British Deaf Association

The BDA’s mission is to ensure a world in which the language, culture, community, diversity and heritage of Deaf people in the UK is respected and fully protected, ensuring that Deaf people can participate and contribute as equal and valued citizens in the wider society.

This is achieved through:

• Improving the quality of life by empowering Deaf individuals and groups;
• Enhancing freedom, equality and diversity;
• Protecting and promoting BSL.

We aim to act as guardians of BSL by:

1. Protecting our Deaf culture and Identity derived from belonging to a cultural and linguistic group, sharing similar beliefs and experiences with a sense of belonging.
2. Asserting our linguistic rights using BSL as a human right. As such, BSL must be preserved, protected and promoted.
3. Fostering our community with diverse perspectives, experiences and abilities. We are committed to equality and the elimination of all forms of discrimination.
4. Achieving equality in legal, civil and human rights such as the right to receive education and access to information in sign language, and freedom from political restrictions on our opportunities to become full citizens.
5. Developing our alliance because they share our vision and mission, and support our BSL community.

The BDA’s successful BSL Act Now! campaign for legal recognition of BSL as the language of England, Wales and Scotland would not have been possible without gifts in Wills.

Legacies have allowed us to recruit a Policy & Research Lead to ensure our language, BSL, is preserved for future generations.