A new report published by RAD questions the effectiveness of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (the DDA) and asks why barriers still exist for D/deaf people. Funded by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, the report examines people’s understanding of the DDA, the types of barriers that D/deaf people encounter and draws recommendations for these barriers to be effectively addressed, enabling D/deaf people to have full access in mainstream society.

The aim of the study is to establish factors to why barriers still exists for d/Deaf people despite the existence of the DDA more than 10 years since it was enacted. The study involves collecting data from a wide variety of organisations through the survey questionnaires and d/Deaf people through interviews, in relation to specific areas as listed below:

Deafness:
• How organisations interpret the meaning of the term ‘deafness’; and
• How d/Deaf people communicate with their hearing counterparts.

Disability Discrimination Act 1995:
• The overall aim of the DDA;
• The definition of disability in relation to d/Deaf people;
• How the term ‘reasonable adjustments’ is being interpreted; and
• How accessible d/Deaf people find the information and guidelines available on the DDA.

Barriers:
• Experiences of barriers which d/Deaf people have encountered and how they are affected as a consequence; and
• The perspective of the organisations on the types of barriers d/Deaf people face and how they are affected.

A summary of data findings

In terms of deafness, most organisations in the mainstream setting demonstrate a good knowledge of the various degrees of deafness and different communication needs, such as BSL/English interpreting, textphones, emails and text messaging. However, most interviewee’s perspectives of deafness are mainly rooted within the medical model, focusing on the individual’s impairments. A few organisations illustrated an awareness of deafness by way of the social model as they made reference to communication barriers within society.

Regarding the aim of the DDA, the overall findings show that the DDA is a confusing and ineffective piece of legislation. Most interviewee’s were clearly aware of the DDA, but their understanding of the aim of the DDA was purely focused on the enforcement model rather than as a method to pre-empt discrimination.
Responses received from mainstream organisations revealed that most of them relied upon the medical model of disability when establishing the definition of ‘disability’, whereas, most deaf organisations focus on barriers within society and a definition which relies upon the social model of disability.

The term ‘reasonable adjustment’ is one of the obvious parts of the DDA. Although the majority of interviewee’s and organisations demonstrated knowledge of the type of adjustments which can be applied, many were apparently not aware of the relevance of the word ‘reasonable’. It appears that some d/Deaf people have high expectations of the DDA than may realistically be the case. Access to information and guidelines about the DDA are provided in BSL and easy-read English formats on the Equality and Human Rights Commission website. Unfortunately, most respondents did not demonstrate awareness of this and therefore have only had access to standard literature, which is often impenetrable due to a considerable amount of jargon used within the text.

Despite the DDA having been in force for more than ten years, most interviewees continue to encounter barriers within the field of goods and services and at least half encountered problems in employment.
Various types of barriers have been described, and are attributable to the misconception of d/Deaf people in applying the medical rather than social model and communication difficulties which affect interaction between d/Deaf people and hearing peers.

We have established that the factors which impede the ability to tackle these barriers are:

1. a blinkered perception of d/Deaf people, stemming from the medical model’s perception of deafness;
2. a lack of understanding about the DDA among d/Deaf people leading to incorrect steps being taken in having barriers addressed;
3. how fully the Act itself is understood by all parties involved; and
4. a lack of understanding on the communication and cultural differences, which could be bridged by BSL/English Interpreters.

There are knock-on consequences that need to be considered: d/Deaf people develop low self-esteem, lose their self-confidence and, in some cases, become depressed or develop other mental health issues. Statistics have identified that in comparison with their hearing counterparts, the number of d/Deaf people suffering from mental health illness is much higher.

Information and guidelines about the DDA and the subsequent legislation, such as the single Equality Bill could be provided in a more accessible format for d/Deaf people, service providers and/or employers. This could be achieved by establishing workshops to raise awareness and understanding of the DDA and the subsequent legislation among d/Deaf people and service providers/employers. d/Deaf individuals could be empowered in taking correct steps in having barriers addressed, and this could lead to good relations between them and their hearing counterparts. This would then hopefully reduce the prevalence of disability discrimination.

To download a full copy of the report, click here.