Chaplaincy among Deaf and Deafblind People

The Church of England believes that Deaf and Deafblind people have an equal right to access the life and worship of their local parish and Diocese. The Chaplaincy exists to enable people who are Deaf or Deafblind to play a full part in the life of the Church, at every level. This is achieved through having a full-time Chaplain, supported and encouraged by the Diocesan Deaf Working Group, chaired by the Archdeacon of Charing Cross, the Ven Dr William Jacob.

The Revd Anne Richardson was appointed as Chaplain in November 2005. She is hearing but is able to communicate in British Sign Language, having gained the NVQ Level 3. BSL is the language of the Deaf Community in Britain.

The Role of the Chaplaincy among Deaf & Deafblind people

Part of the Chaplain’s role is to be of service to parishes around the Diocese. For example, you may wish to contact the Chaplain:

• When you have a Deaf, BSL-user come to your church, either for a special service, or wanting to come regularly
• When a Deaf, BSL-user comes for baptism or confirmation, and you need to be able to include them in special classes
• When you have a funeral service, and some of the family or friends are Deaf
• When you have hearing people in your congregation who are learning BSL and want to use their skills within the church
• When you want to encourage your church Signer in their ministry
• When you want a speaker to come to inform your congregation about the work of the Chaplaincy and the Deaf Church, whether by speaking to a group or preaching during a service
• When you want to include Deaf people in your outreach events

Please contact the Chaplain by email: The Chaplain has written some guidance notes on how to communicate with Deaf people.

The Deaf Church in London

www.londondeafchurch.co.uk

The Deaf Church provides regular opportunities for worship, fellowship and pastoral support, all in BSL. At the moment, the Diocese of London Deaf Church meets for worship regularly at two Deaf Centres:

St Saviour’s Centre for the Deaf,
1 Armstrong Road, Acton, London. W3 7LJ
on the 1st Sunday of the month at 3pm and the 4th Wednesday of the month at 11.30am

and

The Crown Centre
The Pavilion, Kingston Playing Field, Chestnut Avenue, Yiewsley, West Drayton, Middlesex; UB7 8BT
on the 3rd Sunday of the month at 3pm, and the 1st Tuesday at 11am.

A programme of dates and times for the year is available at both Deaf centres, or from the Chaplain. It is hoped that more services can be offered in different parts of the city in the future.

The Chaplaincy also assists and encourages Parishes to make their worship accessible to Deaf and Deafblind people, by providing interpreters and communicators. This is in the early stages of development, so for more details, please contact the Chaplain.

To contact the Chaplain for more information or to arrange a training or informative event in your parish:

Write to: Diocesan House, 36 Causton Street, London SW1P 4AU
Phone: 020 7932 1253 (voice only with voice answermachine)
Fax: 020 7932 1120
Email:
Mobile: 0781 188 8019