August 2024
Information Office
The Information Office remained active and busy despite the summer closures of the Over 55s Day Centre and Men’s Shed. Walk-in clients, using both ISL and International Sign Language, continue to use the Information Office, with high demand for assistance with passport and public service card renewals, medical card applications, and accessing personal tax information online. The Information Officer also helped clients with online bookings, boosting their confidence in using computers.
The Information Office continues to share event details and other relevant information with the Deaf community through various channels. These include the WhatsApp Channel, which has 130 followers, E-Info newsletters, social media platforms, and the TV display in the Information office. Information is also spread by word of mouth to walk-in clients.
Community Outreach Officer
We are delighted to welcome the newest addition to our team, Emily Matassa. Emily is familiar with the role from her previous job, although travelling around Ireland will present new challenges for her. She will introduce herself as the Community Outreach Officer to local organisations. It will take some time to connect with Deaf people across these regions.
Submissions
ISL Charter
We’re excited to announce the Draft ISL Charter, aimed at improving access and rights for the Deaf community under the ISL Act 2017.
The Irish Sign Language (ISL) Charter is a document aimed at promoting and supporting ISL and the Deaf community in Ireland. It focuses on raising awareness, improving education and training, enhancing accessibility to services, advocating for legal recognition, and supporting Deaf culture.
Once approved, it will be translated into ISL and launched on the International Day of Sign Languages, 23rd September. Stay tuned for more!
Mental Health Position Paper
Our updated Mental Health Position Paper, now more focused on Deaf research, will be shared with the Mental Health Working Group soon. A meeting is planned for October.
ISL Act Review
We’re preparing for the review of the ISL Act 2017, due by 2025. IDS is working closely with the NDA and others to ensure the best possible outcome. More updates coming soon!
Rethink Ireland Funding
IDS has requested consultant support for Communications and Marketing. We met with consultant Sam Whelan and Rethink Ireland to plan 5 days of consultation. The aim is to develop a Social Media strategy and promote new resources like the English-ISL Dictionary and Online Deaf Awareness Training Platform.
On August 19, the Advocacy Administrator and Manager attended the funding launch in Galway with 14 other awardees. Minister Anne Rabbitte launched the project. It was a great opportunity to meet the Rethink Ireland team and discuss projects with other awardees. The press release is available here: Rethink Ireland Press Release.
National Council Members
On August 14th, a Zoom meeting with eight National Council Members (NCMs) discussed plans for International Week of Deaf People 2024 (IWDP24). IDS will provide letter templates to help NCMs connect with local officials and landmarks. Ideas included daily themes, sign language events, and social media promotion.
The Advocacy Project Officer had an informal meeting with the new Community Outreach Officer before their official meeting in September. They discussed the current relationship between NCMs and the IDS, as well as how NCMs connect with their local communities. They also talked about the support materials and videos available for NCMs and reviewed the database that holds all the information related to NCMs.
Deaf Awareness Training
We provided two Deaf Awareness Training workshops in August; both were delivered to public bodies with a total of approx. 48 people in attendance. This brings us to a total of approx. 374 people who have attending a Deaf Awareness Training workshop in 2024. We received positive feedback from the two workshops in August.
We have 7 workshops scheduled for September, with most of them taking place during ISL Week.
As part of the Rethink Ireland project, we will be recruiting more presenters to our Deaf Awareness team! We hope to advertise this early in September with training taking places for all presenters in October.
International Week of Deaf People 2024
- For International Week of Deaf People 2024: Preparations for a week starting from Monday 23rd to Sunday 29th September including:
- Press Release: The Research and Policy Officer is preparing a press release for ISL Awareness Week, to be approved by the CEO, translated into ISL, and shared with media.
- ISL Charter: The Information Officer is working on setting up the ISL Charter on the IDS website.
- Website Updates: The ISL Awareness Week page has been updated with new videos on the daily themes, signs related to Coffee morning and Parkrun.
- Filming: A filming schedule for early September will focus on ISL Awareness Week themes, with videos edited to include Voice Over and subtitles.
- RTE Collaboration: Discussed IWDP24 plans with RTE, including cultural events and online engagement.
- Daily Videos: A series of weekly videos will preview IWDP24 details, with a highlight reel coming soon.
Deaf Career Project:
- Funding Opportunity
- In August, we discovered a potential funding opportunity through Pobal’s ESF+ New Solutions Fund (Phase 2). It opens in 2025 and supports our mission to help Deaf people find jobs.
- ISL Career and Education Glossary
- We finished filming a 30-word ISL glossary! It’s now being edited, and we plan to release one word per week to promote IDS Career Services.
- Career Workshops with FET
- This autumn, we’ll start work on 10 career workshops with IDS FET. These will focus on CV writing, interview preparation, and job search resources.
- FET DAC Tutors Workshop
- We’re planning a special workshop for FET Tutors, including Peer Mentors and interested Tutors.
- DCP Reach Funding Update
- Peer Mentors will continue 1-to-1 Career Guidance sessions. We’ve used 63% of the project funding so far and are requesting a six-month extension to complete the final goal.
Further Education and Training (FET)
FET has been actively preparing a range of courses and workshops starting this September. Most of our Deaf Adult and ISL classes are fully booked, onsite and online, reflecting strong interest and demand. We’re delighted with the positive response and are now focused on planning for the Spring Term 2025. Expect some exciting, brand-new courses that we’ve never offered before!
Fundraising:
Irish Deaf Society Shop Bray 95 Main Street Bray is now operating for 2 months, and the shop is taking on its own personality and becoming part of the local community. Call in and browse our treasure trove of clothing, homeware, books and special unique pieces. Barbora, Min and the team will be on hand to help you find what you are looking for.
For further information about the shop including donations and volunteering opportunities WhatsApp 0862037609 or email bray@irishdeafsociety.ie
Look out for Mark Doyle and his team of volunteers out fundraising for the Irish Deaf Society. They have recently been fundraising in various locations throughout Ireland.
Published: 19/09/2024