourne town hall, was an achievement for all those involved. The room buzzed with debates, matching names to a face and networking between associates, it was a memorable occasion and a great success.
Overall Vandu has presented lots of new opportunities for itself and others this year. Through the benefits of training, collaborations and engaging with its clients and freelance professionals it has been a year that has pushed people to fulfil their potential within and outside the office.
All of us here at Vandu wish you a very Happy New Year and look forward to working with you in 2016.
Vandu
Vandu Language Services is based in Lewes, Sussex and has been helping organisations overcome the language barrier since 1999. We provide interpreting, translation, bilingual advocacy and cross cultural training for when you need to communicate clearly across cultures.
