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316 items (0 unread) in 9 feeds
Grumpy Old Deafies
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Parliament: Police Interrogation: Speech Impaired
Posted: April 30th, 2008, 10:00pm BST
Ann Winterton (Congleton, Conservative) To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what instructions are issued on the procedure and protocol which a police officer must follow in (a) questioning and (b) physically taking hold of a person with a speech impediment observed to be under the influence of neither drugs nor alcohol, when the officer cannot understand what the suspect is saying. Tony McNulty (Minister of State (Security, Counter-terrorism, Crime and Policing), Home Office; Harrow East, Labour) holding answer 24 April 2008 The Code of Practice for the detention, treatment and questioning of persons by police officers (Code C) issued under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984, provides that if a ... -
Parliament: Access to Work Scheme, Marketing
Posted: April 30th, 2008, 12:17am BST
John Barrett (Shadow Minister, International Development; Edinburgh West, Liberal Democrat) To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his Department is doing to publicise Access to Work. Stephen Timms (Minister of State (Employment and Welfare Reform), Department for Work and Pensions; East Ham, Labour) The Access to Work national delivery team is currently implementing an internal marketing strategy to ensure that all Jobcentre staff involved with disabled customers are fully briefed on the Access to Work programme. This will cover the aims of the programme, eligibility criteria and the application process. The programme is also being promoted through presentations and exhibitions, and through close working partnerships developed with the major disability groups such as the ... -
Deaf BSL Gorilla
Posted: April 29th, 2008, 5:05pm BST
We may be grumpy, but we still wish there was more stuff on YouTube etc like this bloke's video: More BSL funnies, please! Know of any? Tell us! ... -
Poor little Deaf children
Posted: April 28th, 2008, 8:50pm BST
==== This is why deaf organisations have a lot to answer for... ==== The scene: My kitchen, this evening. Doorbell rings. C (my partner): There's someone at the door. [goes to front door, opens it] Through the glass door, I (Jen) can see three people on the doorstep; one of whom is wearing a weird bib thing (think netball) with "NDCS" on it. I bid a hasty retreat to the back garden to throw breadcrumbs out for the birds. A minute later, C appears and persuades me to go to the door. I go into the hall, to find NDCS Bib Man stroking our dog, who is lying across the doorway, with two very smart looking women ... -
Parliament: Deaf Telephone Access to the Dept of Children, Schools and Families
Posted: April 24th, 2008, 3:04pm BST
Andy Reed (Loughborough, Labour) To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what provision is made for deaf people to access services provided by his Department through call centres. Kevin Brennan (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Children, Schools and Families; Cardiff West, Labour) The Department for Children, Schools and Families operates a telephone enquiry service that offers a textphone/minicom service for deaf people. We also accept enquiries by email, fax and letter. DCSF periodically contracts with suppliers to provide telephone helpline services to the public, usually in support of information campaigns; in such instances our contract stipulates that a textphone service should be provided. Source: Parliament: Deaf Telephone Access to the Dept of Business, ... -
Parliament: Deaf Telephone Access to the Dept of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Posted: April 24th, 2008, 2:53pm BST
Andy Reed (Loughborough, Labour) To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what provision is made for deaf people to access services provided by his Department through call centres. Gareth Thomas (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for International Development; Harrow West, Labour) The Department provides access to its services for deaf people via a minicom number in its Central Enquiry Unit. The Arbitration and Conciliation Service (ACAS) and Companies House, who are Executive Agencies of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, also provide access via minicom numbers. Source: Hansard They Work For You See also: Parliament: Deaf Telephone Access to the Dept of Innovation, Universities & Skills ... -
Northern Ireland Assembly: Teacher-Training Provision
Posted: April 23rd, 2008, 11:40pm BST
