Guidance

The British Sign Language (BSL) report 2022

Published 31 July 2023

This was published under the 2022 to 2024 Sunak Conservative government

Applies to England, Scotland and Wales

© Crown copyright 2023

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-british-sign-language-bsl-report-2022/the-british-sign-language-bsl-report-2022

1. Introduction

The British Sign Language (BSL) Act 2022 received Royal Assent on 28 April 2022.  It was introduced to the House of Commons as a Private Members’ Bill by Rosie Cooper MP and gained cross-party and government support.

The act legally recognises BSL as a language of England, Scotland and Wales (but not Northern Ireland, where equality law is devolved). It also requires the government to begin reporting on the use of BSL by ministerial departments in their public communications.

This publication is the first report to that end, covering the period from 28 June 2022 to 30 April 2023, as set out in part 2 of the act. This report captures data on BSL usage in government communications for the first time, and sets a baseline for ministerial departments from which they can improve their promotion and facilitation of BSL in the months and years ahead.

Accessibility is essential in government communications and engagement. The government must communicate effectively so that everyone has access to important information and can engage with the government on issues that will affect them. It is vital that we understand how policy and communications affect citizens, understand their needs and requirements, and make our communications as inclusive and accessible as possible.

2. Context and background

2.1 Deafness and BSL use in the UK

According to the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID), 1 in 5 people (or 12 million people) in the UK are Deaf or hard of hearing. The RNID estimates that there will be around 14.2 million adults with hearing loss by 2035. Many people with hearing loss will rely on closed captioning (subtitles) to access audio-visual content such as TV and cinema programmes, advertisements, and social media videos.  According to current statistics, there are around 151,000 BSL users in total, of whom 87,000 are Deaf. This figure does not include professional BSL users, interpreters, translators, and so on, unless they use BSL at home. In total, there are 25,000 people in the UK who use BSL as their main language.

BSL is not a signed version of written or spoken English, and its vocabulary and syntax are different. This means that, particularly if individuals have been Deaf from birth or early childhood, subtitles or written English for BSL users are not an adequate alternative.

BSL users in the UK can face social exclusion as a direct result of linguistic exclusion, negatively impacting their employment, education, and access to healthcare.

2.2 Equality legislation

BSL was recognised as a language in its own right by a Written Ministerial Statement to the House of Commons on 18 March 2003 by the then Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, the Rt Hon Andrew Smith MP. This sought to place BSL on a similar level to many indigenous languages in the UK as recognised by the Council of Europe’s Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.

The BSL Act went further and legally recognised BSL as a language of England, Wales and Scotland. The BSL Act works in tandem with existing legislation, most notably the Equality Act 2010, which requires ‘reasonable adjustments’ to be made by a wide range of people and sectors to ensure that disabled people have equal access to goods and services. Public sector organisations may, therefore, be required to make use of BSL in certain circumstances. Public sector organisations may also consider the use of BSL in relation to the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED).  The BSL Act 2022 preserves the architecture of the Equality Act 2010 while also placing a new BSL reporting requirement on the government.

2.3 BSL Advisory Board

To sit alongside the BSL Act, the government has established a non-statutory board of BSL users to advise it on matters arising from the act and of importance to Deaf people. The BSL Advisory Board will advise the government on the guidance detailed in the BSL Act and its implementation to best represent the Deaf community.

The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work, Tom Pursglove MP, appointed 17 members from across the UK to the BSL Advisory Board, which is co-chaired by Craig Crowley MBE and a senior civil servant.

BSL Advisory Board members include:

  • Zoe Fudge-Ajadi and Vicki Ashmore, Deaf/Blind tactile BSL signers who co-founded the charity BRIGHT Deafblind BSL
  • Asif Iqbal MBE, a rehabilitation officer for Deaf and hard of hearing people who has spent his career in the public and not-for-profit sectors to increase representation and remove barriers for Deaf and disabled people
  • Scott Garthwaite, the Punk Chef of Michelin star restaurant Hambleton Hall

The main criteria for appointment for all independent members included a lived experience of BSL and a willingness to work collaboratively in assisting the government to ensure its information, communications and services are as accessible as possible. The members have been appointed for 3-year terms, and the Board has met twice so far.

