Royal Association for Deaf people

RAD works with Deaf people, mainly those who are profoundly deaf from birth or a young age,who communicate in British Sign Language (BSL). Our services are: Advice, Advocacy, Children & Families,Community Development,Employment Skills & Transitions,Interpreting & Social Care.Adult sign language users at 0.3% of the population rising to 0.5% in London (GP Survey),however, Deaf people are over-represented among isolated, vulnerable and hard-to-reach groups, and 4 times more likely to be unemployed. They lack access to information, advice and opportunities to gain skills.Literacy can be low – average reading age for Deaf school-leavers is 8-9 years.RAD has pioneered effective ways of working with Deaf people and providing accessible services.We are a Deaf-led organisation; most of our Trustees are Deaf and all frontline staff have fluent BSL, many also being Deaf with experience of the barriers clients face. This shapes our organisational culture and how we deliver services.