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In this bulletin:
UK Council on Deafness announces sale of Forest Books Ltd
When UKCoD acquired the controlling interest in Forest Books Ltd in early 2008 our primary objective was to secure the future of Forest Books Ltd, given the imminent retirement of the Company’s founder, Doug McLean. This was driven by our knowledge that the Company provided a service greatly valued by many d/Deaf people, and thence by UKCoD’s member organisations.
It has subsequently become clear that the future development of Forest Books Ltd requires it to have access to external funding, and to a degree of commercial freedom that UKCoD – as a registered Charity – can not provide. We are now pleased to announce that on 29th April UKCoD sold its shares in Forest Books Ltd to the Company’s General Manager, Mr Jonathan Mitchell. The UKCoD Trustees who were acting as Directors of Forest Books Ltd have now resigned from that role, but UKCoD will continue to look for opportunities to help the Company develop its services to the d/Deaf community.
BSMHD Annual Conference 2009
Monday 8th June 2009 - 11.00am - 5.30pm
& Tuesday 9th June 2009 - 10.00am - 4.00pm
At: Royal Horticultural Society, Vincent Square, London, SW1P 2PE. A two day multidisciplinary conference for all mental health professionals and those in allied professions who work with deaf people.
Yasmin Covic, Deaf Safeguarding Advisor for Deaf Children at NSPCC & Sue O’Rourke, Clinical Director and Psychologist at St Georges Healthcare
Andrew Lowndes, Practice Development Fellow, School of Nursing, Midwifery and Community Health, Glasgow Caledonian University
In 2007 researchers at Glasgow Caledonian University were awarded funding by RNID (Scotland) to undertake a study entitled ‘Mental health services - the experience of deaf and deaf blind people’. As part of this larger study research into the real lived experience of Deaf patients currently in receipt of mental health care in NHS Scotland is currently being undertaken. The purpose of this paper is to outline the research methods used to collect data for this aspect of the study, discuss the challenges encountered and present some preliminary findings. The paper will begin with a brief overview of the literature relating to Deaf patients utilisation of mental health care services. The research method used namely case study method, will then be described. This paper will conclude with some preliminary findings from the study which is due for completion in October 2009.
Why do you keep missing me? - A report into Deaf people's health and access to equal treatment
Steve Powell, Chief Executive, SignHealth
Deaf people have poorer health. Higher rates of learning disability, mental health issues, blindness, physical and other long standing conditions. They go to their family doctor more often, are referred to specialists at a higher rate than hearing people, yet lack the most basic access to health centres and the psychological therapies and other treatments available to hearing patients. This presentation will review the research work being carried out by SignHealth and discuss its positive relationship with the Department of Health but a rather more fractured relationship with the National Health Service in England and Wales.
Mental Health in the Deaf Black and Minority Ethnic Communities
Steve Emery & Silvana Lennon
Deaf Connections employed the consultant, Steve Emery, from Heriot-Watt University to carry out a small piece of work on mental health issues with the Deaf Black Minority Ethnic Community (BME) in Glasgow. This presentation is based on the report that is the result of the work undertaken from February to July 2008. The aim of the report is to provide evidence if there is a need for more work to develop an understanding of the mental health issues and wellbeing of Deaf people from the BME community in Glasgow. Further project work should consider the wider Deaf BME Community in Glasgow and also those of other cities of the UK. The focus needs to be on developing an understanding of what mental health issues mean to the Deaf BME community. This research report can form a basis from which to start. The Deaf BME community should be recognised as a unique community in its own right; as opposed to, for example, making comparisons with Deaf or other BME communities. Further research or project work should be led or run by member(s) of the Deaf BME community, who posses awareness of the everyday issues facing such communities.