3. Reporting requirements for government departments

Government departments and organisations already create accessible communications, including increasing use of BSL translations and interpreting.  However, there is more to do to ensure that government departments and organisations improve the experience of Deaf people when they interact with the government.

The act requires that nearly all ministerial government departments must report on how they are promoting and using BSL in their communications with the public. For the purposes of the act, only core departments need to report on how they promote and use BSL in their communications. Agencies, non-departmental public bodies and other arm’s-length bodies are not in scope of the act, but are encouraged to use BSL translation and interpreting where it meets the needs of their audiences.

The act specifically covers any public announcement on policy or changes to the law, such as plans, strategies, policies, and consultations and responses. It also mentions press conferences, social media, and websites.

The BSL reporting duty is not intended to capture detail about individual requests for BSL interpretation services in front-facing operational delivery as a reasonable adjustment under the Equality Act 2010 – for example, in health or education settings, ports, police stations, courts, Jobcentres, etc.

The BSL Act 2022 does not require the government to report on any personal communications with individuals that may have been translated into BSL, such as ministerial letters to individuals, Freedom of Information requests, correspondence, or meetings with ministers or officials, where there has been a request for a BSL translator.

The reporting duty is primarily focused on information intended to be shared with the wider public. This approach gives ministerial departments the opportunity to build on good practice, share knowledge and increase the provision of BSL interpretation where it is necessary to do so.  According to the terms of the act, the information will be collated by the Cabinet Office Disability Unit every year, and the findings set out or summarised in a report at least every 3 years.

4. Good practice and case studies by department

4.1 Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)

DWP has set up a dedicated YouTube BSL channel for BSL content so that the content can be found more easily. The DWP BSL YouTube channel has over 2,000 subscribers and 166 videos covering topics from individual benefits and entitlements to policy proposals (‘White Papers’ and ‘Green Papers’).

Within the reporting period, DWP has produced 9 public announcement videos, 9 consultation videos, 5 social media videos and 3 other videos produced in BSL.

These include:

BSL Twitter videos:

The initial BSL project launched in 2018 following a recommendation from a Ministerial Taskforce to improve DWP’s BSL content. Previously DWP’s BSL videos tended to be limited to policy propositions, usually on topics such as disability benefits or reform. The DWP Accessible Design team’s initial work focused on reviewing what the department was doing, how it could improve its content, and how they might bring BSL video production in-house. The DWP Accessible Design team leader said:

“We needed to understand the language and barriers facing BSL users and then implement the format into our team. All of this took time! Our latest projects are significantly quicker thanks to having an established operating model and standards to work to.”

The videos are made in a variety of formats, include an audio overlay, and are captioned. The team often uses 2 translators, especially on longer-form or complex topics, and videos are presented in a relaxed question-and-answer format. DWP has engaged charities such as the British Deaf Association (BDA), RNID and other partners and stakeholders to support content development and approve the design format for customers. Native BSL speakers at DWP also review and suggest improvements to content. A member of the BSL testing team said:

“It was great to have the opportunity to test out the new DLA for children products. I enjoyed these videos and really like this dialogue style of communicating information, where 2 Deaf people are having a conversation in BSL about a topic.  Involving colleagues like me really helps to make sure we produce the highest quality information products that work well for the audience, it is inclusive and shows when we need to try something different, we can adapt what we do to suit our audience’s needs.”

4.2 Cabinet Office

The Cabinet Office Disability Unit (which works to the Department for Work and Pensions Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work) has produced a number of public communications in BSL in the reporting period.  Of particular note was the appointment of the BSL Advisory Board Co-chair, Craig Crowley MBE which was announced on 28 November 2022. The announcement included a press notice which was translated into BSL, and a video of the co-chair signing his greeting and 2 Minister for Disabled People and co-chair signed meeting videos (1 and 2).

