British Sign Language is a recognised language of England, Scotland and Wales, with its own grammar and cultural heritage. Having existed for hundreds of years, it is estimated that BSL is the preferred language for over 55,000 Deaf people in Britain. ​However, BSL is not only used by Deaf and hard of hearing people, but also people with disabilities, learning difficulties or speech disorders, broadening the benefits of learning the language.​  

After decades of campaigning by the Deaf and BSL-using communities, the BSL Act was finally passed in 2022, recognising the legitimacy of BSL and aiming to facilitate the use of BSL in public services and government communication.(1) Though this exists, Deaf people still face a large inequality in daily life, constantly facing barriers to education, employment and health. This raises the significance of spreading Deaf awareness, and this applies to this university. The University of Huddersfield is equipping the future workforce with the skills they need to support their communities, but not the Deaf and BSL community. 

This is especially significant for patient-facing students in medical and healthcare degrees, as this area is one of the biggest issues for the Deaf community. Research has shown that only 56% of Deaf people leave their NHS appointments having understood the information they were given about their health.1 This is a worryingly large number of people who could not access vital information. In some cases, the lack of accessibility and awareness have been life-threatening or fatal.  

We would like to call upon the University to look at providing BSL as an additional module, something that several universities across Britain already offers. Even just some knowledge of BSL can make a difference, and it has its benefits for non-Deaf people too. It can improve people’s communication skills, empathy, personal development, and broaden their career opportunities. It is undoubtedly a useful skill to have on students’ CVs, so why not make it easier for students to access learning the language! 

Even if you yourself don’t intend to learn BSL, if you agree please show some support for this idea so that it can be made a reality! 

 

​​See below some examples of universities that have BSL as an additional module:​ 

• ​​University of Manchester​ 

• ​​Keele University​ 

• ​​University of Sheffield​ 

• ​​Manchester Metropolitan University​ 

• ​​University of Leeds​ 

• ​​University of Sussex​ 

• ​​University of Exeter​ 

• ​​University College London​ 

• ​​University of Reading​ 

​​& many more (Durham, Aberystwyth, Edinburgh & Imperial, etc.,)​ 

 

(1) Sign Health. (2025). Still Ignored: The Fight for Accessible Healthcare. https://signhealth.org.uk/resources/still-ignored-the-fight-for-accessible-healthcare/