UK Council on Deafness

June 2008, Latest News

Call for Expressions of Interest

The Department for Children Schools and Families wishes to establish a British Sign Language Steering Group to oversee the recently announced proposal to fund an initiative to promote the use of BSL for families and in education.

The remit of the BSL Steering Group will be to assist in assessing bids received to carry out the work and advise the Department. Following the grant award the BSL Steering Group will regularly meet to receive monitoring reports and evaluation of the progress of the project from the contractor and from external evaluators. At the end of the project the BSL Steering Group will advise the Department on any national rollout of the work.

The BSL Steering Group will meet approximately every 2 months usually in London, for the duration of the project (expected to be 2 years). There will be more frequent meetings during the assessment of bids process with the first meeting likely to be in w/c 7 July and a further 2 meetings during the following weeks. Expenses will be paid. There will also be some assessment work to be carried out between meetings.

The BSL Steering Group will have about eight members, with approximately half from interested Government Departments and half from the deaf sector. The Department would like to have represented on the BSL Steering Group the following three areas of expertise/experience/knowledge: Deaf Education, the teaching of BSL and Parenting a Deaf Child.

Anyone interested in being on the BSL Steering Group, who meets one or more of these criteria should please express their interest by email to Jonathan Isaac at j.isaac@deafcouncil.org.uk , by Friday 20 June. Please note that members of the BSL Steering Group must not have a direct connection with any of the bids. Members will be required to complete a Conflict of Interest Declaration. The Department will appoint the BSL Steering Group by 1 July. Please note that there will be no feedback or appeals process for those not appointed.

Membership of the BSL Steering Group will be reviewed from time to time and may change to ensure that it has the appropriate skills.

Annual Deafness Conference November 2008 - Call for Papers

Abstracts of papers for consideration by the conference committee are requested on any subject relating to Deafness. Abstracts must be submitted by email attachment in text (.doc, .txt, .rtf) to j.isaac@deafcouncil.org.uk by 31 August 2008. The conference committee will select the most appropriate presentations and a decision will be made by 10 September. Full papers will be required by 31 October to give time for the communication support team to prepare for your presentation. Full details of the date and venue will be available shortly. There will also be an exhibition attached to the conference, organisations interested in booking exhibition space please contact Clare Long, the conference organiser, at c.long@deafcouncil.org.uk

British Sign Language Broadcasting Trust

The British Sign Language Broadcasting Trust (BSLBT) is being established as a response to new OFCOM requirements for BSL Sign Presented programming in place from January 2009. The trust will have three permanent members - Chair, Chief Executive and an Administration Assistant. Both the Chair and Chief Executive roles will be part time. A group of six Trustees will also be appointed made up with 50% from the Broadcast community and 50% from the Deaf community. Job descriptions have been approved and it is envisaged that the role of Chair will be advertised w/c 9 June 2008 with subsequent appointment by early July 2008. Full details in the attached Briefing Note.

Counsellor Training

SignHealth, the British Society for Mental Health and Deafness (BSMHD) and the RNID are working with Inter-Psyche to offer training for deaf people to become counsellors. The course is 3 years part time starting in October 2008. Year 1 – Certificate in Counselling Skills. Year 2 and 3 – Diploma in Counselling. The course will be delivered and assessed in BSL. For further details go to www.inter-psyche.co.uk where you will find more information and an application form to apply for the Certificate course in BSL. If you already have a Certificate in Counselling then contact Louise Stringer at Inter-Psyche for more information about the Diploma in Counselling. Interviews for the Certificate course will be in August and September.

Slough and District Deaf Centre

A new Sensory Centre in Slough, for deaf and blind people, has received the go-ahead. Slough and District Deaf Centre have been awarded Government money towards a brand-new building in Windmill Road, Slough, Berkshire UK. The centre, which will provide a range of services for deaf and blind people, is being developed in partnership with Slough Borough Council. Grants and loans totalling over £240,000 have been approved by Futurebuilders England. The building replaces the long-established Slough Deaf Centre on the same site, built by the deaf community and opened in 1960. The old building was demolished in December after falling into disrepair and it was decided that the replacement centre should not only be for deaf people but also meet the needs of blind people. The latest news comes after five years’ planning for a new centre. Construction is about to start at a cost of £430,000. Slough and District Deaf Centre’s chairperson Claire Kimble said: ”We are delighted with the news and are grateful to Futurebuilders England and Slough Borough Council for their support. We are confident the new centre will be the best of its kind in the country, something of which Slough can be proud.”. The new centre will provide a range of services including support groups, and recreational, spiritual and educational facilities for all age ranges.

Paediatric Audiology Today

A one day conference for Audiologists, Teachers of the Deaf and related professions being held at Mary Hare, Newbury, Berkshire. The conference is for anyone working with deaf children aged 0 to 19 years, including those with more complex needs, who needs to keep informed about the latest research and techniques for ensuring these young people have the best opportunities for learning to listen. Key Note Speakers include Professor Richard Seewald of University of Western Ontario, Dr Kevin Munro and Mary Hostler of University of Manchester, Paddy Boyle of Advanced Bionics and Melanie Ferguson from the Institute of Hearing Research. For further details go to www.maryhare.org.uk

New look for the UK Council on Deafness Bulletin

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 103 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 2007. 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 will be on 5th - 11th May 2008.

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.

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

"ACTION BY WORKING TOGETHER"