Traffic Commissioner Welsh Language Scheme 2026-2029

The Traffic Commissioners for Great Britain (TCs) are not a collective statutory entity. Traffic Commissioners and Deputy Traffic Commissioners are individual appointments of the Secretary of State for Transport, and although one Traffic Commissioner is deployed by the Senior Traffic Commissioner as the Traffic Commissioner for Wales, it is not a separate statutory appointment.

Traffic Commissioners do not employ the licensing or tribunal staff which assist them. They are employed by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) and deployed to the Office of the Traffic Commissioner (OTC). The DVSA is subject to their own Welsh Language Scheme, and this scheme may include elements related to the staffing and recruitment of the OTC and other areas where it does not directly relate to the TC function.

The importance of the Welsh language is already the subject of guidance and directions issued by the Senior Traffic Commissioner in Statutory Document No. 9 on Case Management.  TCs recognise the principles set out in primary legislation to treat the Welsh and English languages equally.

No statutory requirements have been applied to Traffic Commissioners in respect to the Welsh Language as yet. However, Traffic Commissioners embrace our responsibilities as public bodies and are fully committed to developing a Welsh Language Scheme (‘the Scheme’) on a voluntary basis.

This voluntary Welsh Language Scheme sets out the approach which the TCs and the staff that support them in the OTC will take.  For the purpose of this document reference to TCs also implies the OTC insofar as it relates to the function of a TC, unless specifically stated.

This Language Scheme was approved by the Welsh Language Commissioner on 12/05/2026.

Statement of principle

This scheme sets out how TCs will uphold this principle when providing services to the public in Wales. In this scheme, the term public means individuals, legal persons and corporate bodies. It includes the public as a whole, or a section of the public, as well as individual members of the public. The term includes voluntary organisations and charities. Directors and others representing limited companies are also within the meaning of the term ‘public’. It does not, however, include persons who are acting in a capacity which is representative of the Crown, Government or the State. Consequently, persons who fulfil official functions of a public nature, even though they are legal persons, do not come within the meaning of the word public when they are fulfilling those official functions.

The scheme:

• uses the guidelines issued by the Welsh Language Commissioner
• will be published and available to all TCs, OTC staff and the public

Traffic Commissioner responsibilities

Traffic Commissioners are responsible for the licensing and regulation of those who operate and drive heavy goods vehicles, buses and coaches, and the registration of local bus services. They are assisted in this work by deputy Traffic Commissioners, and staff employed by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency but who are deployed to the Office of the Traffic Commissioner.

The TC functions cover:

• goods vehicle operator licensing
• public service vehicle operator licensing
• local bus service registration and related matters (excluding franchised areas)
• determining applications for the return of impounded vehicles
• determining the fitness (by way of conduct) of applicants for, and holders of, Large Goods Vehicle and Passenger Carrying Vehicle driving entitlement

Traffic Commissioners are appointed as individual office holders by the Secretary of State for Transport but act independently of Government. One Traffic Commissioner is appointed as the statutory Senior Traffic Commissioner with power to issue guidance and directions to other Traffic Commissioners and for deployment of Traffic Commissioners. One Traffic Commissioner is deployed as the Traffic Commissioner for Wales. An agreement exists between the Secretary of State for Transport and the Welsh Ministers on the funding arrangements for the Traffic Commissioner for Wales.

New policies and initiatives

In any project, we will assess the impact it may have on the Welsh language. We will make sure that all public services and administrative procedures that we are responsible for do not prevent or hinder the use of the Welsh language and we will consider opportunities to promote the use of the Welsh language.

Our policies will always be consistent with the scheme and will not undermine it. Our commitment refers to current, new and revised policies.

We will publish the scheme on our internal information repository together with general advice on the action staff should take to implement the scheme, and information on translation and interpretation facilities. The Scheme will also be available online to the public.

Delivery of services

The Vehicle Operator Licensing (VOL) service has Welsh language pages incorporated. This provides services to customers intending to apply for a goods or passenger vehicle operator licence and for existing customers who want to manage and update their existing licence on-line.

We continue to monitor changes on VOL and will make these available in Welsh. The system gives the customer the option to receive correspondence in Welsh. If a customer selects this, then all corresponding documents are translated into Welsh before being sent to the customer.

We will support and provide services in Welsh whenever reasonable and practicable. The OTC have staff that are fluent in written and spoken Welsh. 

