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In this Bulletin
Prime Minister to meet delegation to discuss British Sign Language
Having been challenged to do more for users of BSL by Malcolm Bruce MP, Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness, the Prime Minister has agreed to meet a delegation of sign language users. The meeting is being arranged and the details will be announced shortly.
Malcolm Bruce commented: “When we meet the Prime Minister I hope that he will back my efforts to seek further legal recognition and protection for sign language users”
To prepare for the meeting the All Party Group are holding a series of pre-meetings to debate the issues that should be raised with the Prime Minster.
The first meeting is being held on Tuesday 22 January at Westminster. Places at the meeting are limited, anyone wishing to attend should please book their place with Jonathan Isaac, Clerk to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness at j.isaac@deafcouncil.org.uk
The full exchange from Prime Minister’s Questions on 12 December 2007 is:
Malcolm Bruce (Gordon) (LD): Will the Prime Minister acknowledge that while the Government rightly give tens of millions of pounds every year to support indigenous British languages such as Welsh and Gaelic, another British language—British Sign Language—gets no such support. Will the Prime Minister meet me, and a delegation of sign language users, to discuss how the Government can meet their needs, as they are currently failing to do?
The Prime Minister: I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for raising that issue, and I will be very happy to meet him. It is a very important issue, and we will see what we can do together.
To celebrate the fifth anniversary of the government announcement recognising BSL to be a language the All Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness are holding a day of sign language lessons for MPs at Westminster in March 2008.
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Welcome to our new member re-joining this month:
The British Deaf Association is the largest Deaf organisation in the UK that is run by Deaf people. We represent the Sign Language community, which is united by shared experiences, history and, most importantly, by British Sign Language (BSL). The BDA campaigns for the rights of deaf people who use British Sign Language to participate in society as equal citizens.
10th Floor, Coventry Point, Market Way, Coventry, CV1 1EA.
Tel: 02476 550936
Text: 02476 550393
Fax: 02476 221541
Email midlands@bda.org.uk
Website www.signcommunity.org.uk
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New Affiliates
Welcome to our new Affiliate Organisation joining this month:
Full contact details can be found in the Directory of Affiliated Organisations at www.deafcouncil.org.uk/affila.htm
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SignHealth – The Healthcare Charity for Deaf People
The announcement that Sign, The National Society for Mental Health and Deafness is to commission a study in the UK on the state of health of the Deaf Community reflects a broadening of the charity’s objectives to improve the general health of deaf people.
To reflect the broadening of its remit, Sign has now changed its name to SignHealth and a launch to show its new strategic direction took place at Portcullis House, Westminster towards the end of last year.
At the launch SignHealth’s chairman, Rodney Clark, said: “Sign is already well established as the UK charity for mental health and deafness, providing housing, day services, health promotion, advocacy and outreach, all in a BSL environment. We have recently been able to add Counselling to that list. We well recognise links between mental well being and general health. We have undertaken a very wide consultation with our stakeholders, the deaf community and other organisations and as a result we will now become the Healthcare Charity for Deaf People.”
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Third sector strategic funding and investment review
The Department of Health is undertaking a funding and investment review to develop a strategic framework for its investment in the third sector that transforms current piecemeal arrangements into a strategic portfolio of investment that more explicitly supports delivery of the Department's objectives and priorities. The review will consider the entire Department’s funding of the third sector, including its primary funding streams – Section 64 (S64) and Opportunities for Volunteering (OFV) grants schemes – as well as contracts resulting from procurement and grants across a range of the Department’s programmes.
The review will consider and potentially refine the role of S64 and OFV funding in the context of the Department’s vision for outcomes focused commissioning and increasing plurality of health and social care provision in which the sector has a key role. Issues for consideration in relation to S64 funding include, for example, the relative merits of the current large number of core grants compared with a smaller number of strategic grants, or the Department’s current investment in established organisations through core grants and the potential for providing seed corn funding for newer organisations.
The review is about how the Department spends the money we have got more effectively in the third sector, rather than to review the amount of money itself, which will not increase or decrease as a result of the review.
Any changes in relation to the S64 General Scheme will take effect from the funding round for 2009-10.
The consultation will run until 20 March 2008. Feedback and publication of a response document are expected in early summer of 2008. The consultation document, questions and answers, an associated summary of interventions and options, and an equality and impact assessment are available at: www.dh.gov.uk/en/Consultations/Liveconsultations/DH_081183
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18 Weeks Commissioning Pathways Consensus Event
The Department of Health 18 weeks team have been working with clinical and managerial leads and experts across a range of areas, in order to develop 18 weeks commissioning pathways. A first set of pathways were developed and released during 2007/8, and the Department have arranged events to gain consensus from key stakeholders to the 18 weeks commissioning pathways developed over the last 3 months.
The Tinnitus pathway - Audiology event is being held at Avonmouth House, 6 Avonmouth Street, London SE1 6NX on Friday 29th February 2008. The team are keen to ensure these events capture a good representative sample of those working in this area, and anyone interested in attending should contact celine.van.valkenhoef@dh.gsi.gov.uk .
For examples of the pathways on the 18 weeks website go to www.18weeks.nhs.uk.
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Calling All Future Leaders!
Are you interested in becoming a board member? Do you feel that you have been denied access to this important decision making forum? Are you a disabled or deaf person? Are you currently on a board or advisory group and need more training or information? Future Leaders is a seminar programme developed by Shape aimed at de-mystifying the whole process of being a board member or trustee. Future Leaders has been researched and devised using the direct experiences of disabled and deaf people within the disability and deaf arts sector as well as the mainstream. The aim is to explore the process of governance; share best practice and assist participants in finding a suitable organisation to work with. The programme will be run at regular intervals throughout early 2008 in London and elsewhere across England. For further details go to www.shapearts.org.uk
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Improving specialist disability employment services – public consultation
This Department for Work and Pensions consultation contains proposals to reform the disability employment services that help disabled people who have complex issues to find, retain and progress in work – the Job Introduction Scheme, Work Preparation, WORKSTEP, Access to Work and the role of Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentre Plus.
DWP are seeking views about the reforms proposed in the consultation. The consultation period runs until Monday 10 March 2008. For further details go to www.dwp.gov.uk/resourcecentre/des-consultation.asp
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City University have started a web forum to discuss ideas about technology and hearing loss. The technology focus is on Information and Communications Technology. The focus of hearing loss discussions that have started so far is on what matters most for people who used to have unimpaired hearing and have then acquired an impairment, maybe gradually and progressively. However, the topics could readily broaden to all types of hearing impairment and ICT. The forum is at www.city.ac.uk/rrcforum
Please send information for the next Bulletin, by 31 January 2008, to:
UK Council on Deafness, Westwood Park, London Road, Little Horkesley, Colchester, CO6 4BS. Email info@deafcouncil.org.uk.
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