Ten years ago, we launched our Subtitle It! campaign with a simple but powerful demand – to make media and culture accessible for people who are deaf or have hearing loss.
As online streaming services became more mainstream, deaf people and people with hearing loss were an afterthought, with 80% of regulated UK on-demand services not providing subtitles. The lack of legal obligation meant that there were no consequences for excluding people who are deaf or have hearing loss.
We made it clear that the Government needed to keep up with technology and introduce a legal framework to make accessibility a priority for on-demand programme service providers.
Our Progress on Pause survey in 2015 found that:
87% of people with hearing loss started to watch a programme on-demand and found it had no subtitles.
71% of people with hearing loss said they felt they missed out on, or were left out of, conversations with friends or family due to the lack of subtitles on on-demand services.
Our Subtitle It! campaign set out to change that – and together, we made it happen.
To everyone who shared their story, signed a petition, joined a campaign action, or stood alongside us – this anniversary belongs to you.
What we’ve achieved together
Over the past decade, thanks to campaigners, supporters and partners, real progress has been made:
- The government passed the Media Act 2024, which will make minimum quotas for subtitles and signing a legal requirement on on-demand services – helping ensure equal access to TV for deaf people and those with hearing loss.
- As a result of the legislation, on-demand providers will have to ensure that 5% of their catalogue of programming is available in sign language. This will create more choice for deaf British Sign Language (BSL) users who want to watch shows in BSL.
- We have supported efforts to improve deaf representation on screen.
- Broadcasters and streaming platforms have increased subtitled content, making news, learning and entertainment more inclusive.
- We have pushed the regulator Ofcom to improve Best Practice Guidelines on how subtitles and signing are provided to improve quality.
- Policymakers and industry leaders have started to treat subtitles as a right, not an optional extra.
- Public awareness has grown, with accessibility recognised as central to inclusion.
- In response to a mass-subtitle outage on Channel 4 on 2022, Ofcom told broadcasters they must prepare effective communication in case of service interruption.
- Ofcom’s Television and on-demand programme services: Access services report for January to December 2024, found that 94.7% of on-demand providers (who voluntarily reported their access service provision) provided subtitles.
These changes didn’t happen overnight. They were won through support, joint working, sharing lived experiences, and collective action.
A decade to celebrate and reflect
As we celebrate 10 years of Subtitle It!, we’re proud of how far we’ve come – but we’re also clear that the work isn’t done. Subtitles are still missing from many areas, such as live events, breaking news, on-demand platforms and platform subscriptions.
Together, we’ve proven change is possible. We will keep pushing until accessibility is built in everywhere, for everyone.
We know that the fight is not over – and that people who are deaf and have hearing loss continue to face barriers accessing content where subtitles are not available. We will continue to advocate for our audiences to ensure that both subtitling and signed content remain a priority.