Willie McDonald, Lecturer in Mental Health Nursing, School of Nursing, Midwifery and Community Health, Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU)
This presentation will provide a preliminary overview of a study exploring mental health services in Scotland for people who are Deaf or Deafblind. The aim of this study was to explore mental health services available to and accessed by Deaf and Deafblind people in Scotland and to provide an estimate of the prevalence of mental health service users in Scotland who are Deaf or Deafblind. Descriptive statistics were generated using the analytical tool SPSS. This presentation will discuss the challenges involved in collecting and analysing data and the need for more specific national statistics to be gathered, if these service users are to be effectively empowered and supported to meet their needs. The lack of clear information regarding prevalence, dedicated services and appropriate training suggest that the Government’s aim for improved quality of care for all remains more of an objective than a reality for Deaf and Deafblind mental health service users in Scotland.
Hazel Flynn, Head of Advocacy and Counselling at SignHealth & Jonathan Isaac, General Secretary of BSMHD
BSMHD and SignHealth have been advising the Department of Health Improving Access to Psychological Therapies Programme to ensure that the services being developed are accessible to deaf people, and the recently published Commissioning IAPT for the Whole Community Best Practice Guidance (Department of Health November 2009) includes key recommendations for the provision of services in sign language. The aim of the IAPT programme is to help the NHS to implement the NICE guidelines for anxiety and depression. NICE approves a range of psychological therapies including CBT, Interpersonal Psychotherapy, Counselling and Couples Therapy. For the Deaf community the IAPT programme is an opportunity for psychological therapies to be accessible in BSL in primary care for the first time.
Mary Griggs, Clinical Psychologist and Team Leader, Deaf Mental Health Team & Siobhan O’Donovan, Deaf Community Care Worker
This presentation will outline the Pacesetters Project, based in Bristol, and funded by the Department of Health through Bristol PCT which aims to address both access to health services and health inequality within the Deaf Community. The talk will highlight three ongoing strands to the project, sharing information about the processes that led to each being set up and will include our learning along the way. The projects have been formally evaluated and these results including a short piece of film will be shared.
Teresa Brasier & Trudi Collier, Counsellors, Lothian Deaf Counselling Service
Teresa and Trudi will present their experiences of the pilot phase including statistics, client case studies and personal and corporate learning from the 14-month project. They will explore the challenges faced in promoting counselling and ways in which a counselling service can reach out to the wider D/deaf community (through providing training and workshop opportunities). Teresa will outline how counselling can be the link for deafened clients between their personal silent world, the hearing world they feel they have left and the deaf world they may never have come across before and how essential collaborative working with statutory and voluntary agencies is to both staff and clients.
Launching the National Deaf CAMHS
Barry Wright, York Deaf Child and Family Service
The Deaf Children and Young People’s Service was formed on the 1 April 2009 following a successful pilot of 3 regional Deaf Child and Family services. It is funded by the National Commissioning Group. The service will employ a multi disciplinary staff team based in York, Dudley, London and Taunton, supporting outreach posts in Canterbury, Cambridge, Oxford, Newcastle and Manchester who will deliver a highly specialist service to deaf and hearing impaired children and young people who have complex mental health needs
Developing a Deaf mental health secure service for men; collaboration, partnership and culture change
Colin Doyle, Clinical Service Development Manager, St Andrew’s Healthcare & Roger Hewitt, Deaf Advisor to the project
Market analysis indicates that there is a gap in the market for secure psychiatric inpatient treatment for people who are Deaf. Early indications are that there are a number of people held in prison who are Deaf and would be better placed in High or Medium secure hospital treatment facilities, as well as those in High secure provision whose pathway to medium security is limited due a national shortage of specialist beds. Geographically most of the national low and medium secure beds are situated in the North West of the country which very often means that those accessing services are often placed at great distances from their families and relatives. The project aims to develop a fifteen bedded, purpose built medium secure Deaf service for men on the Northampton site providing those people who require, or commission detained treatment and care in the south of the country with the option of using St Andrew’s Healthcare’s clinical service.