Other BSL content from the Cabinet Office Disability Unit included:

Other Disability Unit Tweets in BSL included:

4.3 Home Office

Since the BSL Act was passed, the Home Office has been working to improve BSL provision across the department. Given previous difficulties with sourcing BSL interpreters, the Home Office decided to procure a new contract with a specialist provider of BSL who could meet the needs of the Home Office for both internal and customer use.

Home Office staff held roundtables with several charities and internal networks to build their understanding of what service was required so that it could procure an effective provider.  Engagement sessions were held with BDA, RNID, RCSLT (Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists), RADP (Royal Association for Deaf People), BSL interpreters/lip speakers from Lipspeaker UK (a specialist interpretation service) and the NRCPD (National Registers of Communication Professionals working with Deaf and Deafblind People).

Internal engagement sessions were held with members and chairs of ABLE (the Home Office Disability Network), the co-chairs of the Civil Service Deaf and Hard of Hearing Network, the Defra Hearing Loss Network and the Disability Champions Network, along with surveying civil servants who have lived experience with deafness and hearing loss.

The contract with a new provider was signed on 11 April 2023. This has already led to an increase in the number of requests for BSL interpretation. There have been 8 publications during the reporting period with British Sign Language:

4.4 Department for Transport (DfT)

DfT integrated BSL into the It’s Everyone’s Journey transport and travel campaign. The campaign forms part of DfT’s Inclusive Transport Strategy and supports the ambition to achieve equal access for all on public transport. The campaign was initially launched in February 2020 and, due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, a relaunch of the campaign took place in September 2022.

Two videos were produced using BSL for the campaign. They were referenced on the landing site of the campaign and hosted on YouTube with the following link through to the main YouTube site. The “It’s Everyone’s Journey – Bus” video covered ways to make travelling by bus a better experience for all passengers, especially those with accessibility needs. The video had around 1,400 views in the BSL format. The “It’s Everyone’s Journey – Train” video covered similar themes from a rail perspective. The video had 365 views in the BSL format.

DfT tweeted the accessible versions of the videos through their “It’s Everyone’s Journey” Twitter account in October 2022. This tweet had 3,038 views, 16,045 impressions and 460 engagements. BSL was also included as part of the tweet for the relaunch of the campaign in September 2022 with the message “We’re thrilled to announce today the return of ‘it’s everyone’s journey’, a campaign from @transportgovuk and partners to help make transport more inclusive for the 1 in 5 disabled people in the UK. https://bit.ly/3DRsjeH #ItsEveryonesJourney #InclusiveTransport”.

4.5 Department for Education (DfE)

In March 2023, DfE published its Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan in a range of accessible formats to provide everyone with the opportunity to engage and understand the government’s plans. This included BSL video translations, with audio and subtitles, Easy Read and, on demand, Braille and other formats.

This builds on the production of accessible formats for the SEND Review Green Paper consultation (March 2022), which included BSL and Easy Read. The consultation aimed to understand how the SEND and AP system had developed since reforms were introduced in 2014, and how the system could be improved further to ensure a quality service was delivered consistently across the whole country.

The BSL videos, which included audio and subtitles, were produced through Crown Commercial Service. The BSL videos for the ‘Green Paper’ consultation received over 500 views during launch, while the 7 videos on the improvement plan have received more than 1,200 combined. The strategic communications lead for the SEND and AP Improvement Plan said:

“Stakeholders responded positively to provision of the accessible formats, including BSL translations particularly when we were able to publish them on the same day of the announcement of the improvement plan.”

4.6 Ministry of Justice

The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) published BSL guides for victims of rape and sexual assault on GOV.UK.  MoJ also produced a number of BSL versions of public consultation documents and responses during the reporting period, covering:

In 2021, ministers announced that Deaf people requiring the use of a sign language interpreter would be able to take part in jury service for the first time. This would open jury service to profoundly Deaf people, permitting BSL interpreters to enter jury rooms.  This legislation formed part of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. This reform has helped to build a fairer justice system, ensuring our justice system is as accessible and inclusive as possible.