Where we deliver services to the public in Wales, we will either use these Welsh speaking staff or professional translators.

Customers who choose to correspond in Welsh will receive a reply in Welsh.

DVSA provide a telephony service for TC functions through a Customer Contact Centre. They have developed a service allowing customers who telephone the contact centres to conduct their business in Welsh. Enquiries that cannot be answered through this contact centre may be diverted to OTC staff. This includes the availability of Welsh speaking staff. If those staff are unable to assist a specific query, they will obtain the required information and relay it in Welsh, if requested, within one working day or provide an update if further detail is required. 

Standard of service in Welsh

Throughout Wales, services in Welsh will be of an equally high quality as those in English. We will ensure that:

• public inquiries and hearings are heard in the Welsh language when requested, with professional interpreters if a bi-lingual hearing is required. The opportunity for hearings to be heard in the Welsh language will be promoted to the parties in the letters calling the hearing.
• emails and letters in Welsh and English are answered in the same target times
• guidance and forms issued for use by the public are available in Welsh
• we refer to this scheme, and the commitments it contains, in important documents such as the annual report, and on the GOV.UK website
• the standards we have established in this scheme will apply to all other organisations that perform statutory duties on our behalf
• our existing IT facilities meet the requirements to implement the measures in this scheme. We will ensure that specifications for new or replacement systems take account of the provisions of this scheme to provide information and services in Welsh.

Communicating with the Welsh speaking public

Written communication

We have a commitment to begin correspondence in a recipient’s language choice, if known. Members of the public living in Wales are welcome to write to us in Welsh or English. When someone writes or emails us in Welsh, we will reply with a signed letter or email in Welsh. Any further correspondence will be in Welsh unless otherwise requested.

Our target times for replying to correspondence is 10 working days following receipt. Corresponding in Welsh will not lead to a delay.

We will / have met these targets by:

• issuing internal guidance to staff on how to use translation services, and associated budget arrangements
• arranging a contract with translators
• monitoring response times to correspondence written in Welsh
• making sure staff maintain a record of those people who have written to them in Welsh

We will issue bilingual circulars or standard letters that are specifically relevant to those residing in Wales.

We will ensure that the Welsh language versions of our services, guidance and documents are easily available on our website. The various steps for this to happen are set out in the attached action plan.

Telephone communication

DVSA welcome telephone enquiries to their contact centres in Welsh or English for vehicle enquiries. Customers from any part of Wales who phone the national number can ask to conduct their enquiry in Welsh.

In the event of calls to OTC offices where a Welsh speaker is not immediately available, we will offer a call back service in the Welsh language within one working day, or the opportunity to continue the call in English. For particularly complex or niche enquiries, we may facilitate a member of staff to interpret from an English-speaking colleague.

We will encourage our staff in Wales to answer the telephone with a bilingual greeting and use bilingual messages on their personal answer – phones.

Public, group, educational institution and one to one meetings

Invitations and advertisements for meetings organised by the TC in Wales will be circulated in Welsh and English.

We will:

• commit to make translation facilities available at public meetings and encourage contributions in Welsh
• on request, any reports relating to public meetings will be bilingual.

Public Inquiries and other hearings

We will inform the public, by means of a message on the original documentation, that a hearing located in Wales may be held in Welsh or English. For Welsh language hearings, we will arrange for proficient Welsh speaking TC and staff to be available. Where no Welsh speaking staff is available, we will make arrangements for a professional translator / interpreter and provide all documentation in Welsh.

At meetings, hearings or public inquiries, operators are welcome to speak Welsh or English. When ‘call up’ letters are issued by the TC, the right of those attending to use Welsh or English is clearly stated.

Website and online services

We will make sure that the following appear on GOV.UK and in our internal guidance:

• Clear navigation to an equivalent Welsh language page (if one exists)
• Welsh language versions of services and guidance
• Messages that we put out on social media accounts will be available in Welsh if only relevant to Wales or the work of the Traffic Commissioner for Wales

Publicity and printed material

Corporate identity

The TC corporate logo, including the words Traffic Commissioner for Wales or Office of the Traffic Commissioner, is an essential part of our identity and will be provided bi-lingually on all correspondence in Wales.

Publications

Materials issued by the TCs that are relevant for the general public in Wales, such as guidance on operator licensing, will be in English and Welsh. Other publications may have a Welsh language summary.