Mary Griggs & Kevin Baker
In this presentation we outline the frustrating clinical experiences of Deaf and hearing staff with BSL skills and mental health training is that supporting this service user group in a meaningful way. We identify recent issues that have emerged which include the assessment of Mental Capacity and the assessment of BSL skills. Frequently, factors such as these influence how mental health workers to make clinical decisions, such as: supported living arrangements, the design of community-base rehabilitation programmes, suitability for therapy, decisions about type of, and adaptations to, therapy. We also focus on the formal assessment tools which form a significant part of the assessment and formulation of an individual’s difficulties. We describe the large gaps in formal assessment tools available in BSL which lead to an inequitable service for Deaf people. Finally, we consider the cultural validity of translating existing psychological assessments and suggest that there is a need for developing new assessments to address concepts of coping and wellness related to experiences of mental ill-health that may be specific to Deaf people.
Trudi Collier and Michelle Oldale, Course Tutors
In October 2008 24 students commenced studying the Certificate in Counselling Skills taught in BSL. The course has been developed by Inter-Psyche in partnership with BSMHD and SignHealth. The students will complete the Certificate in June 2009 and will then be moving on to the two year BACP Accredited Diploma in Integrative Counselling taught in BSL. The theory part of the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) Low Intensity curriculum will be included in the syllabus in Year One. This groundbreaking development will create a national pool of qualified deaf professionals and will contribute towards the goal of achieving truly accessible mental health services for the deaf community.
Usher and Life Crises
Tamsin Wengraf, Usher Information and Outreach Officer, Sense
This will be a presentation about people with Usher syndrome. Ushers face many different life crises throughout their lives as their sight or hearing worsens. This can affect on many Ushers’ well-being mentally and physically. I will be giving a brief introduction about what is Usher? E.g. different types, Retinitis Pigmentosa and balance. Every Usher goes through different life crises from their early years to old age. These life crises happen every few years especially when Usher’s sight or hearing deteriorates. Some Ushers will develop low self-esteem and low confidence. Other Ushers experience depression and suicide. Usher team from Sense did some research in partnership with 6 European countries about Ushers’ lifestyle (about maintaining their independence). People with Usher have priorities in their lives that include a fulfilling family and social life and access to work, culture and higher education. In this they are no different to the wider community. It seems from our survey that while many strive to lead a fulfilling life, they may have difficulty in maintaining a positive outlook, as they constantly need to adapt to change.
Independent Mental Health Advocacy for Deaf People
Frank Essery, Senior Advocate at SignHealth
Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA) is being made available under the Mental Health Act to help qualifying patients. Advocates will be subject to regulations and paid. Independence means that advocacy should, so far as is practicable, be provided by a person who is independent of any person who is professionally concerned with the patient’s medical treatment. IMHA will help a patient in obtaining information about and understanding his/her rights and how to exercise those rights. IMHA will have a duty to comply with any reasonable request to visit a patient received from a nearest relative, responsible clinician or approved mental health professional but the patient can decline support from the advocate. SignHealth are providing training opportunities for Deaf people to become IMHAs.
Lesley Kiddell-Spencer, Trustee & Simon Wilkinson-Blake, Chief Executive of the British Deaf Association
In this presentation the BDA will set out their strategy for supporting the deaf community. The BDA campaigns for Deaf people's right to use and to be educated in BSL, as well as to access information and services through it, believing this is the best way for Deaf people to take part in society, equally to hearing people.
Granville Tate & Paul Hann
The programme is being developed and full details will be available on the website: www.bsmhd.org.uk
BSMHD, Westwood Park, London Road, Little Horkesley, Colchester, CO6 4BS
Tel/SMS 07880 715427 Fax 07876 835857 info@bsmhd.org.uk www.bsmhd.org.uk
Registered Charity No. 1057135
Recommendations to improve access from Deaf and disabled people
Please visit SignHealth's website at http://www.signhealth.org.uk/index.php?pageID=71 for any further updates on this.
Malcolm Bruce also asked the Secretary of State for Health what provisions his Department will make to ensure that deaf and hearing-impaired people have access to the same information as hearing people in respect of the National Flu Helpline.
Dawn Primarolo stated that the Swine Flu Information helpline is automated. It offers recorded information but no interaction with call handlers and is not therefore accessible to deaf or hearing impaired people. However, deaf and hearing-impaired people may access the same information through websites and a British Sign Language version of the swine flu information leaflet, available from the NHS Choices and Directgov websites from Thursday 14 May and on DVD from Wednesday 20 May.
