Translations for schools and local councils

Where Turkish documents reach a school or council

Families arriving from Türkiye deal with the local council before they deal with anyone else, because the council runs school admissions. An in-year application asks for proof of the child’s date of birth and of the family’s address; the address is UK evidence, but the date of birth is on a Turkish birth certificate, an ID card or a nüfus kayıt örneği. Schools then decide year-group placement and want to see the child’s last school report (karne) and the transfer certificate (tasdikname) that Turkish schools issue when a pupil leaves. The school nurse asks about immunisations, which are on the aşı kartı or in e-Nabız. Where a child has additional needs, the council’s SEN team and an educational psychologist read whatever assessment was done in Türkiye: a report from a guidance and research centre (Rehberlik ve Araştırma Merkezi, RAM), a hospital’s medical board report, or a special-education evaluation. Other council services turn up less often: a Blue Badge application with a Turkish disability report, a student council tax discount with a Turkish enrolment letter, or a housing application with a Turkish medical report.

What schools and councils require

Admissions rules are set by each admission authority under the national school admissions code, and the council forms say only that documents not in English should be accompanied by a translation; the box on this page summarises the position rather than quoting a rule, because none applies to all councils. Schools are more relaxed than immigration or the courts: they need to understand the document, and a certified translation from a translation company satisfies every admissions team we have dealt with to date. SEN assessments are different in scale rather than form. An educational psychologist relies on the detail of a RAM report, so it must be translated in full, with the test names and scores as printed. Certification, with the statement of accuracy, date and the company’s details, is included in our price for all of these.

Turkish documents that come up

• Birth certificate, ID card or nüfus kayıt örneği for admissions.
• School reports (karne), the transfer certificate (tasdikname) and the öğrenci belgesi.
• Vaccination record (aşı kartı).
• RAM reports, special-education evaluation board reports and medical board reports for SEN and disability services.
• Exam results for older pupils entering sixth form.
• A muvafakatname where a parent in Türkiye consents to a school trip abroad or to a change of school.

Common reasons schools ask again

• Grades are converted to UK levels. Turkish reports use a 100-point scale and a five-band legend; we translate the scale and the legend and leave the comparison to the school.
• The year group is guessed. Turkish sınıf numbers do not map one-to-one onto English year groups because the school starting age differs; we give the Turkish grade as printed with a translator’s note on age, not an English year.
• Vaccine names are transliterated instead of matched, so the school nurse cannot see which UK vaccine corresponds.
• A RAM report is summarised rather than translated, and the psychologist cannot see the assessment tools or scores.
• The tasdikname is missing, and the school cannot confirm the child left the previous school in good order.

How we prepare school and council documents

Education and medical translators handle the reports; a second linguist checks names, dates and scores. Every page carries our certification statement with the company’s Ankara registry details, the date, stamp and signature, and the original is attached. Schools and councils accept the PDF; a paper copy by UK Special Delivery is £8. A birth certificate or ID card is one page (£10); a karne or tasdikname one to two pages (£10–20); a vaccination card one to two pages; a RAM report 3–6 pages (£30–60); a medical board report 1–3 pages. Turnaround is 1–2 working days, and admissions documents received before 11:00 UK time are returned the same day so the council’s deadline is met. No UK VAT is charged. For the health side of the same documents see translations for the NHS and GP registration, and for pupils going the other way, UK school reports for Turkish schools and askerlik deferment are covered on UK school reports translated into Turkish.