Overview
- Research released to mark Deaf Awareness Week reports that almost a quarter of the public would steer clear of a deaf person if they expected communication to be hard.
- The survey finds many people hold back out of uncertainty, with 32% worrying about saying the wrong thing and 43% fearing they might come across as patronising.
- Despite hesitancy, 69% say everyone should know how to communicate with deaf people and 78% are willing to learn simple methods to do so.
- Model and TV personality Tasha Ghouri, who was born deaf, backs RNID’s It Does Matter campaign and says living in a world built for hearing people can feel like being in an “invisible box.”
- RNID, which supports 18 million people in the UK with deafness, hearing loss or tinnitus, says small changes and basic BSL resources can reduce daily barriers in shops, healthcare and social settings.