Please click here to view the BSL version of the Swine Flu information leaflet:
Can you bring your personal experience as the parent or carer of a deaf child or young person, to help NDCS shape the future for deaf children and their families?
NDCS is looking for several new Trustees, who are the parent or carer of a deaf child or young person.
We are looking for people who are passionate about our vision as a charity and who can see the big picture for NDCS as a whole. Our Trustees set our major goals, working always in the interests of our beneficiaries.
We are committed to enabling our Trustee Board to work as effectively as possible and all our Trustees receive induction and training and strong support for ongoing personal development.
As well as having first hand experience of childhood deafness as a parent or carer, our Trustees need to be able to identify the key issues for the charity, to have sound balanced judgement, the ability to think strategically, challenge constructively and then to make and own collective decisions as a team.
We value a wide range of skills and experience on our Trustee Board, and we would welcome applications from anyone who feels that they can add to this in a Trustee role.
In this recruitment, we would particularly welcome interest from people who have senior level practitioner experience of planning and delivering services for children and young people in an education, health or social care setting; or experience of international development, charity governance, fundraising in a large third sector organisation, or of human resources or organisational development.
We can offer you the satisfaction of contributing to the only national charity dedicated to creating a world without barriers for deaf children and young people. We support, advise, and campaign for, all deaf children and young people from birth until they reach independence, throughout the UK and internationally. Our core value is informed choice – helping children and families to make decisions which are right for them.
Our Trustees are volunteers and therefore unpaid; however reasonable expenses will be reimbursed. NDCS wishes to have a diverse Trustee Board and welcomes applications from people from all sections of the community, including people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
We would welcome the opportunity to have an informal discussion with you about being an NDCS Trustee. To do so please contact Sheila McClure, Head of Trustee Support, on 020 7014 1168 or via email at sheila.mcclure@ndcs.org.uk.
Alternatively, click for an application pack and application form.
The closing date is 5pm on 17 July 2009.
LAUNCH OF TEXT RELAY WEBSITE MARKS NEW LOOK TEXT COMMUNICATIONS
A new website, www.textrelay.org, designed to improve awareness of the options for communicating with people with hearing and speech impairments was launched today.
The new site aims to ensure that deaf, hearing impaired and speech impaired people, their families, friends and business contacts, are aware of all the communication options available.
It includes information on how to use the UK’s Text Relay service and highlights other options such as using the Internet to make a text relay call using VOIP as well as other online alternatives such as using a web cam, which is popular amongst British Sign Language (BSL) users. The site also includes content in BSL.
Lilian Lawson, OBE, SCoD Director, “The Scottish Council on Deafness welcomes the new website because it offers a one stop shop for text communication, thus making it easier for deaf people to find relevant information about text communication and equipment. This will enable deaf people to make right communication choices for their daily life.”The new website replaces the typetalk website and expands on the full range of relay options and other communications alternatives. It also marks the consolidation of UK text-based communications services under the new name – Text Relay.
The text relay service enables deaf, hearing impaired and speech impaired people to communicate directly using textphones or via a text relay assistant for text-to-voice and voice-to-text translation if they wish to communicate with someone using a standard telephone.
Text Relay is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There is no additional charge for the service and calls are charged at the customer’s standard rate with their telephone provider.
For assistance, contact Text Relay Customer Support on 18001 0800 7311 888.
Enquiries about this news release should be made to the BT Group Newsroom on its 24-hour number: 020 7356 5369. From outside the UK dial + 44 20 7356 5369. All news releases can be accessed at our web site: http://www.bt.com/newscentre
The Government intends to close the Hearing Aid Council and transfer the responsibility for registering Hearing Aid Dispensers to the Health Professions Council at the end of March 2010. The Department of Health has opened a consultation on the proposed draft legislation.
To read more about this and for your chance to comment, please click here or go to www.thehearingaidcouncil.org.uk to be taken to the Department of Health’s website.
The consultation closes July 7th 2010.
