Customer service is being taken to a new level by a Dorset-based housing association.

3/17/2010

Staff at Magna Housing Group are learning British Sign Language in a bid to communicate more effectively with their staff and clients. The social housing landlord owns and manages more than 9,000 properties across the West Country, with a number of its tenants either deaf or hard of hearing.

Staff at Magna Housing Group are learning British Sign Language in a bid to communicate more effectively with their staff and clients.  The social housing landlord owns and manages more than 9,000 properties across the West Country, with a number of its tenants either deaf or hard of hearing.

Training is being provided by Lyme Bay BSL and endorsed by Signature, the national British Sign Language awarding body.  Sally Huggins, Magna’s equality and diversity policy officer, explained: “Equality and diversity are areas of extreme importance at Magna. It is vital that we cater for all our residents and having staff who are able to offer sign language will be a big help to many”.

“Often people who are deaf or hard of hearing can feel very isolated, especially when it comes to important issues such as housing, claiming housing benefit and understanding other services available to them. Having staff who can effectively communicate will help enormously and I’m sure it will be a big comfort to those with hearing problems.”

A total of six employees are undergoing training and will be available to assist tenants at the organisation’s offices in Dorchester and Williton, West Somerset.

Staff undertook their first exams in February and have two more exams before the end of the training in July.  One of those learning sign language is Kate Carpenter who works in Magna’s Legal Department.
Kate added, “The opportunity to learn sign language was one I felt I couldn’t turn down. It is a great skill to have, both from a work and personal point of view.
The training itself has been very enjoyable and it really makes you appreciate the difficulties experienced by deaf and hard of hearing people on a daily basis.
I’m delighted to now have the ability to communicate more effectively with those colleagues and tenants who have hearing problems and I’d encourage anyone to learn this amazing new skill.”

Lyme Bay BSL, based in Charmouth, is run by tutor Kate Fowler, who was born profoundly deaf. Kate has been a British Sign Language and Deaf Awareness teacher for 17 years and a  Signature assessor for five years.