Transcendit are delighted to announce that we are sponsoring Signature's 'Hall of Fame' event, for their 40th year celebration to recognise those who have gone above and beyond to improve deaf communication. We've been finding out about Signature, the work that they do and why Transcendit wanted to sponsor the event.
Who are Signature?
Signature is a national charity, and the leading awarding body for British Sign Language (BSL) in the UK. They develop qualifications, offer courses, train teachers and even have an online library of training for British Sign Language. Their qualifications are accredited by Ofqual, and they've supported more than 460,000 to learn British Sign Language since 1982.
They offer Level 1 to Level 6 Awards in British Sign Language, as well as Irish Sign Language. They also offer qualifications in Deaf Awareness and Communication, Communication Support, Lipspeaking, Introduction to Interpreting and many more, for learners of all ages and backgrounds.
Signature's qualifications are provided all over the UK in their Signature centres. An organisation or building can apply to become a centre, which then provides their accredited qualifications. These centres offer the courses, and test the students, and Signature reviews the assessments and awards qualifications.
Transcendit and Signature
'Transcendit have been working with Signature since 2006, and we've provided them with IT support, web development and web applications,' says Director Adam Kuznesof. 'One of the important things we did was to create a centre portal. This is essentially an online hub where centres can register, as well as identify what they need to complete in order to operate as a Signature Centre.'
'Prior to this hub, most of Signature's operations were paper based,' says Adam. 'Since they've been using this online centre portal, centres can submit all of their assessments, which can then be assessed by the Signature team online. This has made the process for both centres and Signature's team much easier.'
'In the time that we've worked with Signature, we've also created a site for Get Deaf Aware, and BSL 101 to help centres deliver the courses. In the last few years we created their Learning Hub, which is a web application collating all of Signature's teaching materials. Teachers can create a syllabus from different modules, and students can access their materials, entirely online.'
'We've worked closely with them for a long time to help streamline their operations, help their centres and students access their teaching material easily. We've been able to create sites to help facilitate that exchange of information, get as much as we can online, to help Signature provide and manage their services.'
'We've supported them and helped them to grow and evolve as an organisation, in the way they provide their information and facilitate that delivery and assessment of their qualifications.'
Signature's Hall of Fame
Signature's Hall of Fame event is intended to celebrate the last 40 years of Signature, by recognising the achievements of individuals and organisations that have improved access for people who are deaf, improved communication for people who are deaf, as well as those who have worked and campaigned to improve the lives of deaf people in the UK.
Signature will be collating a short list of 50 individuals, teams and organisations, with 10 being inducted into the Signature Hall of Fame. Signature are hoping to hear from those who have really made a difference, and had an impact on the deaf community. Nominations are open until Friday 29th July at 5pm.
Why are we sponsoring Signature's Hall of Fame?
'The work that Signature do is so important,' says Adam. 'Signature has really helped those who are interested in British Sign Language access accredited training, and they also campaign to promote British Sign Language and improve accessibility for the deaf community. It is just an incredible charity.'
'Transcendit decided to sponsor Signature's Hall of Fame event because the event isn't only a celebration of Signature's impact, but the impact of other individuals and organisations who have helped the deaf community,' says Adam. 'We're very pleased and excited to sponsor the Hall of Fame, particularly this year when British Sign Language has been made an official minority language in the UK.'
'There are 12 million adults with hearing loss in the UK, 151,000 using British Sign Language and countless more hearing people that are using BSL. That's a huge amount of people, and individuals and organisations who are helping improve their lives deserve to be recognised and celebrated.'
To nominate a person, group or organisation for Signature's Hall of Fame, visit their website
