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A 'second home' for Bristol's deaf community | Bristol News
It must be the quietest Christmas party I've ever been to. For a moment, as I step into the Bristol Centre for the Deaf, I start to wonder whether I've got the wrong day.
But as I walk through the entrance lobby of the King Square building, I realise that the large meeting hall is filled with dozens of members of Bristol's deaf community, all cheerfully tucking into their Christmas party dinner.
The room is a flurry of expressive hand gestures, as the party-goers chat excitedly – in sign language. Of course. The only sound is the penny dropping at the back of my head.
At the front of the room, a small choir dressed in elaborate Victorian garb is performing the classic carol, Silent Night.
Only, this version of Silent Night is ... well, totally silent. The entire performance is being signed.
This is nothing new to the hundreds who make use of the Centre for the Deaf every day – here they even have church services that are entirely signed and silent.
It's a way of life that has flourished in King Square for Bristol's deaf community for 125 years.
Former ITV West news presenter, Sherrie Eugene Hart – a long-time supporter of the charity – says the centre has provided a valuable service to deaf people since 1884.
"Deaf people used to come out of the centre, which was originally on the other side of King Square, and if they hadn't finished their conversations, they would carry on signing beneath the gas lamp – where they could see each others' hands.
"As a result, the gas lamp outside in the square has become a kind of symbol for the group." Sherrie began her career as a sign interpreter, working at the centre, before she made her break into television.
"I started signing at a very early age, so that I could communicate with my sister Judy, who is deaf," she explains.
"So I feel a great affinity with the centre.
" It plays a great role in the lives of deaf people in Bristol."
Graham Smith, the current chairman of the Deaf Management Committee says the centre has always been a second home to him.
"Both of my parents were also deaf, so I've been coming here since I was born," he explains, through a sign interpreter.
"I started out in the old building, on the other side of the square, and then we moved into this building in 1961. It really has become my second home.
"It's such an important place for the deaf community in Bristol, but in the coming years, we're hoping to redevelop and modernise the centre, and I hope that will be an opportunity to be more inclusive – to encourage hearing people to come and to play their part in the daily life of the centre."
Among the activities on offer for visitors are lip-reading classes, social clubs and a bar.
"It's a very sociable place," says Lynn Hawkins, secretary for the Deaf Management Committee, who has been coming to the club for more than 40 years.
"I even met my husband John here, 45 years ago," she adds.
"We're still happily married, and we both still come to the centre a few times each week."
Earlier this year Princess Anne visited the centre as part of the organisation's 125th anniversary celebrations.
"It's wonderful for the group to get that kind of recognition for the work it's done over the last 125 years," says Lynn.
Last year John Maslen became the new chief executive of the centre, and he has already started looking towards the future of the building.
"I see a centre that is sustainable," he says. "A centre that does not rely on funding bodies to get by. I believe we have the capacity to build a centre that provides all manner of services.
"So for example, if people need environmental aids, or information on specialist equipment, they would come to us. If people want to learn sign language, they would come to us. If people needed a hearing test, a department here would deal with that, and we would offer training courses to deaf individuals in order to enhance their career prospects. "My vision is to have affordable housing above the centre, where deaf people can live," he adds. "This would sustain us financially. The vision is a grand one but I am determined, with the support of members, we can pull this off."
For more information about the Bristol Centre for the Deaf, visit the website at Centre for Deaf People - Bristol or call 0117 924 9868.
It must be the quietest Christmas party I've ever been to. For a moment, as I step into the Bristol Centre for the Deaf, I start to wonder whether I've got the wrong day.
But as I walk through the entrance lobby of the King Square building, I realise that the large meeting hall is filled with dozens of members of Bristol's deaf community, all cheerfully tucking into their Christmas party dinner.
The room is a flurry of expressive hand gestures, as the party-goers chat excitedly – in sign language. Of course. The only sound is the penny dropping at the back of my head.
At the front of the room, a small choir dressed in elaborate Victorian garb is performing the classic carol, Silent Night.
Only, this version of Silent Night is ... well, totally silent. The entire performance is being signed.
This is nothing new to the hundreds who make use of the Centre for the Deaf every day – here they even have church services that are entirely signed and silent.
It's a way of life that has flourished in King Square for Bristol's deaf community for 125 years.
Former ITV West news presenter, Sherrie Eugene Hart – a long-time supporter of the charity – says the centre has provided a valuable service to deaf people since 1884.
"Deaf people used to come out of the centre, which was originally on the other side of King Square, and if they hadn't finished their conversations, they would carry on signing beneath the gas lamp – where they could see each others' hands.
"As a result, the gas lamp outside in the square has become a kind of symbol for the group." Sherrie began her career as a sign interpreter, working at the centre, before she made her break into television.
"I started signing at a very early age, so that I could communicate with my sister Judy, who is deaf," she explains.
"So I feel a great affinity with the centre.
" It plays a great role in the lives of deaf people in Bristol."
Graham Smith, the current chairman of the Deaf Management Committee says the centre has always been a second home to him.
"Both of my parents were also deaf, so I've been coming here since I was born," he explains, through a sign interpreter.
"I started out in the old building, on the other side of the square, and then we moved into this building in 1961. It really has become my second home.
"It's such an important place for the deaf community in Bristol, but in the coming years, we're hoping to redevelop and modernise the centre, and I hope that will be an opportunity to be more inclusive – to encourage hearing people to come and to play their part in the daily life of the centre."
Among the activities on offer for visitors are lip-reading classes, social clubs and a bar.
"It's a very sociable place," says Lynn Hawkins, secretary for the Deaf Management Committee, who has been coming to the club for more than 40 years.
"I even met my husband John here, 45 years ago," she adds.
"We're still happily married, and we both still come to the centre a few times each week."
Earlier this year Princess Anne visited the centre as part of the organisation's 125th anniversary celebrations.
"It's wonderful for the group to get that kind of recognition for the work it's done over the last 125 years," says Lynn.
Last year John Maslen became the new chief executive of the centre, and he has already started looking towards the future of the building.
"I see a centre that is sustainable," he says. "A centre that does not rely on funding bodies to get by. I believe we have the capacity to build a centre that provides all manner of services.
"So for example, if people need environmental aids, or information on specialist equipment, they would come to us. If people want to learn sign language, they would come to us. If people needed a hearing test, a department here would deal with that, and we would offer training courses to deaf individuals in order to enhance their career prospects. "My vision is to have affordable housing above the centre, where deaf people can live," he adds. "This would sustain us financially. The vision is a grand one but I am determined, with the support of members, we can pull this off."
For more information about the Bristol Centre for the Deaf, visit the website at Centre for Deaf People - Bristol or call 0117 924 9868.