Deaf campaigner: “The hearing population need to experience what it’s like to be deaf”
Campaign launch urges organisations to use closed captions on virtual meetings as part of Deaf Awareness Week
Simon Houghton, a deaf campaigner from London, has launched a campaign to encourage the hearing population to experience what it’s like to be deaf for a day.
‘ClosedCaptionsForADay’ is about encouraging organisations and individuals to use closed captions when online and working virtually.
The campaign comes as part of this year's Deaf Awareness week, after the launch of Simon's 'WeSupportDeafAwareness' campaign last year.
It focuses on giving the hearing population an insight into the deaf experience and the challenges faced, alongside promoting inclusivity to create behavioural change and raise awareness.
Deaf Awareness Week 2022
The ‘ClosedCaptionsForADay’ campaign coincides with Deaf Awareness Week which takes place from the 2nd to 8th May.
In the UK there are 12 million adults with hearing loss greater than 25 dBHL, this is equivalent to one in five adults.
It is estimated that there are 151,000 people in the UK who use British Sign Language and 87,000 of these are Deaf.
The week aims to raise awareness and challenge perceptions of hearing loss and Deafness, it promotes the use of British Sign Language and campaigns to build a bridge between hearing and deaf people, championing inclusivity, accessibility, and social inclusion.
Using closed captions in the workplace
Simon Houghton wants to encourage organisations to use closed captions online, to increase awareness around the challenges faced among the deaf community.
Simon told us, “Don’t get me wrong Teams and Zoom calls have been fantastic, video calls have been a revelation when working from home during the pandemic, and helpful for those who are deaf when engaging on a video screen instead of struggling in a group setting in the office.
“But the challenges to concentrate and hear what is being said in a virtual meeting is significant, especially for someone with a disability.”
Simon was diagnosed with a significant hearing loss at the age of five, and wears hearing aids, but needs to use headphones to hear on video calls when working as a business consultant and attending several meetings a day.
He relies heavily on lip-reading and needs closed captions to piece together what people are saying, “The mental exertion required to maintain concentration is immense, closed captions are great, but not perfect”, he told us.
READ MORE: British Sign Language pledged to become recognised language by government
“Words can come out very differently so there is this constant darting from watching the captions to watching colleagues to lip-read (if they even have their camera on) to fill in any gaps… by the end of the day I am absolutely shattered”, he says.
What is the ‘closed captions for a day’ campaign about?
Simon came up with the idea of trying to get the hearing population to experience what it is like, in a small way, to be deaf, raising awareness and behavioural change.
“The campaign is about getting organisations to put closed captions on when working with video conferencing and virtual meetings to see what a great tool it is, but also experience the challenges of keeping track of what is being said”, he says.
“Especially when the words come out incorrectly, having to dart from the captions to the faces of colleagues to lip-read.
“It’s a good idea for employers to consider repeating key points and asking what can be done to help any deaf attendees to support them, putting video and closed captions on for a day.
“It’d be useful when screen sharing to move the closed captions from below the screen share to above, or for their position to be determined by the user, so that we don't have to keep moving our eyes such a distance to keep on top of discussion.”
We Support Deaf Awareness: How did the campaign start?
In April 2021 Simon launched his first campaign, the ‘WeSupportDeafAwareness’ campaign after an eye test, “Despite telling the optician that I was deaf and lip-read, she wouldn’t remove her mask”, he says.
“It was distressing and incredibly frustrating, I decided to modify my face mask on returning to pick up my new glasses by writing ‘Deaf, lip read’ on it.
“As I approached, she immediately stepped back and pulled her mask down without asking… positive behaviour change, that’s what got the campaign started”, Simon says.
After experiencing challenges in communicating due to lack of understanding of deaf needs, he set up the campaign to help organisations and their staff communicate with more empathy, patience, and kindness.
To promote deaf awareness across all of society, so that the deaf and hard of hearing don’t continue to be isolated, due to any misunderstanding of the hidden disability.
“It’s about improving communication within organisations, between hearing staff and customers and those who are deaf or hard of hearing, raising awareness around how to respond when someone is struggling to hear.
“Ensuring the deaf community can feel confident that their needs will be met, should they struggle to communicate effectively, and providing online training for staff.”
A year since the launch of the initial campaign, this year Simon came up with ‘ClosedCaptionsForADay’, as he wanted to initiate behaviour changes as well as raise awareness.
How to be more deaf aware: Inclusivity in the workplace
Simon told us, “There’s some simple things you can do when communicating with a deaf person, always face them, keep your hands away from your mouth and avoid backlighting so they’re able to lip read.
“Ask, ‘How can I best communicate with you?’ and talk and a normal speed, sometimes using the phonetic alphabet can be helpful.”
READ MORE: World-first test to prevent babies going deaf developed in Manchester
He adds, “Recruiters or managers who feel it’s too much of a burden to take someone who is disabled (deaf or otherwise), are missing out on taking on possibly their best employee.
“Hard work, tenacity, resilience, and dedication are skills that every disabled person possesses due to the challenges they have overcome during their lifetime.
“So, when you next meet someone who has a disability, just remember how much they have had to overcome, and imagine just how much they could do for you and your organisation.”