EMPAC encourages all our readers to get involved and support new research from the midlands which is about tackling domestic violence and abuse using new SmartSafeSigning. The research team from the Universities of Wolverhampton and Lancaster have partnered with Women’s Aid, SignHealth, and West Midlands Police to explore how D/deaf British Sign Language (BSL) signers who are survivors of domestic violence and abuse experience accessing the criminal justice system and support services.
The research is exploring the nature, role and impact of technology use (e.g. BSL999, SignLive/Convo, Video interpreter technology etc.) as a tool to facilitate access to such services. researchers would now like to find police professionals to volunteer to take part in an interview to inform the research.
About the research
Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) Catalyst Award funding has been for a two-year project named ‘SmartSafeSigning: Deaf inclusion in domestic violence and abuse support and the Criminal Justice System.’ The project launched on 1st Feb 2025.
The project is looking at how technology can help facilitate a more practical process of access to support and the Criminal Justice System (CJS) for deaf victims of domestic violence and abuse (DVA). The project will explore whether deaf victims, police and professionals supporting such victims feel interpreter-technology would be useful or indeed, desired by the parties involved. Additionally, it will also look at the potential role and impact of new uses of technology within this context.
The research team is Dr Karlie Stonard, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Dr Christopher Stone, Reader in Interpreting and Translation, both from the University of Wolverhampton, along with an ex-colleague from the University, Dr John McDaniel (now Lecturer in Crime and Criminal Justice at Lancaster University); working with local domestic abuse support services including Women’s Aid, West Midlands Police and SignHealth (a national deaf charity).
See more information here: https://www.wlv.ac.uk/research/smart-safe-signing/
Dr Stonard said: “A key finding from our pilot study exploring practitioners’ experiences of supporting deaf victims of DVA was that victims and survivors often experience significant delays in access to the CJS. Victims are frequently met with communication barriers which result in delays in access or progression through the CJS which can often be explained due to a lack of deaf awareness or the limited utilisation of interpreting services which should be a statutory provision. Our current project seeks to expand on this by exploring the role, use, strengths and limitations of technology in facilitating access to such services. The funding will allow us to expand and strengthen our research by continuing to work with our partners as well as partnering with West Midlands Police. We hope to expand the current project by also reaching out to direct victim-survivors of DVA who are either deaf or British Sign Language (BSL) users.”
Get in touch
Please contact @ email Karlie or smartsafesigning@wlv.ac.uk.
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