A report to Bedford Borough Council has advised that taxi drivers in the Borough should “bring their English up to the required standard”, if they wish to retain their licence, saying the test of a taxi or minicab driver’s proficiency should cover both oral and written English language skills.
But, presenting the report to the General Licensing Committee last week (22 September), Lee Phanco, chief officer for assessment, application and business support, explained that taxi drivers should be supported so they didn’t lose their jobs should they fail the test.
“…we also wanted to make sure that drivers would have sufficient opportunity if they found that they did need to improve their English skills,” he said.
“So that it wasn’t a case that they wouldn’t be able to continue with their profession [if they failed].
Current figures show that 49 drivers in the Borough haven’t taken the English assessment test, this is made up of 19 hackney carriage (taxi) drivers and 30 private hire (minicab) drivers.
The report stated that a lack of proficiency in English could impact a taxi or minicab driver’s ability to understand written policies and guidance.
Oral proficiency in English could also help identify potential exploitation through communicating with passengers and their interaction with others.
Requirement
Proficiency in English for private hire drivers became a requirement for new drivers in 2006. These drivers were exempt because they have had a continuous licence for a “significant period of time”.
“The recommendation to the committee is that these drivers should be required to successfully complete the test,” Mr Phanco said.
Explaining how taxi drivers would get help and opportunity to improve their English, Mr Phanco added: “If their renewal was due after June 30, we’d ask the driver to take the test in advance.
“So that by the time the renewal was due they would have had six months to bring their English up to the required standard.
“Effectively, we would give them six months to complete the test and in the event that wasn’t completed, we’d review the licence and may consider withdrawing it.
“We thought that was the fairest approach to make sure that the drivers have ample opportunity.
“I think we’d expect that the majority of drivers wouldn’t have a problem with passing the English assessment test,” he said.
ESOL courses
“They [the drivers] know what the job involves, but you want an improvement in English so they can communicate with the customer,” Cllr Mohammed Nawaz (Labour, Kempston Central & East) asked.
Mr Phanco replied: “It’s not necessarily an improvement, I would imagine many of the drivers would be absolutely fine.
“The purpose of the test is just to help us identify anybody that may not be able to communicate effectively, and we want to give them enough of an opportunity to be able to improve their [language skills].”
Councillor Nawaz asked if the council will be providing the training.
“This is not something that we would specifically provide through the licencing service, Mr Phanco replied.
“Bedford College, for example, provides ESOL courses, which is funded through the adult education budget.
“We could look at how we can signpost people to be able to access those courses,” he said.
The test will be provided free of charge to the drivers.
by John Guinn Local Democracy Reporter
and Bedford Independent’s Paul Hutchinson
