Disability Strategy and the Lack of A Teacher for the Deaf

Disability Strategy and Teaching Deaf

The first annual progress report of the Disability Strategy Delivery Group has been published on 23rd October 2018.

One of the small but significant features is an expansion of the Love Jersey App:

“the Love Jersey app now allows Islanders to instantly report problems with disabled access across the Island, including inaccessible curbs and street features”

It also mentions

“an updated Special Educational Needs Code of Practice was published in February, ensuring high quality provision and promoting inclusion for children with disabilities”

However the page on the Educatioon site only has a link to the Code published in October 2017.

This says: “Your child’s teachers will use the Special Educational Needs (SEN) Code of Practice and the guidelines for Ordinarily Available.”

“Specialist support from health visitors, educational psychologists, speech and language therapists or specialist teachers, such as a teacher of the deaf or vision impaired”

Unfortunately the last teacher of the deaf in local schools went to prison and is now on the sex offenders register, and no replacement has been found.

In Primary Schools, a recent freedom of information request gives numbers for “Number of primary school children taught British Sign Language Level 1 qualification”

It goes up and down, but in 2012,22, 2013, 9,2014, 22, 2015,under 5, 2016, 10

There are also figures for number of primary school children who sat British Sign Language Module 101 examination

2012, 15, 2013, 9, 2014, 19, 2015, under 5, 2016, 9


And finally, number of primary school children who passed British Sign Language Module 101 examination
2012, 15, 2013, 9, 2014, 19, 2015, under 5, 2016, 9

Clearly there is a demand, and there are exams to show a level of attainment that will help deaf children in later life

But who is going to teach them now?

This has been brought to the attention of the authorities, but ironically seems to have fallen on deaf ears. The response of the last COM has been to say they have adequate trained staff. But they don't. You need staff trained to at least BSL Level 3, and they don't.

That's just fobbing off criticism where the real position is that since the last teacher left abruptly, there has been no one to take his place. Will there be changes now? We shall have to wait and see.