Over the past year we’ve worked with universities from every part of the British Isles. The parents of some of our Deaf children were interviewed by a researcher from Edinburgh University about their experiences of raising a dual lingual Deaf child. One of the longer research projects took place over several months and was carried out by a team from the opposite end of the country in Plymouth.
With support from our community they’ve been developing AI VR Smart Glasses that can be worn by Deaf people in the cinema, giving the wearer access to a personal BSL or subtitled interpretation of the dialogue.
This means Deaf people will no longer be limited to specific signed showings of films which were often at inconvenient times during the week. One of the Deaf ladies who tested the final version became very emotional as she said she could just be like everyone else and go to the pictures with her friends and family whenever she wanted to.
Our most recent involvement with Newcastle University resulted in a meaningful project about the impact of Universal Credit on mental health. At the end four months of workshops our eight extraordinary participants set out a community research model that we follow to this day. The project caught the interest of a local MP, Chi Onwurah who visited the Centre to meet the participants and learn more about the Centre’s work in community. Since then we’ve been involved in a Wellbeing and Nutrition project. The workshops offered healthy eating and cooking classes to the Deaf and Deaf Blind community and most importantly - a platform to hear their voice.
MP Chi Onuwurah, known for their advocacy of inclusivity and community development, was warmly received by staff, volunteers, and members of the centre. With links through the involvement of academic and tech research, they were introduced to the range of services provided by the centre, such as sign language workshops, support groups, and advocacy programs.