Pat Ramsey (Social Democratic and Labour Party) 4. asked the Minister of Education to detail the provision for training teachers of deaf pupils. (AQO 3017/08) Caitriona Ruane (Sinn Féin) Tríd is tríd, déanann an oilúint múinteorí thosaigh múinteoirí atá cáilithe go ginearálta. Ach aithníonn an oilúint i riachtanais speisialta oideachais riachtanais speisialta daltaí agus díríonn sí ar straitéisí le riar ar na riachtanais sin. Initial teacher training produces generally qualified teachers. However, training in special educational needs in all courses covers the recognition of pupils’ special needs and focuses on strategies to meet those needs. Some student teachers choose a special-educational-needs-specific option during their training programme, and some spend part of their teaching practice in special schools. During ... -
Parliament: British Coal Compensation
Posted: April 22nd, 2008, 11:06pm BST
Lord Lofthouse of Pontefract (Labour) Whether, in the light of the report of the Legal Services Ombudsman for England and Wales in the cases of Dennis Rimmer and Norman Dickinson, retired miners whose British Coal industrial deafness claims were dealt with by Beresford's Panel Solicitors Scheme, they will request reports from the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Legal Complaints Service concerning the other 6,796 claimants whose cases were sold by Beresford's to its panel of 10 firms of solicitors between June 2002 and March 2004. Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Ministry of Justice; Labour) Reports by the ombudsman on individual cases are confidential to the parties concerned. It would not be appropriate for ... -
Competition: Win Four Deaf Yorkshiremen on dvd! (And you can buy the dvd too ..)
Posted: April 21st, 2008, 12:40pm BST
Remember Four Deaf Yorkshiremen on last year? It was viewed 40,000 times, and also nominated for 'Best UK film' at Deaffest 2007. The team behind the film are trying to raise some money to make a second film to be filmed this summer. To do this, they've produced a special edition dvd, which includes extra features: The original film with subtitles The film without subtitles (so you can watch in PURE BSL!) The original version (extra 3 minutes!!) Deleted scenes (the jokes that got cut) Photo gallery - photos of the filming Trailer for the film DVD menu The DVD also comes with two exclusive photos of the 'Four Deaf Yorkshiremen'. ... -
David Lodge: Deaf Sentence (forthcoming book)
Posted: April 20th, 2008, 4:15am BST
David Lodge was an author I came across in the early 1990s, when I was a student at the University of Birmingham. He was once a lecturer there, and my flatmate who studied English, happened to have one of his books which I took an interest in. Subsequently became one of my favourite authors, especially for his sense of humour and ability to see irony. I met Lodge at the Hay Festival a couple of years ago (where the above picture was taken). This is part of what I wrote afterwards: Lodge is actually hard of hearing, and was conscious of not being able to pick ... -
Sign Language Interpreters at a High Ergonomic Risk
Posted: April 19th, 2008, 11:16am BST
Science Daily reports of research that sign language interpreting comes with a high risk from RSI (or similar), following research from RIT’s Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering: The research indicates that interpreting causes more physical stress to the extremities than high-risk tasks conducted in industrial settings, including assembly line work. It also found a direct link between an increase in the mental and cognitive stress of the interpreter and an increase in the risk of musculoskeletal injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome and tendonitis. And goes onto state: “The impact of repetitive stress in industrial and office settings has been well documented, but there ... -
Geeky device to alert you to goings on in your home
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 4:04pm BST
Alert Me is a new UK start up, which has a product right deaf people's street, and looks cool. Its a product based on the back of your wifi signal in your home, and it will alert you via SMS or via a website, the status of various sensors including the doorbell, alarm detector, smoke detector and even door and window sensors. Check this page out. What's more it actually looks totally cool, works with modern technology and its not something that looks as if its dropped out of a social services department storeroom cupboard and has been sitting there since the 1970s. Its excellent that mainstream manufacturers have built something that we can ... -
Behind the Scenes: Deafinitely Theatre's Lipsticks & Lollipops
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 3:41pm BST
