Join the 40,000 people who have committed to including deaf people and people with hearing loss in the conversation. Sign up to receive our free simple British Sign Language (BSL) videos and communications tips.
Ignored in public
From visiting the shops to catching public transport, a quarter of the deaf people and people with hearing loss we’ve surveyed said they are ignored in public.
Our research (PDF 2mb) shows the enormous impact this has on the 18 million deaf people and people with hearing loss in the UK.
Sarah, 24, is deaf and works as an audiologist in Erith. Public attitudes towards her hearing impact her life on a daily basis:
“Someone asked for directions. I said, ‘sorry I did not hear everything you said as I am deaf’, and they said, ‘oh, no worries, it doesn’t matter’ and walked away.
This happens so often. Yes, I am deaf and will sometimes miss things. People are not always aware of how to communicate with a deaf person.” Read Sarah’s full story.
But there’s cause for hope. The people we surveyed said they want to communicate with deaf people and people with hearing loss, but they’re worried about getting it wrong.
With these simple BSL videos and advice, we can all get it right. Sign up to learn BSL and communication tips today.
Show ‘It does matter’
Read more in-depth
- Read our It Does Matter report PDF for an in-depth look at the experiences our communities face
- We also have a report specifically focused on the experiences of people who use British Sign Language (BSL).
- Explore more stories from our communities.