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Public bodies across Wales are being told which services they will be required to provide in Welsh.

The Welsh language commissioner is issuing notices to local councils, the Welsh government and national parks on the standards they will need to meet.

The organisations will have six months to prepare before the new measures come into force on March 26 2016.

In July, Wrexham council warned the new rules could cost it £700,000 a year, leading to further cuts to services.

The standards are expected to be along similar lines to , published in January 2014.

These included requiring bodies to make it clear that they welcome correspondence with the public in Welsh and giving the language priority on bilingual signs.

Under the draft proposals the main switchboard of the organisations would also be staffed by a Welsh speaking member of staff and all press releases would would have to be published in Welsh.

Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) chief executive Steve Thomas said his organisation "works well with the commissioner", Meri Huws, and that the WLGA has been part of "very positive" discussions around language standards.

But he acknowledged "there are concerns" at the potential costs associated with implementing changes.

Any organisation found not to be meeting the required standards could face a fine of up to £5,000.

Other public bodies, including the NHS, and parts of the private sector, will be issued with similar notices in the future.

Manon Elin, of the Welsh Language Society Cymdeithas yr Iaith, said: "The process of creating these new rights, through the standards, needs to be expedited and simplified."