BSL-102 Individual

Senedd Cymru | Welsh Parliament

Bil Aelod Arfaethedig – Mark Isherwood AS | Proposed Member Bill - Mark Isherwood MS

Datblygu'r Bil Iaith Arwyddion Prydain (BSL) (Cymru) | Development of the British Sign Language (BSL) (Wales) Bill

Ymateb gan: Unigolyn | Evidence from: Individual

The need for legislation

The British Sign Language Act 2022 requires the UK Government to issue guidance about the promotion and facilitation of the use of British Sign Language (BSL). This however only applies in England and not to the Welsh Government or public bodies in Wales such as councils or the NHS.  The British Sign Language (BSL) (Wales) Bill aims to place equivalent specific duties on the Welsh Government and public bodies in Wales.

Question 1: Do you think there is a need for this legislation? Please provide reasons for your answer.

Yes, because without legislation nothing appears to change for the better. Access to education is not equitable (classes are in spoken language and interpreted by people who are not fluent in BSL - and exams are conducted through the medium of written Welsh or English). This results in a cycle of inequality and marginalisation. Teachers of the deaf are usually hearing and are not fluent in BSL, and there are very few deaf health professionals  - both of which helps presents barriers to deaf people and perpetuates inequality.

Question 2: Do you agree or disagree with the goals that the Bill seeks to achieve? Please provide reasons for your answer.

Yes. That public institutions give equal status to BSL is a bear minimum.

British Sign Language

Question 3: Do you agree that the Bill should include proposals to promote and facilitate the use of BSL and its tactile forms?

Yes

Question 4: Do you agree that the Bill should support the various Welsh regional dialects of BSL?

Yes

Question 5: Do you think that the term ‘BSL users’ should be replaced with ‘BSL signers’, recognising that BSL is a language which includes both deaf and hearing signers? Please provide reasons for your answer.

Don't know.

There is no obvious distinction between user and signer. Users and signers could be either deaf or hearing.

Question 6: Do you think that the term ‘deaf BSL signers’ can be used when referring to BSL users/signers who are medically or audiologically deaf?  Please provide reasons for your answer.

Don't know.

I think that this distracts us from the point that BSL should have equal status to Welsh or English. Two points:

1) It should be up to the individual to decide whether they are deaf enough to find BSL helpful or not. This should not be the decision of a hearing professional's judgement.

2) We don't distinguish between 'properly' Welsh, Welsh speakers or 'properly' English, English speakers. We don't need professional certification of our mother tongue to be considered Welsh or English enough. We simply offer both languages, and now we should offer three.

Deaf Communities

Question 7: Do you agree or disagree that deaf communities:

a) currently have a voice in the design and delivery of the public services that they use? Please tick the answer that most applies and provide any comments.

Strongly disagree.

If they had, legislation would have happened a long time ago and there would be no barriers to accessing equal education and equal healthcare - and the number of deaf professionals in education and health would reflect the proportion in the community.

b) should have a formalised voice in the design and delivery of the public services that they use, especially ones targeted at deaf people. Please tick the answer that most applies and provide any comments.

Strongly agree.

Because deaf people know what they need more than anyone else. Also, the very word 'service' suggests that the people providing it are the servants and the people receiving it know what they want.

Question 8: Are there any specific communication methods used by deaf people that you would like the Bill to reference/include?

Organisations need to be familiar with and able to provide video call BSL interpretation services for when interpreters can not be present in person. A strong focus should be placed on promoting BSL interpretation as a career as we have too few at present.

Barriers that exist for deaf people

Question 9: What do you believe are the main barriers that currently exist for deaf people and/or their families in the following areas. Please tick all that apply and provide information/examples on each area:

Education; Health; Social Care.

Establishing a BSL Commissioner for Wales

The Bill proposes to establish a BSL Commissioner who would promote and facilitate the use of BSL, and would have the same powers as other minority language Commissioners such as in the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011.

Question 10: Do you agree or disagree with the proposal to establish a BSL Commissioner for Wales, and, do you have any different suggestions or alternatives? Please provide reasons for your answer.

Yes

Question 11: The proposed remit of the Commissioner would be to:

§ formulate BSL standards;

§ establish a BSL Advisory Panel;

§ produce reports every 5 years in BSL, Welsh and English on the position of BSL in that period;

§ provide guidance and a process for public bodies to promote and facilitate BSL in their respective domains;

§ establish a procedure for the investigation of complaints.

Do you agree with the proposed remit of the Commissioner, and are there any other provisions you would like to include in the Commissioner’s remit? Please provide reasons for your answer.

Yes, but the main input and the main decision-makers should be from the deaf community

Question 12: Do you agree that the BSL Commissioner and the BSL Advisory Panel members should be fluent users/signers?

Yes

Question 13: Do you think that the proposed BSL Commissioner and Advisory Panel should prioritise the following. Please tick all that apply and provide reasons for your answer.

Enabling deaf users/signers to lead the development of policies and implementation of services for BSL users/signers; Early years language support for deaf children and their families; Improving BSL provision in education; Access to interpreters in public services. These points work together as a whole.

On the point of language support for children and their families, this should be local and government funded. My family had to travel long distances and pay hundreds of pounds that we couldn't afford in order to learn BSL and provide my deaf grandson with language from the outset.

Question 14: Do you agree or disagree with the proposal to place a duty on the Welsh Government to prepare and publish an annual BSL report? Please provide reasons for your answer.

Yes.

I can't see any other way of monitoring its progress towards fulfilling its duties.

Question 15: Are there any other issues that you would like to raise about the Bill and the accompanying Explanatory Memorandum?

With regard to the production of health videos in BSL, care should be taken to reinforce the legal concept of medical consent so that deaf people know that they have options, can accept or decline any offer of medical care (test, examinations, procedures or treatments) and that their decision will be respected and supported. This includes making detailed evidence-based information about all the options available in BSL. I would like to see NICE guidance in BSL forms to as this would become an invaluable reference point for patients and for deaf medical students alike.