Click for BSL video Ofgem have announced their pricing cap will be removed soon, which means energy bills in homes will be rising. The increase of £153 for prepayment customers and £139 from those paying by direct debit is likely to result in suppliers putting their prices up in October. What does this mean? This means energy bills in homes ...

Mitchell Graham recently joined Deaf Action as our Youth Club Co-ordinator. He shares his journey with education and the work that led him to where he is now. Gap year inspiration Mitchell attended Mary Hare School before applying to college to do Engineering. When the time came to start the course, he felt it wasn’t right for him and took ...

Meet Gary Morrison, a chef and deaf role model. Where it all began At the age of 21, Gary began a summer job in a hotel kitchen, cleaning pots and pans. Throughout his shifts he would watch the chefs cooking, and he realised he wanted to follow in their footsteps. After passing each level in college, Gary obtained his Chef ...

Mark McQueen is a freelance presenter and BSL tutor. Mark was accepted onto two courses at university, running parallel to each other – one where everyone used BSL, and the other where he was the only BSL user. Course differences In Mark’s first course, everyone used sign language, which allowed for easy communication without barriers to learning. This benefitted his learning, as everyone was able to support each other and contribute equally. His lecturer was fluent in BSL and could ...

Thinking about college or university? Charlotte Addison, our BSL Officer and deaf role model, has been to both and shares some helpful tips. After leaving school, Charlotte went straight to college. This was a smooth experience as they had in-house interpreters, allowing for easy access to communication support. However this meant that Charlotte was unaware of the role SAAS and DSA can play in arranging interpreters for deaf students. Charlotte went from college into childcare work, which inspired her to apply to university.  ...

Dr Robert Adam is an assistant professor at Heriot Watt University. He is a lecturer in Linguistics, Interpreting, BSL and Deaf Studies. His research of sign language covers complex language contact between Deaf people who use a distinct sign language.   Beginnings Raised in Melbourne, Australia, Robert moved to Scotland around 18 years ago. Having studied before the Equality Act, his experience differs to current ...

Mark McMillian is Deaf Action’s BSL Officer, working with colleges and universities across Scotland, helping them implement their BSL plans.   Mark’s journey His educational journey began at Donaldson’s School before graduating from Edinburgh Napier University. Following higher education, Mark became a residential care-worker at Donaldson’s School for eight years. Since joining Deaf Action, he has worked in various roles including Youth Participation Officer, Employability Advisor and now as a BSL Officer. Mark ...

Next in our series of deaf role models is Tamara Gierend, a photographer. Tamara moved from Germany to Scotland seven years ago, after being accepted onto a Higher National Diploma (HND) course in Photography at the City of Glasgow College. After completing her HND, she applied to do a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Photography. She tells us how ...

Choosing between college, university or full-time work can be a difficult decision, especially when you’re undecided on what you would like to do in the future. Over the next four weeks, we will be introducing just some of our deaf colleagues, who have inspired others throughout their careers. They will share their journey through education and support, into the career ...

2021 has been a huge year for deaf representation in films, in what we hope is a step towards normalising deafness and disabilities in mainstream media. We are excited to see various films this year featuring deaf actors, raising deaf awareness in hearing communities, and creating idols for the young deaf generation.  A Quiet Place 2 In the last month, the Quiet Place sequel gained recognition for casting ...