Hearing dog recipient Antony Sabin, aged 85, and hearing dog Branson, are taking on the Shakespeare's Way challenge. They aim to raise £35,000 for Hearing Dogs for Deaf People and for funds towards a new loop system at The Royal Shakespeare Theatre.
The route covers 146 miles between Stratford-upon-Avon and The Globe Theatre in London. Starting on 19 July 2009 after a special performance by acclaimed actor Patrick Stewart, Antony and Branson will begin walking 10 miles per day. A number of events are planned en route, before they will be welcomed at The Globe Theatre on 8 August, following a performance of Romeo and Juliet.
Visit Hearing Dogs for Deaf People's dedicated webpage to find out more about the walk and how you can take part or sponsor Antony
Those schools and organisations who register will have access to the new website via a special password and will learn a daily phrase in BSL. This in turn can then be taught to your pupils/group and everyone can receive a certificate to celebrate their new skills. By the end of Learn to Sign Week people should be able to communicate with each other using introductory BSL signs.
To register your interest, please fill out the booking form, available online at:
http://bda.org.uk/Booking_form-i-110.html
For any other queries about how to get involved, please contact Sarah Murray on 01772 259725 or email: sarahm@bda.org.uk
Please send information for the next Bulletin, by 12 June 2009, to:
UK Council on Deafness, Westwood Park, London Road, Little Horkesley, Colchester, CO6 4BS.
Email: info@deafcouncil.org.uk
Clare Long
UK Council on Deafness
Westwood Park
London Road
Little Horkesley
Colchester
CO6 4BS
Tel: 01206 274075
Text: 01206 274076
Fax: 01206 274077
Email: c.long@deafcouncil.org.uk
Website: www.deafcouncil.org.uk
Charity Number 1038448
CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: This email message and accompanying data are for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain information that is confidential. If you are not the intended recipient, you are notified that any use, dissemination, distribution or copying of this message or data is prohibited. If you received this email message in error, please notify us immediately at info@deafcouncil.org.uk and erase all copies of this message and attachments. Please note that UK Council on Deafness monitors incoming and outgoing mail for compliance with its Computer Policy. This will include scanning incoming emails to detect viruses. To read our Email policy in full go to http://www.deafcouncil.org.uk/abotsite.htm#6
You can find our vision, mission, aim and objectives. The history of the Council
and details of how we are governed, our board of trustees and how we are funded.
We have 102 member organisations listed in our Members Directory. There are many
benefits of membership and it is very easy to join.
We produce a monthly bulletin and a weekly parliamentary report. The latest
issues are available here along with an archive of recent issues.
Direct access to Press Releases, Contact details and Quick Facts for journalists.
We have a full diary of events planned for 2008.
We run Conferences and Seminars which anyone can attend, and Special Interest Forums for our members.
We produce a number of Publications of interest to those who work with deaf
people, including the Good Practice Guide, Setting up a Deaf Users' Forum and
Proceedings from our Conferences.
Whether in Brussels, Westminster or in the devolved countries and regions, wherever
decisions are being made that affect deaf people our members are lobbying for
change. Ongoing campaigns that we are working with our members on include the
Access to Communication in English, Promoting the use of British Sign Language
and Access to Health Services.
Whenever government consults on proposed new legislation that affects deaf people
we co-ordinate a joint response from our members.
We co-ordinate the national Deaf Awareness Week which was on 4th - 10th May 2009..
We are a national agent for the Department of Health Opportunities for Volunteering
Scheme and distribute grants each year to deaf organisations. Details of how
to apply and a list of the projects we are funding this year.
Organisations that do not qualify for membership can affiliate to the Council
in order to access our information and support. There are different sections
for Voluntary Organisations, the Public Sector and Corporate Sector. Affiliation
is very easy and there are lots of benefits.
Details of current vacancies at UK Council on Deafness
Contact us
UK Council on Deafness, Westwood Park, London Road, Little Horkesley, Colchester,
CO6 4BS.
Telephone 01206 274075
Text 01206 274076
Fax 01206 274077
Or send us an Email info@deafcouncil.org.uk
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