What we do

Communication professionals

Aim: To deliver high-quality communication support for people who are deaf.
Impact: In the past year, we co-ordinated the delivery of 19,544 communication assignments: 17,676 BSL/English interpreting assignments and 1,868 other communication support assignments for people whose first language is English. This enables people who are deaf to participate in work meetings, to attend doctor or hospital appointments, and to be able to communicate on an equal basis in many other vital or every day services. Our aim was to deliver 21,000 assignments, but the shortfall was partly due to the ongoing shortage of communication professionals available to deliver the support needed. We now have 549 registered from across the UK who have signed up to work with us.

Our Communication Services were awarded the quality standard ISO 9001:2000 by the British Standards Institute (BSI), the world's most established quality framework.

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Aim: To increase the quantity and quality of communication professionals available to people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Impact: Our interpreter development work has resulted in another 14 new interpreters joining the professional register, enabling more people who are deaf or hard of hearing to access vital and everyday services. Eleven other interpreters were supported to rise to higher levels within the register. We ran eight British Sign Language (BSL) courses, at Levels 3 and 4, with more than 60 students improving their signing skills to the highest levels. All our students work in some capacity with children or adults who are deaf, and some of our students are themselves deaf.

See our impact in Scotland.

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