Hearing impaired in England?

Are any other Americans in this boat?

Before I moved here, I had no real idea of what a horrible place England can be for the hearing impaired.  I have experienced and witnessed the deaf treated with such derision; it's shocking!  Not to mention entirely unacceptable.

I have learned over the past few months just how much of my negative experience has been tied to my hearing, and I would like to at least commiserate with others regarding their experience.  In addition, I am hoping to organise some pushes for change, especially in government office dealings with the hearing impaired public.

What in particular have you found frustrating? 

My mother works for a governement building and they are taught sign language in some environments to deal with the hearing impaired.

I am not deaf, but have been an interpreter in the past (here in the States) and have many deaf/HI friends. I actually hardly ever saw any deaf people out where I was in London or even France or Spain. I'm not sure why (just fewer deaf overall?) but I suspect lack of awareness is to blame for the antiquated attitudes. Even in general, I noticed that many places I went in Europe/UK don't have wheelchair access ramps on the sidewalks. Are there any famous deaf figures in the UK? I mean, here, we've got Marlee Matlin who has brought deaf awareness to the main stream through her acting. There are others, too, of course, but she is the most current and widely known.

Just curious, do you sign? Also, do they have legal requirements for interpreters when necessary over there? I was in HS when they finally legislated (because of a deaf friend of mine going to court about it) that extra-curricular activities done through the public school must be accessible to all. Before that, I actually interpreted for my friend at her JV and V basketball practices and games for the entire season. That was quite the experience for a 16 yo!

Aww, I can't imagine how difficult that must be.

We've got the Deaf Communication Project and Highland Deaf Centre, which is trying to improve hearing-non hearing relations in the workplace,trying to get more public exposure, trying to improve communications, etc.  

I'm on my third module of my full Level 1 Certification in British Sign Language.  Its amazing how different the Scottish and English and Irish signs are- and I can imagine much different to American signs!.  I can pretty much carry on a pretty full conversation now about things like my house, pets, hobbies, interests, weather, work, my family, places of interests, etc but there is still much to learn!

Have you checked with your NHS PCT to see if they can offer any support services or point you in the right direction to support services?  

Phatbeetle- is this something you're doing online? Or in a class? I've looked at the Videojug (ha!) videos online to learn some Brit sign language. Using both hands for the alphabet is the hardest thing for me!

Phatbeetle- is this something you're doing online? Or in a class? I've looked at the Videojug (ha!) videos online to learn some Brit sign language. Using both hands for the alphabet is the hardest thing for me!

In a class. I have a great tutor, she's so patient with us.  The exams are tough though!!!! 

I like the two hands, it makes a lot of sense because your vowels are on your five fingers and you make the shapes of the other letters. The only one to not make any sense is H. 

I am not deaf.  I tend to see quite a few deaf/HI (or people with them signing) near my office because there is a big organization nearby.

http://bda.org.uk/

I am not sure what kind of problems you have had, but maybe this organization can help.  The people I have seen out and about at local shops, restaurants and bars, seem to be getting the same service as others.

Good luck!

On a more positive note, much has improved for the deaf and hard-of-hearing in Britain in some respects in more recent years.  Teletext subtitles on TV started in the 1970s for a few selected shows, but have really been extended considerably since about the late 1980s.  Many of the DTT stations which have multiple repeat showings of programs do a version with a BSL interpreter superimposed in the corner of the screen.

Increasingly, public telephone booths and places with counter intercoms such as banks and post offices now also have induction-loop systems for hearing aids.

On a more positive note, much has improved for the deaf and hard-of-hearing in Britain in some respects in more recent years. 

Yes..such as guide dogs for the deaf.  They are amazing to watch..

ETA: Sorry, I meant Hearing Dogs For The Deaf

http://www.hearingdogs.org.uk/about_history.php

One question though- why do they still have actual people signing on tv shows in Britain? Wouldn't captioning be MUCH more efficient and cheaper and just plain nicer to watch shows? It's like having someone standing in front of the tv screen when I see those shows....

I am a research scientist that studies hearing impairment (causes, treatments, and design of aids). I am preparing to move to the UK because the financial support for this type of research in the UK is unmatched. There seems to be a similar number of people studying hearing impairment in the UK as there are in the US (despite the difference in population). Recently the UK approved NHS to prescribe and pay for cochlear implants for both the left and right ears. Because of the surgery required for a cochlear implant these devices are extremely expensive (over 30,000 USD). To my knowledge no other health care system (including US insurance companies) pays for two cochlear implants. The lack of community based support seems surprising to me given these other types of support. I am not familiar enough with the UK system to understand how basic research is applied to the real world. There is currently a lot of research going on in the UK with how to modify the acoustics in classrooms to benefit the hearing impaired. It would be a real shame if the research is being funded, but the results are not implemented.

My boyfriend has done some work with this organization: http://www.rnid.org.uk/?gclid=CIbnx7Snw5gCFQkzawoduB5C0g

I bet they would be a good place to start if you wanted to take some action.

I remember my mother mentioning something about vision phones being brought into goverment buildings within receptions. 

Where you make a phone call and appear on a screen so that you can see the signer...but obviously that only works if you have one yourself at home....and I should imagine email has diluted the popularity of that one.

One question though- why do they still have actual people signing on tv shows in Britain?

I really like it! I think its interesting have someone actually signing because BSL and the English language don't always go together. I would imagine it works the same with ASL?
 Like instead of saying "Where are you from?" you sign "You from where?" and instead of "I'm going on a trip to America" you sign "I going trip America".   Yes, they mean the same thing, but when you read it or sign it, you process it differently- so its easier to actually get the sign then to quickly read. My deaf friend is actually asking for proof reading all the time because she knows she misses all those words, writing like she signs instead of the english language. That's what I think anyways.   *I'm not deaf or hearing impaired, so I don't know what would work better*

I had a brilliant Pearl Jam clip where they had a lady signing on stage to Eddie Vedders lyrics...I thought that was rather cool.