BSL users feel excluded as many Brits aren't sure how to interact with them - study shows

dailystar.co.uk:

Tasha Ghouri, and Strictly Come Dancing winner, Giovanni Pernice, alongside the National Deaf Children’s society to highlight the feeling of being left out of conversation experienced by four in 10 (41%) deaf people.

Tasha, who was born deaf and was a BSL user before her Cochlear implant was fitted, gave exclusive announcements alongside the Strictly dancer, who partnered with deaf actress Rose Ayling-Ellis in the 2021 series, in British Sign Language (BSL) to highlight the feelings of exclusion experienced by the deaf community.Using their platforms, which have a combined following of over two million people, they have revealed exclusive new gossip using BSL only.

The juicy news, revealed exclusively to the BSL speakers across the UK, saw Tasha update her followers that herself and boyfriend, Andrew Le Page, have found their dream house in East London after searching across the capital.

Giovanni also used the opportunity to discuss how after starting his BSL journey during Strictly Come Dancing last year, he is ensuring to have translators at a number of his new theatre shows.Tasha Ghouri said: “The UK has a large deaf population that often miss out on moments because of their disability."It was important to me to use BSL to reveal that I’ve found my dream house to move into with Andrew because as someone who is deaf, there are times when I’ve felt isolated.“I hope that by demonstrating how it feels to miss out on exciting news, small talk and conversation, that I am inspiring others to learn the beautiful language of BSL so everyone can feel more included.”The study also found only 18% feel completely comfortable engaging in conversation with someone who is deaf.And one in 10 (12%) avoid talking to someone who is deaf.