St Joseph's bilingual sign has left Welsh speakers confused

The sign that in English read "Pupils' and staff entrance" at St Joseph's Catholic and Anglican School was rendered into near-gibberish in Welsh.

It included a word for staff meaning "wooden stave" rather than workers.

Wrexham council said the final responsibility for translation lay with the churches but admitted future signs should be overseen by the council.

The sign read "Ddisgybl a Baladr daflu i Berlewyg" but a better translation would have been "Mynedfa ar gyfer Staff a Disgyblion".

We'd accept this if it was an English factory doing their best to translate Emlyn Edwards

St Joseph's opened to pupils as a shared-faith school just this week, welcoming an extra 150 Anglican pupils into the formerly Catholic-only site.

Council leader Aled Roberts said he had received several complaints about the translation over the weekend.

'Lesson learnt'

He said: "The council isn't the body with final responsibility for the sign - that rests with the churches. The council's translation unit wasn't involved.

"I phoned a council officer at 0900 on Monday, he phoned the school at 0905 and suggested a cover be put over the sign.

St Joseph's reopened this week admitting Anglican pupils

"He told the school that future signs should be prepared by the council."

Mr Roberts admitted the council had "learnt a lesson".

"We've got to ensure that from now on, with partnership projects, signs must be seen by the council's translation department."

Emlyn Edwards, who works for local community-based Welsh language paper NeNe, told BBC Wales: "We'd accept this if it was an English factory doing their best to translate - we have got people who can help them.

"But this is the council who've got a translation department. It's disgusting and scandalous."

A spokeswoman for the Welsh Language Board said a strategy had been launched at the eisteddfod to help the translation process and to ensure accurate, clear and consistent translation.

She added: "The Welsh Language Board will discuss the issue with the council."

In August this year, Welsh cyclists riding between Penarth and Cardiff were left bemused by bilingual "cyclists dismount" sign road telling them they had problems with an inflamed bladder.