Northland Village, in Dungannon, is about to make history in Mid Ulster as the first-ever area within the district to be provided with street signage in both English and Ulster-Scots, however there remains a hurdle – no formal accreditation exists in that language denoting suitable knowledge of Ulster-Scots.
For bilingual signage to be provided, more than 50 per cent of residents having a say on the matter need to express support for such provision.
In the case of Northland Village, that test was comfortably met, although the proportion of residents who took part in the survey was relatively low – 24 per cent.
A total of 191 survey letters were issued on June 11, with 46 responses received by July 9.
Of these 46 responses, 37 were in favour (82 per cent), eight were against, and one was deemed invalid.
Belfast-based FLEX Language Services have been chosen to provide a reliable translation, and while they are confident that they are up to the task, the fact that there is no formal accreditation for speakers of the language remains an issue.
The matter was raised at the October 13 Development Committee meeting of Mid Ulster District Council.
The relevant agenda item explained: “At a previous Environment Committee meeting, a query was made with respect to the qualifications of the organisation, FLEX Language Services, which provided an Ulster-Scots translation for a dual language street sign.
“This issue has therefore been queried directly with both FLEX Language Services and the Department for Communities (DfC) Translation Hub Services.
“The response from FLEX Language Services included the following statements: ‘The translator does not have a qualification in Ulster-Scots as such, as there is currently no dedicated, formal university degree or official statutory accreditation scheme exclusively for Ulster-Scots translation, given that it is a rare language. It is classed as a regional minority language.
“’To the best of our knowledge there has only ever been one course in Ulster-Scots, and it was only offered last summer 2025 as an OCN Level 1 course, through the Ulster-Scots Agency.
“’The public sector relies on translators with practical experience in writing and converting official documents, rather than a single mandatory state certification.
“’The Chairman of USAIG (Ulster-Scots Academy Implementation Group) and I have done the vast bulk of translation for over 30 years’.
“The response from DfC Translation Hub Service included the following statement: ‘I reached out to the Ulster-Scots Agency to get their advice on this. I can confirm that there is no qualification or certification for Ulster-Scots translators.
“’The Central Translation Hub does not currently have an in-house Ulster-Scots translator, however Flex Language Services, which is one of the suppliers on our collaborative framework contract, does provide Ulster-Scots translations’.
“Whilst the above responses confirm that there are no formal qualifications currently available for Ulster-Scots translators, there is adequate assurance that Flex Language Services are suitably experienced to provide this service, as supported by their appointment as an approved supplier to the DfC Central Translation Hub. They also provide similar services to another NI local authority.”
Meanwhile, bilingual English-Irish street signs are going to be provided at Ardkeen Close, Dungannon, on the basis of a survey of householders showing unanimity in favour of such provision.
A total of 32 survey letters were issued, with 16 returned. There were 14 replies in favour, none against bilingual signage, and two returns were deemed invalid.
Likewise, at Cluntoe View, Ardboe, 100 per cent of householders who did respond to a street survey were in favour of English-Irish street signs.
In all, 33 survey letters were issued, with seven survey letters returned in favour of bilingual signs. None of the replies were against such provision, while three replies were deemed invalid.
At Tobin Park, Moortown, 51 residents were surveyed on the provision of English-Irish street signage. There were 15 replies in favour, and none against.
Finally, 22 residents out of 38 surveyed on the Brookend Road, Ardboe, returned survey letters to express support for bilingual English-Irish street signage. There were no replies not in favour, while one return was deemed invalid.
Dual language surveys are currently being conducted on the Castlefarm Road, Stewartstown; Richmond Manor, Ballygawley; Bogashen Road, Portglenone; and Moboy Road, Pomeroy.
Mid Ulster District has also received a request for another dual language survey to be carried out at Molesworth Court, Cookstown.
