Sign Language Bill - Call for Evidence

Overview

The Sign Language Bill provides for:

• Official and equal recognition of British Sign Language (BSL) and Irish Sign Language (ISL) as languages of Northern Ireland.
• A statutory duty on prescribed public organisations to take reasonable steps to make their services and the information they provide as accessible to individuals in the deaf community as they are to individuals who are not in the deaf community.
• A commitment to promoting the use and understanding of sign languages, including greater access to sign language education for deaf children and their families.
• A framework for accrediting sign language interpreters and teachers, ensuring professional standards and capacity building within the sector.

Why your views matter

As part of the Assembly’s legislative processes, the Sign Language Bill has been referred to the Assembly’s Committee for Communities so that the Committee may consider and take evidence on the Bill and report its opinion to the Assembly. 

The Committee is seeking views from stakeholders on the objectives, proposals and potential consequences of the Bill.

Your views will help to inform the Committee’s consideration of the Bill and any recommendations it may suggest as it moves to the next stage of the legislative process.

You do not have to complete the whole survey and can choose which sections to complete.

You can use this platform to respond with written text.

If you wish to respond using either BSL or ISL please click here to visit the Committee for Communities website for details on how to submit your views in sign language.

Terminology used: We note that some people prefer the use of the upper case 'D' when referring to the d/Deaf community to reflect its status as a cultural and linguistic group. In the Bill the lower case ‘d’ is used for deaf as a matter of ordinary language in the legislative context and for this reason we use this term throughout the survey.