We are SO PROUD to be awarded a Young Interpreters certificate – in recognition of our students’ hard work to go the extra mile to provide additional support to our EAL students and their families.

ESOL teacher Ms Mournier started training a cohort of students in January to become Young Interpreters.

These students are young ambassadors, who have received specialised training during an after-school club to use their additional language(s) to support other students and to translate for them.

Our Young Interpreters (identifiable by a prestigious badge) have trained in helping new students settle in school, by analysing real life scenarios, by studying translation techniques and by doing role-plays to develop empathy and communication.

The students, from Years 7 – 10, speak a range of languages including Arabic, Somali, Spanish, Latvian and Russian.

Our Young Interpreters can welcome students who speak their mother tongue (e.g. Arabic and Somali) but also English-speaking students. As the Young Interpreter coordinator, Ms Mournier will manage the Young Interpreters and assign tasks to them.

Ms Mournier has a couple of projects in the pipeline for our Young Interpreters. 

She explained that new student arrivals will have the opportunity to get support from one of the Young Interpreter students.

“When we have new students who don’t speak English as a first language, they might be very nervous about starting at Manchester Academy. Whenever possible, I can assign them a buddy/Young Interpreter for a specific period of time to help them settle in.”

"I am very proud of this group of passionate and dedicated young people. Our Young Interpreters embody our school values and have a strong sense of community".