Our publications will be in a bilingual format unless separate English and Welsh versions are more practical. In these cases, it will be clearly stated that the publication is also available in Welsh. Both documents will be of the same quality and will be equally accessible.

We will make it clear to the reader when a publication applies to England only, to prevent any misunderstandings about possible Welsh translations if the document reaches people in Wales.

Materials issued by other organisations, including the DVSA, are not covered by this scheme. Where we link to DVSA material we will include links to Welsh language versions if they are available.  

Forms

All forms received in Welsh will be treated as equal as forms received in English.

We will make sure that all our online and printed forms for the public in Wales are easily available in Welsh and English. Forms will be accepted from people based in Wales in either language.

News releases

News releases of a particular interest to the public in Wales will be made available in Welsh and English. News releases issued specifically to the Welsh-speaking or bilingual media in Wales will be produced bilingually.

Staff and recruitment

The Department for Transport is responsible for overseeing the appointment of traffic commissioners and deputy traffic commissioners and this process is not included in this scheme. A separate framework exists that includes the Welsh language requirements when appointing a traffic commissioner deployed to Wales.

We will ensure that non-Welsh speaking TCs and staff deployed to work in the Welsh Traffic Area have readily available access to appropriately skilled Welsh speakers so that a service can be delivered through the medium of Welsh.

DVSA are responsible for the recruitment and training of OTC staff, and we will ensure that recruitment aligns with our principle that staff permanently deployed to the OTC in Wales can communicate fluently in Welsh and English. Where this is not possible, training will be provided to enhance language skills.

When fluency in Welsh is considered to be desirable or essential this will be stated in job competencies and advertisements.

Where no suitable Welsh speaking candidates can be found for a post where Welsh is desirable, the person appointed will be encouraged to learn Welsh.

When no suitable Welsh speaking candidates can be found for a post where Welsh is essential; we will make temporary arrangements under the Welsh language service (by providing, for example, Welsh speaking staff from elsewhere in our organisation to deliver parts of the service).

Information packs and application forms will be provided in Welsh and English for all our jobs that are to be located in Wales. For all other jobs, information packs and application forms will be provided in Welsh when requested by a job applicant.

Implementing the scheme

Responsibilities within the Office of the Traffic Commissioner

We are committed to operating within the terms of the scheme, and to make sure that all TCs and OTC staff know how it should be implemented and what is expected of them. The Head of Traffic Commissioner Policy is responsible for implementing the scheme as it pertains to the functions of the Traffic Commissioner and reporting to the Traffic Commissioner on adherence to the scheme.

We provide help and support to any member of our staff who wants to learn to speak Welsh. We commit to actively encouraging members of staff to undertake training in the Welsh language.

We will make the public aware that they may use Welsh or English when communicating with any of our offices by correspondence, telephone or face-to-face.

We will publish the scheme to our staff, to the public in Wales and on GOV.UK.

Translation and interpretation services

We will ensure that any translation companies that we use are qualified translators committed to providing a fast, high-quality service. We will check that they have their own internal quality monitoring systems and that these operate satisfactorily.

Monitoring the scheme

Monitoring will be coordinated by the Traffic Commissioners’ Corporate Office.

Each year we will submit a report on progress as part of the Annual Report of the Traffic Commissioners to the Secretary of State.

This report will include:

• Any relevant updates from the points in the action plan during the reporting period
• The number of complaints received in the reporting year
• Data regarding language skills of TC for Wales staff

Publishing the scheme

The Scheme will be publicised internally to OTC staff and on GOV.UK.

Changes to the scheme

We will consult with the Welsh Language Commissioner in advance about any proposals that will affect the scheme and will seek the Commissioner’s approval before altering the scheme.

We will review the scheme within three years of it coming into effect.

Improvements to the scheme/complaints

Suggestions for improvement

We welcome suggestions from the public and staff for improvements to our Welsh language service. All suggestions should be addressed to Traffic Commissioners’ Corporate Office at:

tcco@otc.gov.uk

or

Traffic Commissioners’ Corporate Office
Office of the Traffic Commissioner
Stone Cross Place

Stone Cross Lane North

Golborne

Nr Warrington

WA3 2SH

Complaints

Any complaints about the way in which we have implemented the scheme or about our Welsh language service should also be sent to Traffic Commissioners’ Corporate Office at the above address. Complainants will receive a written reply in the language of their complaint.