A view from Mark Isherwood – Welsh Conservative North Wales Member of the Senedd

Wrexham.com has invited the four North Wales Members of the Senedd to write a monthly column with updates on their work. You can find their updates – along with contributions from the Wrexham and Clwyd South MPs and MSs – here. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌

In his monthly column for Wrexham.com, Welsh Conservative MS Mark Isherwood writes:

It was good to see Dorothy “Dot” Miles, the Welsh Deaf British Sign Language (BSL) poet, honoured on Google’s homepage on what would have been her birthday, August 19th.

Dot, who was born in Holywell, is widely considered to be a pioneer of sign language poetry and a pioneering figure in the Deaf community.

Her contributions to the arts, particularly in the realm of sign language poetry, have been monumental.

She was a passionate advocate for Deaf rights and, through her work, broke down barriers between Deaf and hearing cultures.

While working at the British Deaf Association (BDA), she compiled the first teaching manual for BSL tutors and became involved in setting up the Council for the Advancement of Communication with Deaf People (CACDP – now known as Signature Deaf).

This celebration of Dot’s achievements was a powerful acknowledgment of both her contributions and the importance of sign language and Deaf culture.

It also acted as a reminder of the need for my British Sign Language (BSL) (Wales) Bill, which is moving forward following a vote in the Senedd in June. If the Welsh Government do not support this, Wales will be the only part of the UK left without specific BSL legislation.

The Bill’s purpose is to promote and facilitate the use of BSL in Wales; improve access to education, health and public services in BSL; and support the removal of barriers that exist for deaf people and their families in education, health, public services, support services and in the workplace; applying early intervention and prevention measures to reduce cost pressures on statutory services further up the line.

This is a Language Bill that supports Welsh Deaf leadership on all BSL matters in Wales.

The British Sign Language Act 2022 only applies to the UK Government and public bodies in England on matters devolved to Wales. My BSL (Wales) Bill therefore seeks to place equivalent specific duties on the Welsh Government and public bodies in Wales.

This Bill aligns with the seven well-being goals of the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 as they relate to the long-term needs of BSL users of all ages.

This Bill would also support existing commitments including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

The Bill would also work towards ensuring that BSL signers are not treated less favourably than those who speak Welsh or English, and make sure that deaf communities have a real voice in the design and delivery of services to ensure they meet their needs.

Sadly, existing legislation does not meet the needs of the D/deaf community and BSL signers.

Sign languages are full languages with their own communities, histories and cultures.

Despite the Welsh Government recognising BSL as a language in its own right in 2004, there have long been calls to give BSL full legal status in Wales.

Deafness is not a learning difficulty, but deaf children are being disadvantaged by the continuing inequity in outcome.

As Chair of the Cross-Party Group (CPG) on Deaf Issues in the Senedd, I met with a Trustee representative of charity Cambrian Educational Foundation For Deaf Children and the CPG’s Secretariat over the summer recess to discuss the current picture of support for the d/Deaf community in Wales, particularly children.

Members of the Foundation have noted the difficulties in engaging some others around d/Deaf issues and are particularly keen to understand the work of the CPG.

Cambrian provides support for Deaf Children across Wales. Applicants can request support in the purchase of equipment, funding residential courses, speech training courses and other opportunities that will develop their educational development.

During the recess, I also met the Secretariat of the Cross-Party Group on Deaf Issues and the British Deaf Association to discuss the next steps for my much-needed British Sign Language (BSL) (Wales) Bill.

Discussion included a partnership approach to the Bill, Consultation on the Bill, and the wider Welsh campaign for the Welsh Government to support this legislation.

I will continue working and engaging with stakeholder organisations, Deaf communities and Deaf people across Wales to develop a Bill that gives Deaf communities a voice in the design and delivery of services to ensure that they meet their needs.