RNID Guidelines for DDA Speak Louder than Words - Part 2

Here's Part One

6. Establish clear health and safety procedures

Any warning signal such as a fire alarm, needs to be visual as well, such as with a flashing light.

All health and safety procedures must be written in plain English and as far as possible, illustrated as well. Emergency exits should be clearly marked. This would obviously be beneficial to all customers and staff and not just those who are deaf or hard of hearing.

7. Meet requests for communication support whenever possible

Communication support for deaf people does not always necessitate a sign language interpreter. There is a range of communication support available that organisations can offer:
- Video interpreting: Anyone with access to a videophone and ISDN2 Line can book a video interpreter at very short notice to translate sign language into English.
- Electronic Notetakers: They type a summary of what is being said on a computer. This information appears on a screen in front of the deaf person who can then read it.
- Speech-to-text reporter: They offer a full word-for-word report of what is being said using a system similar to a Stenograph.

The RNID Information Line can give further advice on the full range of communication support available and the best option in a given situation.

8. Be aware of RNID Typetalk, the telephone relay service funded by BT, to give a choice of telephone access

RNID Typetalk provides a free service which links deaf or hard of hearing person using a textphone to a hearing person using an ordinary phone.

A highly trained RNID Typetalk Operator relays the textphone user's typed message in speech to the hearing person and types what is said back to the textphone user.

Ordinary phone users dial direct using the 18002 prefix before the number of the person they would like to speak to and RNID Typetalk Operator joins the line to relay the conversation.

For further information on Typetalk, how to join for free and how to obtain a textphone, please e-mail: helpline@rnid-typetalk.org.uk, call 0800 500 888 (textphone), 0800 7311 888 (voice) or visit the Typetalk website: www.rnid-typetalk.org.uk/

9. Continuously consult deaf people about the quality and extent of the organisation's deaf awareness

RNID can undertake a poll amongst staff and customers on behalf of an organisation. Alternatively, RNID can provide a template of survey questions for organisations to carry out the poll themselves.

10. Ensure information about employment opportunities is readily available and fully accessible

Employers should ensure that recruitment opportunities are advertised with an e-mail and well as a telephone number. In addition, employers could look to target deaf people specifically by placing jobs on http://groups.yahoo.com/group/deaf-uk-jobs/

11. Provide communication support when being interviewed for a job

Under the Access to Work programme, deaf people can apply for free communication support when being interviewed for a job. Deaf applicants apply for it under this government funding scheme run by Jobcentre Plus. It provides financial assistance towards the extra costs of employing someone with a disability. It is available to unemployed, employed and self-employed people and can apply to any job, full-time or part-time, permanent or temporary.

12. Provide supervision and support from a line manager who is deaf aware

RNID offers a free 'Don't Panic Pack' giving employers advice on recruiting and developing deaf and hard of hearing employees. This gives straight-forward and practical advice with case studies and contact details of useful organisations.

Information with advice and information for employers can also be downloaded from http://www.rnid.org.uk/html/factsheets/emp_deaf_people
_and_work_a_guide_for_employers.htm

RNID offers free deaf and disability awareness training to small businesses. This helps ensure that staff do not inadvertently discriminate against disabled colleagues and customers due to misunderstandings of what disability is. It also encourages managers to think for themselves what they could individually do to make their area of work more accessible.

13. Equal access to professional development and promotion opportunities

Applications for promotion should be encouraged for all members of staff and any adverts should be easily accessible to all.

If organisations would like to gauge how close they are to meeting deaf-aware requirements, RNID can assess them on all the above points for only £500. Once an organisation has acted on all the recommendations RNID makes, they could be eligible for a Louder than Words kitemark which, at a glance, tells the UK's nine million deaf and hard of hearing people that their experience of the organisation will be a positive one.

For further information please call 0207 296 8060 (voice and textphone) or e-mail training.services@rnid.org.uk. www.rnid.org.uk

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