Subtitles
- 9/10 of respondents to our Subtitle It Survey (May 2023) with hearing loss and who were deaf usually or always use subtitles when watching TV [1].
- 97% of respondents told us they tried to watch a programme and found there were no subtitles [1].
Access to Services
- People who are deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus experience issues accessing or communicating with essential everyday services, in particular utilities companies, supermarkets, and essential retail [2].
Interpreter Provision
- In the UK there are currently around 1500 registered sign language interpreters. With up to 87,000 deaf BSL users in the UK, that’s roughly only 1 interpreter for every 60 deaf BSL users [3].
Sources
[1] Find out more about subtitles in the RNID Subtitle It Report, 2023 (PDF, 3MB).
[2] Read a report on the impact of Covid-19 on deaf people and those with hearing loss (PDF, 141KB)
[3] (1) Visit the NRCPD listing for registered sign language interpreters.
[3] (2) Find out more about language professionals in Scotland working with the deaf community.