A YORK translation company has launched a foreign languages hub to support businesses in the post-Covid world.

Lucy Pembayun, of LEaF Translations, has created free resources to help operators as they reopen and avoid any confusion caused by language barriers.

The company works with tourism businesses, and Lucy hopes the hub will benefit teams at hotels, restaurants, cafes, pubs and bars, shops, museums, galleries, tourist attractions and public amenities such as libraries.

The hub is providing easy-to-follow, free printable resources in a selection of languages, with information people need to travel safely.

As well as an A-Z glossary of Covid-related terms in seven languages, the hub is offering free language resources and printables for the hospitality and tourism sectors to give to guests.

There are key frequently asked questions about Covid in Spanish, Greek, Portuguese, French and German as well as free resources for business travellers in languages including Chinese and Japanese.

Lucy said: “The idea for our hub came about because we recognised the wider impact that the pandemic has had on language. English words that were once only used in scientific circles are now in everyday use and the same is true in every other language too.

"As a York-based organisation which specialises in translations for the tourism industry, we couldn’t sit back and watch these changes to our language create confusion for the many businesses in this city who depend on such footfall and trade.

“Given the current climate, good translation is vital to ensure that information around Covid health and safety is accurately communicated across many different languages.

“We understand that commercial operations across York, both big and small, have faced their own particular challenges over the past year. We hope that our Covid Language Hub will help to make the lives of tourists and local businesses easier as we embark on the road to recovery.”

York-born Lucy, 38, set up LEaF Translations in 2017 after working as a freelance translator for large translation agencies. She wanted to shift the focus from an emphasis on swift turnarounds in favour of high-quality translations.

LEaF specialises in translations for the tourist industry, websites and SEO translations, and provides English proofreading services.

Visit the hub at https://leaftranslations.com/covid-language-hub/