The Minority Ethnic Elders Advocacy Project (MEEA) aims to provide advocacy services to minority ethnic elders aged 50 and above across North Wales, focusing on their experiences accessing statutory services, particularly healthcare. Research highlights significant barriers, such as a lack of interpreting services and awareness among frontline staff, leading to health and well-being risks for these individuals. Recommendations include the development of localized solutions, bespoke training for awareness of protected characteristics, and improved access to interpreting services to address these disparities.

1. The Minority Ethnic Elders Advocacy Project
(MEEA)
Access to Statutory Services: from the perspective of both
Minority Ethnic Elders and External Organisations
About the MEEA Project
The MEEA project is a pan-Wales project, in which NWREN is working in partnership with lead partner, Race
Equality First (REF), South East Wales Regional Equality Council (SEWREC) and Swansea Bay Regional Equality
Council (SBREC). The three-year project aims to provide an independent advocacy service to Minority Ethnic
Elders (MEE) aged 50+.
About NWREN
The North Wales Regional Equality Network (NWREN) works across all areas of equality with a range of partners
to eliminate discrimination and disadvantage in all its forms.
The research was carried out by NWREN as part of the MEEA Project and summarises the research findings on
experiences of minority ethnic elders across the North of Wales on accessing healthcare and other statutory
services with a focus on provision of own dialect interpreting services.
Summary report written and produced
by NWREN as part of the MEEA Project
NWREN, February 2015, Belinda Gammon.
A full, referenced, copy of this report is
available from www.nwren.org
The Project Beneficiary Participants
(45) came from Chinese, European
Portuguese, Hong Kong Chinese,
Indian, Irish, Singaporean and
Zimbabwean individuals and
communities based in Gwynedd,
Denbighshire and Wrexham.
Dialects spoken (12) included
Cantonese, Mandarin, German,
European Portuguese, Gujurati,
Hakka, Hindi, Malay, Urdu, Punjabi to
Swahili and Zimbabwean.
Promoting equality • challenging discrimination • upholding human rights

2. Access to Statutory Services: from the perspective of both
Minority Ethnic Elders and External Organisations
Recommendation 1
Without the resources and benefits assumed in the South of Wales, the North of Wales has to develop more
localised solutions.
Recommendation 2
There is a need for all organisations across North Wales to develop bespoke awareness-raising trainings that are
appropriate, economical and feasible. They should focus on all aspects of the Protected Characteristics
under the Equality Act 2010 (age; disability; gender reassignment; marriage and civil partnership;
pregnancy and maternity; race; religion and belief; sex; sexual orientation).
Recommendation 3
Multi-language buttons on the BCUHB and other statutory services websites would enable
service users to make an application for interpreting provision when they wish to access
the service. This low cost option would allow service users to progress their enquiry to
the next level.
Recommendation 4
The recommendation is that Service Provision of ESOL should be reviewed at both
regional and Welsh Assembly Government level, with new, guaranteed provisions being
made for service users.
Recommendation 5
The disparity between the findings and the activities of agencies (such as BCUHB and others)
illustrates a need for the development of a generic protocol across agencies to empower service
users to request interpretation services. As in the case of Health, the need was highlighted for
increased awareness with General Practitioners and frontline staff in primary care ensuring that,
together with service users, the correct dialect is identified.
Recommendation 6
Statutory and voluntary agencies should tackle issues of lack of interpretation services in a joined-up and unified
fashion, with all sectors working under one united agenda, with clear agreement on how it will be funded:
informed by expertise that exists within both the voluntary sector and local communities. For example,
establishing a bank of trained community interpreters from across the region.
Access to Statutory Services: from the perspective of both
Minority Ethnic Elders and External Organisations
Conclusion 1
There are many different languages and specific dialects spoken in North Wales, including Welsh and sign
language: lack of access to interpreting provision is linked to a risk to health and well-being.
Conclusion 2
Participants reported experiencing a lack of realisation, on the part of frontline staff in both primary and
secondary health care and other statutory services in the North of Wales, that time, translation and outcome are
linked. In health care, these findings were repeated from the point of accessing support, to receiving
treatment, through to the transition to home-care.
Conclusion 3
In order to apply for a translation service, the service user must be able to read and
understand written English/Welsh: participants disclosed that they did not know what
services or help were available to them.
Conclusion 4
With varying levels of spoken English, participants said that when they are unwell, or in
crisis, they naturally prefer to communicate in their first language. However, both
participants and service providers agreed continued and increased access to ESOL
classes would facilitate community cohesion.
Conclusion 5
The shortage of interpreters was universally commented upon, which surprised the
agencies, who were making their best efforts to meet this need.
Currently, BCUHB “provide interpretation services via a contract with Wales Interpretation
and Translation Service (WITS). The Health Board have developed a protocol to guide staff using
this service. BCUHB reported that staff awareness of the policy requirement is raised regularly and
recognise that in practice interpretation support is not always actioned in a timely manner. They are
working to address this.”
Conclusion 6
This research was designed to bring together service users and providers to discuss difficult issues standing on
opposite sides of the same coin. What transpired was a clear, open and honest communication, revealing that the
service users’ difficulties reflected service providers’ worries and concerns.
One family had to wait 15 years for an
appropriate service…“if you have difficulty
with your GP in primary care – there is no way
you’ll ever get to secondary care”. If you are
not understood within the primary care
system, you’ll never even reach secondary
care to know if there are problems or not.
This raises the question of the prevalence of
incidences of un-diagnosed health problems
in ME populations.
Participants disclosed some examples of
diabetes sufferers in hospital not
understanding the menu and having to wait
for family members to visit them in hospital in
order to translate for them, so they could
understand menus and instructions regarding
medicines and procedures prescribed. The
situation led to being presented with
inappropriate food, which in some cases led to
undesirable fluctuations in blood-sugar levels.
Poor translation affects not just the individual
but the whole family and the whole
community. Family members, sometimes a
child or young adult, are often asked to
translate in inappropriate situations, causing
embarrassment and distress. Participants
discussed fears of the dangers inherent in such
situations, of mis-translation of medical terms
– thereby placing further stress on the family.
Service Providers are aware, at a strategic level, of their duty of care to provide interpreting services: “Language is not a choice, it is a need. People do not choose their language or their circumstances”.

3. Access to Statutory Services: from the perspective of both
Minority Ethnic Elders and External Organisations
The North Wales Regional Equality Network (NWREN) works across all areas of equality with a
range of partners. As a charity we are committed to:
• Work towards the elimination of discrimination and disadvantage in all its forms
• To promote equality of opportunity and good relations between all persons through
understanding and addressing issues of discrimination and inequality
• To work towards upholding the human rights of all people
NWREN services include:
• Drop in centres
• Awareness raising training on equality, diversity and hate crime
• Assist in consultation and community engagement
• Provide training at all levels
• Deliver interactive sessions and workshops for staff, volunteers and the community
• Recording, monitoring and responding to hate crime
• Support with strategic and policy development and impact assessments
We are a charitable organisation that seeks to eliminate discrimination in all its forms.
If you feel that you have been treated unfairly, you can talk to us in confidence.
Please contact NWREN for further information of services offered.
www.nwren.org info@nwren.org 01492 622 233
NWREN @NWRENinfo
Promoting equality • challenging discrimination • upholding human rights
The Equality Centre Bangor Road Penmaenmawr Conwy LL34 6LF
Company No.: 5843319 Charity Registration No.: 1116970