Good to see Deafinitely Theatre making use of and embracing Web 2.0 as a platform for promotion, and it ups my estimation in progression stakes. You can also see a full list of tour dates on Upcoming. They also have a Facebook group, which includes some pre-production photographs.... -
Coming soon: Hybrid Implant - Hearing Aid
Posted: April 17th, 2008, 3:54pm BST
It seems a hybrid implant / hearing aid is currently being tested. Part hearing aid part implant, which is aimed at hard of hearing people with some residual hearing but too much hearing to be considered a candidate for a CI. Since the implant threshold is much lower now (I have known people who have identified as HoH with implants); this would encompass a much broader spectrum of people. This hybrid device claims to insert a thin wire, alongside or next to natural nerves: The implant is specifically designed with a thin electrode to occupy less space in the inner ear. It is implanted by special surgical techniques to preserve natural hearing. If you were hard of ... -
More ASL Pepsi advertising
Posted: April 16th, 2008, 11:58am BST
(I'm not sure why this one done by Keith Wann and Justin Callaway didn't seem to get as much attention as the other one? Perhaps they're meant to link together or something. I don't know how USA advertising works?) Anyway - always good to see more ASL out there in the big wide world :o) Jen ... -
Problems with DeafRead
Posted: April 14th, 2008, 11:20pm BST
Earlier Tayler posted something about solutions for DeafRead. I've got my own thoughts on this, but its not quite the subject of this post. I've stopped using DeafRead, because it does not work for me and its having implications on the free flow of content. Since most of our UK readership won't know what it is, DeafRead is a moderated or filtered aggregator. The deal is best stuff (its subjective) goes on the front page. Anything else, including not deaf related content / not of mainstream interest / contains adult content and it gets pushed. Guidelines here. As far as I'm aware, its moderated solely by humans living in North America, yet has some international reach. Am ... -
Hilarious!
Posted: April 4th, 2008, 2:17am BST
Go here. Says it all. Wonder if it was for a catalogue of condoms, to stop you having deaf babies ("RNID does not support the selection of a deaf embryo for IVF implantation where a hearing embryo is available")? And to think they churn ~£50 million smackers per annum, to look after us and again: to promote and encourage the prevention and mitigation of deafness and the better treatment, education, training, employment and welfare of people who are deaf or hard of hearing .... to promote, safeguard and protect the welfare of such people You must be prevented, but at the same time let all those 100k salaries care for your welfare! We pretend to ... -
Parliament: Deaf Communities & Human Fertilisation & Embryology Bill
Posted: April 3rd, 2008, 11:41am BST
Janet Anderson (Rossendale & Darwen, Labour) To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with representatives of deaf communities on provisions in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill. Dawn Primarolo (Minister of State (Public Health), Department of Health) Officials at the Department have had contact with the Royal National Institute for the Deaf, the British Deaf Association, Islington Deaf Campaign and the Stop Eugenics group. Communication with these groups is ongoing. Source: Hansard They Work For You... -
Parliament: Deaf Telephone Access to the Dept of Innovation, Universities & Skills
Posted: April 2nd, 2008, 12:06pm BST
Andy Reed is at it again, with his telephone questions: Andy Reed (Loughborough, Labour) To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what provision is made for deaf people to access services provided by his Department through call centres. David Lammy (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills) The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills has its telephone enquiry service provided as a shared service by the Department for Children Schools and Families. The Department for Children, Schools and Families' telephone inquiry service offers a textphone/minicom service for deaf people. They also accept inquiries by email, fax and letter. On information campaigns—such as provision of Student Finance—our advertising directs people to our ... -
Summary of the Meeting at the Department of Health
Posted: April 1st, 2008, 5:02pm BST
There is a post on Stop Eugenics, of a summary of the meeting at the Department of Health on 19 March 2008, to discuss concerns over clause 14(4)(9). This summary is available in both English and BSL. A direct link to the post can be found here....