The Role of the Local Society -

Lynn Grant Tayside Association for the Deaf

I interpret at the Theatre, usually Saturday Matinees, and quite often people fall asleep. One lady snores as she falls forward, so I am prepared for people who fall asleep. The after lunch slot is always difficult. I am here today representing Tayside association for the deaf and also SCOD an umbrella organisation for Deaf people.

I have always worked for the same local society. I started 25 years ago as a trainee social worker for Dundee Association for the Deaf. Then the branch in Inverness changed its name and dropped the Western Isles several years ago. I speak from a social worker’s perspective.

The teaching of deaf people was originally started by the church, who thought it was important for deaf people to learn about religion. Missionaries used sign to communicate with deaf people.

In 1968 the Social Work Scotland Act began a new profession, social work. Local authorities looked at their services for deaf people and used existing societies for qualified social workers. Local authorities funded social work services which had derived from welfare services.

In 1975 regional authorities began. The Highland branch of the society closed. Now with the disaggregating of the regions, I work with three local authorities and I have three contracts. Deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing voluntary societies have a sense of purpose and think it is the best service.

Voluntary Societies provide a statutory service, a professional social work service. Also, societies offer more than social work alone can. Sign Language Interpreter, lip speaking, British Sign Language courses, lip reading classes, the deaf clubs in Edinburgh and Glasgow. Aberdeen have similar services.

We have to work in partnership with local authorities. We have been slow to work with blind organisations. Sensory Impairment is now one area and we had not seen the connection before. Only sign language users would normally be serviced by deaf society.

The wider public need a better understanding of deafness. We would welcome Sensory Impairment groups on Strategic Planning. There needs to be more interface between national and local societies with a clarity of purpose and transparency.

Fiona Sandford from Glasgow and West of Scotland Society for the Blind.

For the benefit of visually impaired people here, I have no overheads today so there is nothing you can’t see.

I can talk about what a local society does. What is the future for blind local societies say in 20 years time? I am the only person here representing a blind society. There are 9 societies for the blind in Scotland, Visual Impaired Services East of Scotland, Perth and Kinross Society for the Blind, Forfar Society for the Blind founded 1969, Fife Society for the Blind founded 1865, Highland Society for the Blind, Dundee Society for the Blind, Grampian Society for the Blind founded 1879, Dumfries and Galloway founded in the 1990’s, Glasgow the first Society founded in 1849 and Edinburgh Society for the blind founded in 1857.

As with the Tayside Deaf Society, the Society for the Blind was started by missionaries who used Moon to teach people the scriptures. Grants were given to people of good character but never women. The first grant was given for the purchase of a pig and in 1921 all grants issued were for the purchase of false teeth.

The question is what role for service users in the future? We should be responsive to people’s needs. How can service users determine what happens in social work and charitable ventures? Contracts with local authorities are securely held by the societies who are already contracted.

Sensory Impairment is a new development. Local Societies won’t be the same in 20 years. They have to compete with national societies and others.

Is it important who delivers the service? Each organisation is involved in income generation. Funders look for evidence of user involvement in societies. This should however be more than just tokenism and there is a real need to make a social project user led.

The society needs to give a good service to users if it is to guarantee its continued existence. There is a real difficulty getting blind people into posts at higher levels. When a recent post was advertised only four blind people applied. This needs to be addressed.