OUR TRUSTEES

“I live in Stafford and have been a Trustee since October 2020. My first career was Speech and Language Therapy in the NHS, and since 2007 I have worked as a teacher and researcher at the University of Wolverhampton. Over the years, I have taught many students who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing. This prompted me to learn BSL at Walsall Deaf Centre, and I completed Level 2 just before it closed down. Wanting to maintain my sign language skills and contribute something to the Deaf community, I then contacted Ddeaflinks. I’m keen to continue to support dDeaflinks into what promises to be a bright future”

“In 2011 I stumbled into the idea of learning British Sign Language and dDeaflinks was there to help. I soon became aware of the difficulties dDeaf people have to overcome daily just to get by in a hearing world. Worse still is the injustice experienced by the dDeaf in the lack of equality of opportunity in education, health care, employment and many other areas. dDeaflinks supports the dDeaf in every way it can and helps the rest of us become aware of these injustices. I want to help dDeaflinks”

“Born Deaf from a hearing family, I attended the Mount School for the Deaf from age 2.5 till 5. I then attended mainstream, Hill Top School and Thistley Hough High; they provided Partially Hearing Units (PHU) for Deaf children. I was brought up in the hearing world and learnt sign at a later age. I felt comfortable in the Deaf world and am strongly supported by the community for socialising. Although currently part time retired, I have been a BSL teacher for colleges, communities and dDeaflinks. I became a Trustee late 2018 as I want to help dDeaflinks”

“I was the only Deaf person in my family growing up. I became profoundly Deaf after contracting measles at the age of 4. when I attended the Mount School for the Deaf, they had close connections with dDeaflinks and were the sole charity supporting the Deaf community. I have continued to attend dDeaflinks ever since for socialising and for support. I became a Trustee so I can now support the charity that has always supported me”

“BSL is a beautiful language, and that sparked my interest in learning more about the dDeaf community. I believe that everyone should have opportunities to live a full life. Over the years, I have worked in business and the voluntary sector; gaining skills and experience in leadership, training, volunteer management, organisational development. In 2017 I established a local community interest company working with asylum seekers and refugees, so I have varied understanding of the challenges running a non-profit organisation. I love working with people and became a dDeaflinks trustee to hopefully use my experiences to support the valuable work of the charity”