Signature (legally CACDP and formerly The Council for the Advancement of Communication with Deaf People) is a charity in the whose aim is to improve communication between deaf and hearing people in the United Kingdom. Signature offers a portfolio of qualifications in British Sign Language and other forms of communication with deaf and deafblind people.
Contents
Qualification portfolio
All of Signature's qualifications are accredited by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) and appear on the National Vocational Qualification framework. Signature Qualifications are available at centres across the UK.
The full list of Signature qualifications is as follows:
BSL/ISL
Deaf Awareness/Issues
Vision
The collective vision of Signature is one of an inclusive society where deaf people experience no communication barriers. In its 25 years the charity has raised awareness and promoted skills, and standards, in the languages and communication methods that deaf people use.
Signature have overcome many obstacles to become the recognised professional registration body for interpreters, lipspeakers, speech-to-text-reporters and others providing language access services, and one of the top awarding bodies in the UK.
Deaf people are still excluded, overlooked and discriminated against in our society. There are far too few professionals offering language access services. CACDP know too few schools teach BSL or even tactics for communicating with deaf people. We know far too few people are formally qualified to teach BSL. Signature's work remains as important now as it was on the day the charity was established.
Signature exists to provide knowledge and recognise skills in the languages and communication methods used by deaf people. Over twenty-five years Signature has been highly successful, more than 280,000 candidates have entered for assessments and the number of professionals registered to offer language access services has grown to over 600. Signature's work has also had an appreciable effect on public policy and service provision helping to shift the emphasis from a paternalistic welfare model to one based on rights and inclusion.
Signature has been privileged to contribute to several important developments in their sector. Every Sign Language Interpreter, Lipspeaker and Speech-to-text reporter now working in courts and police stations must be Signature registered. Projects to improve inclusion for deaf people in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales backed by the devolved administrations are in various states of development and delivery. The report on access to communication in English for deaf people has raised awareness of the access issues for the greatest number of deaf people.
Until 2009 Signature was known by the name CACDP.