Having been told that BSL was for “stupid” children when she was in Primary School, Deaf Friendly’s owner and Director Sarah Lawrence has been championing access to BSL by all deaf children ever since. Having set up PremierBSL Limited to provide student’s access to full Level 1 and 2 BSL courses through an online distance learning course, Sarah has decided to offer free access to these courses to any deaf child from birth to 25 living in Wales.
The Level 1 and Level 2 courses are usually sold at £135 and £175 respectively, and have been used by learners to achieve formal Ofqual regulated BSL qualifications. As pre-recorded courses, learners are able to learn BSL at their convenience, whenever and wherever they happen to be, whether that is for a 5-minute drop in session, or a more structured hour session online. Feedback on these courses has been overwhelming.
“This is no gimmick of an offer to give FREE access”, said Sarah. “I was denied BSL when in school by my Teacher of the Deaf, and yet BSL has defined my life, giving me an income, a social life and access to the post school world. My teacher of the deaf might have been well-meaning, but it frightens me to think of what I might have done with my life, had I not found my own route to learning and flourishing through BSL. With my businesses doing alright, I can offer deaf youngsters free access to my courses, and I am delighted to do so.”
To get free access, young people will have to prove their age and that they are deaf. An email to sarah2@premierbsl.co.uk is all that is needed to gain access to the online courses. Learners will have to pay for their own exam fees.