Kerry Deaf Resource Centre Update 19.12.11
ACCESS POLICY FOR DEAF, HARD OF HEARING, DEAFENED, DEAFBLIND.
Over the past number of years, our service has been campaigning for improved
access to Government Depts, Public Bodies and to services funded by the
Government. Over the years, we have seen organisations such as the Institute
of Technology excel and offer a best practice model for access for our
clients. On the other hand, we have seen other agencies fail and refuse to
provide any form of access. With the current economic climate, the issue of
access is still high on the agenda for organisations such as the ITT but
other agencies are further alienating and discriminating our client group.
This is a clear breach of their obligations under The Equal Status Acts and
The Disability Act.
During the past two years, we have been working with the HSE nationally to
develop an access policy. This is slowly going through the various stages of
the HSE and we hope to see a national policy introduced in time. The
national Sign Language Interpreting Service has convened a working group to
look at the HSE draft policy, which we co-authored.
In the meantime, we have produced a draft generic policy, which may be of
use to Government Depts, Public Bodies and service providers. It could also
be of use to those in the Deaf, hard of hearing, deafened and deafblind
community. You may be working with service providers that could benefit from
a policy being introduced and implemented. For those on our email lists, the
policy is attached. For those who read our notes in local media, please
contact us and we will send you a copy. The policy is written in a way that
it can be easily amended to suit your needs or the needs of an organisation.
If you want further clarification on it, please contact us. If you use the
policy in any way, we would appreciate it if you could make reference to our
service in some way.
Sign Language Interpreting and Communication Support Access.doc
SUPPORTER OF THE YEAR AWARDS.
Last week, we shared with you some feedback we got from this years award
winners. This week, in an email to us, Cork Deaf Association said the
following: “It will mean a lot to staff – they work so very hard. It means
even more because the CDA has huge respect for the KDRC. That’s not lip
service -you are known for getting things done and for your genuine
commitment to Deaf and hard of hearing issues. It really is an honour to be
honoured by the KDRC! Thank you again and here’s to another year of
‘getting things done”
On their facebook page, CDA went on to say, “The Kerry Deaf Resource Centre
(KDRC) has honoured the Cork Deaf Association with an Outstanding
Contribution Award for services to Deaf people in Kerry. This means the
world to us and we can’t thank you all enough. The dedication and incredibly
hard work of KDRC Manager Willie White and all of the staff continue to
inspire us as an agency. Thank you!!”
On behalf of KDRC, we would like to thank everyone for their kind words- it
means alot to us too.
CHRISTMAS EVE MASS WITH SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETER.
Veronica White from the National Chaplaincy for Deaf People will be
interpreting a vigil mass in the Dominican’s Church in Tralee at 7.30pm. As
this will be a busy mass, it is advisable to get in early. A seat towards
near the altar is advisable for sign language users.
THANK YOU TO STAFF/VOLUNTEERS.
We are closing up for Christmas holidays at 5pm on the 22nd and will reopen
on the 4th of January. We would like to thank our staff and volunteers for
their commitment and hard work this year.
With funding cuts and increased demands for services, this has been a
challenging year for our service. The dedication and work ethic of our
current staff has been outstanding. We appreciate all your hard work.
Have a lovely Christmas and best wishes for 2012. Looking forward to working
with you all again in the New Year.
Lastly, to all our clients and service users, we would like to thank you
also. A special word of thanks to all those who have given us chocolates,
biscuits, cookies, gifts, donations and cards- it is greatly appreciated.
OUR CONTACT DETAILS:
Kerry Deaf Resource Centre
4 Gas Tce, Tralee
Mobile (text): 087 633 4687
E-mail: [email protected]
www.kerrydeaf.com
www.facebook.com/kerrydeaf
Fax: 066 712 0386
Tel: 066 712 0399