Welcome to UWE British Sign Language Society ** Society of the year 2022/23 **
Our society is for anyone who uses British Sign Language (BSL). We welcome students who are Deaf, hard of hearing or those simply with an interest in learning BSL (including beginners!)
The society’s main goals include:
According to the British Deaf Association, there are approximately 250,000 people who use BSL daily. After years of campaigning, the government has passed the British Sign Language Act, a law which will finally recognise BSL as an official language in England and Wales. This law will promote BSL and help create a more inclusive and accessible society. If you are new to BSL, this really is a great time to start learning!
Whether you have previously studied BSL at any level, or if BSL is completely new to you, we encourage you to get involved! Through our society you can sign up to a level 1 qualification on campus. This is taught by an award winning teacher who has been teaching for over 20 years. For those students who are still interested but cannot commit as much time, we also frequently run professional Deaf awareness CPD courses. Last year we were able to offer places to 240 healthcare students!
We also run informal weekly practice sessions. Rotating each week between Frenchay and Glenside campus, our friendly group meets up to practice signing about a range of basic themes. Although this could never replace the high standard of teaching you would get at a level 1 class, it is still a great chance to make new friends and practice with more experienced BSL users. If you are a complete beginner, pop along! We can provide advice about how to start learning and point out some of the great resouces available to you.
If you feel as strongly as we do about promoting BSL and creating a fairer and more inclusive society, then why not join our committee? Our society needs committee members to help run events and eventually take over the society. No experience is required to join. All you need is enthusiam and to be a team player!
Of course we love a good social too! Each month we promote the fantastic mix of events occuring in Bristol's deaf community, including:
- Deaf/BSL pub nights (including joint socials with Bristol university!)
- Board games afternoons in the Watershed by the harbour side
- Deaf conversations about cinema
Throughout the year we'll of course be organising a range of our own society social events for you to get involved in!
Thank you very much for taking the time to read about our society and we hope you consider joining us!
If you have any questions, then please email us at uwebslsociety@gmail.com. Otherwise follow us on Instagram - @Uwebslsociety
An agenda of our AGM 2023