Press Area

The UK Council on Deafness is the national infrastructure organisation for charities and professional bodies. Many of our Member Organisations are specialists and are better placed to make informed comments than we are. If this is the case then we are happy to refer you to the most appropriate source of information.

2011 PRESS RELEASE

'Look At Me!' 2011

The 2nd May - 8th May 2011 is Deaf Awareness Week and organisations working with deaf people across the country are inviting you to ‘Look At Me’. The theme aims to improve understanding of the different types of deafness by highlighting the many different methods of communication used by deaf, deafened, deafblind and hard of hearing people, such as sign language and lipreading.

There are 9 million deaf or hard of hearing people in the UK, that is 1 in 7 of the total population. Deaf Awareness Week is a unique awareness campaign bringing together over 100 deaf charities and organisations under the umbrella of the UK Council on Deafness.

According to Adrian Masters, Interim Chief Executive of the UK Council on Deafness: “UK Council on Deafness are delighted to be coordinating Deaf Awareness Week. This is a tremendous opportunity to promote the positive aspects of deafness, promote social inclusion and raise awareness of the huge range of local organisations that support deaf people and their family and friends.”

A series of posters and an information leaflet are available to support the week’s activities. The posters encourage people to look at someone who is deaf or hard of hearing when communicating, so that they can see people's lips and facial expression. The leaflet displays interesting facts about deafness and gives examples of ways the public and businesses can become more accessible to deaf people. These materials can be downloaded from the campaign website at www.Look-At-Me.org.uk

The campaign week will also be celebrating the proactive access policies implemented by major UK companies and organisations to ensure that deaf and hard of hearing people are treated fairly and have equal access.

For further details on local events in your neighbourhood, along with facts and figures about deafness and deaf issues, go to the campaign website www.Look-At-Me.org.uk

Notes to editors:

·The UK Council on Deafness is the national infrastructure organisation for voluntary sector organisations working with deaf people and aims to improve and extend co-operation between member organisations in promoting and representing the diverse interests of deaf, deafened, deafblind and hard of hearing people.
UK Council on Deafness, Westwood Park, London Road, Little Horkesley, Colchester CO6 4BS.
Tel: 01206 274075 Fax: 01206 274077 SMS 0758 4249527
email:info@deafcouncil.org.uk website: www.deafcouncil.org.uk

Notes to editors:

· An estimated 50,000 to 70,000 deaf people in the UK use BSL daily – along with hundreds of thousands of family members, friends, professionals working with the deaf community and students of sign language.

· The British Association of Teachers of the Deaf (BATOD) estimates that there are 30,000 children under 16 in the UK with significant levels of hearing loss.

[back to top]

16 March 2011

British Sign Language exams success puts York St John
Business School students top of the class

York St John Business School is celebrating a 100% pass rate in its latest Signatureexamination results in British Sign Language (BSL), putting it more than 20 percentage points above the UK average.

Signatureis the recognised awarding body offering nationally accredited qualifications that cover the whole range of languages and communication methods used by deaf and deafblind people.

This success comes at a time when the Business School is experiencing ever increasing demand for sign language skills.  Professor Angela Goddard, Head of Subject for Languages and Linguistics, says “BSL is like any language, including English, in that it can be an academic subject for study in its own right, as well as one that develops users’ skills.

“Undergraduates who join York St John’s English Language and Linguistics programme are particularly interested in BSL because they see it as an important skill to have in any future career in teaching or speech and language therapy. Equally, public health providers and local businesses recognise the need for communicating with clients and customers from the Deaf community”.

Business School Dean Jackie Mathers puts the outstanding pass rate achieved by the 65 students taking the latest six-module BSL course down to a combination of student commitment, inspirational teaching and high quality support.

She says that programme leader Amanda Smith, whose first language is BSL rather than English having been born deaf, delivers the course in a highly engaging way using numerous visual props which encourages students to learn from each other as well as qualified tutors.

“We’re absolutely thrilled with the latest results which are well deserved given the hard work that every student has put in over the last semester,” Jackie says.  “Their achievement is made even more remarkable by the fact that they completed some of the modules in just a third of the time it would usually take.  It’s also a testament to the efforts of the whole team here at the Business School, so I’d like to thank them for their crucial support.

On the York St John Business School BSL course, students can take the Level 1 and Level 2 Signature Certificates.  Level 1 equips students with the ability to use sign language to communicate simple things such as the weather and directions and have simple conversations.  Level 2 is more advanced, training students in the use of facial expressions, body language and multi-channel communication as well as and developing the ability to hold a seven minute signed conversation.

Due to student demand, the business school will run the Level 3 Certificate BSL course for the first time from September this year.  In addition to the formal tuition on the BSL course, York St John University also holds a weekly ‘Sign Café’ where students can get together to gain additional practice.

Amanda continues to develop her BSL skills, too, and has recently built on her Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice by becoming a Teaching Fellow.

“BSL is like learning any other language in that you need to keep practising and enjoy what you’re doing,” says Amanda.  “We try to teach with a great sense of humour and encourage a supportive learning environment where nobody is critical – I believe that’s the secret to the success of this course.”

Further information about the BSL courses available at York St John Business School is available by calling 01904 876915 or via email business.school@yorksj.ac.uk.

-Ends-

Notes to editors:

1. York St John Business School

The business school helps develop business performance through talented individuals and their communities.  The school offers a mix of academic and professional courses and services, supported by highly qualified staff. 

In addition to undergraduate courses, the school offers postgraduate modules and designs bespoke courses as part of a Continuing Professional Development programme, including the Top Team Workshops Programme, Learning Through Business Leaders, IT @ York St John and Leadership Development.

The business school also supports a variety of networking events to help businesses share knowledge and ideas and has created the York St John Business School Evidence Based Leadership Network offering regular networking opportunities.

2. York St John University
Founded in 1841, York St John University has a long and proud tradition as a distinguished education provider. The University has around 6,000 students studying on a range of courses in faculties of Arts, Health and Life Sciences, Education and Theology, and the York St John Business School. Through its faculties, York St John has developed many partnerships with practitioners, business and representative bodies both within York and the wider region. In addition, the University has invested over £75 million in its facilities for students and partners in its city centre campus since 2001.

For further information please contact Karen Nixon at The Partners Group on
T: 01904 610077 or E: karen@partners-group.co.uk
Or
Amy Hey, PR & Communications Officer, on
T: 01904 876466 or E: a.hey@yorksj.ac.uk or go to www.yorksj.ac.uk

Back to Deaf Awareness Week Home Page