MOJ used BSL content on its social media channels (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, as well as posts on the MOJ Twitter promoting the related HM Courts and Tribunals Service blog) to support the press notices, and that content was further amplified by DWP, and the National Registers of Communication Professionals Working with Deaf and Deafblind People. Across Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, MoJ’s video generated 21,000 views and 60,000 impressions.

4.7 Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)

DCMS worked with external suppliers to script and produce a dedicated BSL explainer video about the meaning of the Coronation of His Majesty the King and how to get involved. This was central to their public-facing guidance on GOV.UK, (the page had over 225,000 page views) and was used in the weeks running up to the Coronation. Positioning the BSL translation so centrally helped it attract over 14,000 views across DCMS social media channels (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube).

4.8 Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC)

DHSC produced a BSL version of the Down Syndrome Act Call for Evidence.  The Down Syndrome Act became law in April 2022, aiming to improve access to services and the quality of life for people with Down Syndrome. The act seeks to ensure that health, social care, education and other local authority services, such as housing, take account of the specific needs of people with Down Syndrome when commissioning or providing services. The act requires the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to publish guidance for relevant authorities (for example, NHS hospitals or local councils) on the steps it would be appropriate for those authorities to take to meet the needs of people with Down Syndrome when carrying out some of their most important functions. Once the guidance is published these authorities are legally required to take the guidance into account when providing certain core services.

DHSC launched a call for evidence in July 2022 to inform the development of the Down Syndrome Act guidance. The call for evidence remained open for 16 weeks to ensure as many people as possible were able to contribute their views. The call for evidence was tailored to the following groups:

  • people with Down Syndrome
  • families and carers of people with Down Syndrome
  • professionals working in health, social care, education and other local authority services, and the voluntary and charitable sector, and
  • people with other genetic conditions and/or a learning disability

It was essential given the audience groups for this call for evidence that DHSC produced accessible versions to ensure they received a wide range of views. Alongside the main call for evidence survey, DHSC produced BSL and Easy Read versions of the call for evidence questions for each of the 4 groups.

There was some delay in the production of the BSL versions of the call for evidence which meant they were published at a later date which reduced the number of views and their impact. Lessons were learned in the production of the BSL videos which will be shared across DHSC to reduce delays for future publications. Building on this experience, DHSC is actively looking at ways to promote the BSL Act more widely and improve BSL monitoring and reporting internally.

4.9 Department for Business and Trade (DBT)

In December 2022, DBT created a video that told an inspirational story. The video features Direct Access, a disability-owned UK small business that provides accessibility consultancy services worldwide. BSL features throughout the video, which has been a catalyst to exploring where BSL can be used for public-facing communications. It was shared on DBT’s LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook (for example, see the DBT introduction video on the department’s LinkedIn channel).

Following the ‘Machinery of Government’ changes, DBT’s communications and marketing team inherited a number of public-facing campaigns, including the National Minimum and Living Wage campaign. The campaign creative considered where best to use BSL and the production of a BSL video was commissioned for, and published on, its social media channels as part of the second phase of the campaign (June). A mapping exercise will capture where future public facing communications would require BSL, with BSL being a key part of campaign creative briefs.

Note: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Department for International Trade were replaced in February 2023 by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and Department for Business and Trade.

4.10 Ministry of Defence (MOD)

MOD’s Diversity and Inclusion Team is working closely with Defence Digital, which created the 2021 Welsh Language Guide, to create a Defence BSL Guide with the aim of building their capacity in this area.  They have identified and are working closely with a subject matter expert, who has a deep understanding of the BSL Act and clear timeline of work. MOD are consulting widely across Whitehall and within MOD, particularly with the Directorate of Defence Communications, trade unions, and d/Deaf and hard of hearing groups, to ensure their guidance is comprehensive, positive and financially viable for the long term.

MOD run regular press conferences and are liaising with the Directorate of Defence Communications Team to develop plans for implementing BSL. In addition, as MOD has an active, large and growing social media presence, it is developing plans for implementing BSL communications on its social media sites. MOD are committed to implementing the MOD BSL guidance by the end of January 2024 when it will be announced across Defence. The guidance will have its own Sharepoint site which will include the guide, a toolkit to aid compliance, and a dedicated email address for queries and questions.

5. Summary and next steps

The duties in the BSL Act encourage government departments to improve how they communicate with, and meet the needs of the Deaf community. There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach that will suit every government department. Different departments will approach, and have approached, implementation of the BSL Act differently to suit the needs of their specific audiences.

That said, this first report shows that although there are pockets of good practice, there is also scope to go further. This report therefore represents a snapshot of activity to date, which will serve as a baseline from which the government should aim to improve.

We are keen to ensure that every department is aware of, and understands, the legal requirements of the BSL Act, both in letter and in spirit. And we are keen that, from one reporting period to the next, every department can show a steady and significant improvement in their use of BSL.

In order to support and encourage this improvement, we will commit to the following.

5.1 Increase publication of data

Although the act only requires for a BSL report to be published once every 3 years, we intend to publish a BSL report every year for at least the next 5 years. This will help to drive improvement, to highlight successes and areas where further progress is needed, and ensure accountability.

5.2 Take ministerial responsibility to improve BSL use

This first BSL report will also be discussed at a future meeting of the Ministerial Disability Champions, the Ministers who have been asked by the Prime Minister to provide a personal lead and commitment to championing accessibility and opportunity for disabled people within their departments. The group meets regularly, chaired by Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work, Tom Pursglove MP.

5.3 Produce improvement plans in each department

Building on this discussion, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions will ask each ministerial department to produce a 5-year BSL Plan, setting out how they plan to improve the use of BSL within their departments. These will be included in the next published BSL report.

5.4 Issue internal guidance to civil servants

Government Communications Service internal guidance for government departments will be issued imminently, covering best practice and things to consider when planning communications for BSL users, creating a BSL translation or using BSL interpreters, and advice on how to procure BSL translation or interpreting.

In addition to the reporting requirement from government departments, part 3 of the BSL Act also requires the government to issue guidance promoting the facilitation and use of BSL, including:

  • advice for relevant government departments on best practice to support BSL under both the Equality Act 2010 and BSL Act 2022
  • advice more broadly on best practice for communicating with BSL users (both when interacting with individuals and when communicating with the general public), including case studies to illustrate the value of providing BSL interpretation in communications with the public

The BSL Advisory Board will advise the government on the guidance detailed in the BSL Act,  and its implementation to best represent the Deaf community. This external guidance will be published by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions during the next BSL reporting period with support from the Cabinet Office Disability Unit.

6. Annex: BSL activity by ministerial department

Reporting period: 28 June 2022 to 30 April 2023

Government department Public announcements about policy or about changes to the law in BSL Publications (plans, strategies, consultation documents or consultation responses) in BSL Press conferences, social media or government website use to publicise activities or policies in BSL
Attorney General’s Office
 0 0 0
Cabinet Office
 3 1 15
Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy [footnote 1]
0 0 0
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
 0 0 2
Department for Education
 0 7 0
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
 0 0 0
Department for International Trade [footnote 2]
0 0 1
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities 0 0 0
Department for Transport
 0 3 4
Department for Work and Pensions [footnote 3]
9 9 7
Department of Health and Social Care
 0 1 0
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
 0 0 0
His Majesty’s Treasury
 0 0 0
Home Office
 0 8 0
Ministry of Defence
 0 0 0
Ministry of Justice
 0 4 2
Office of the Leader of the House of Commons
 0 0 0
Office of the Leader of the House of Lords
 0 0 0
Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland [footnote 3]
0 0 0
Office of the Secretary of State for Wales [footnote 4] 0 0 0

  1. BEIS return includes BSL returns for DSIT and DESNZ which were established in a ‘Machinery of Government’ change 2 months before the end of the first reporting period.] ↩

  2. DIT return includes BSL return for DBT which was established in a ‘Machinery of Government’ change 2 months before the end of the first reporting period.] ↩

  3. The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work’s BSL activity on Disability Unit issues is captured within the Cabinet Office return.] ↩ ↩2

  4. The Scottish and Welsh governments are not subject to the reporting duty and communications about matters that are devolved are outside the scope of this report.] ↩

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