Ambassador groups

STAGETEXT is always looking for 'ambassadors' to raise awareness of captioning among potential audiences and theatres. STAGETEXT ambassadors are deaf, deafened and hard of hearing people who have attended several captioned performances in a variety of venues around the UK. They're usually motivated out of a genuine personal enthusiasm and so are ideally placed to sell the accessibility that captioning provides.

Ambassadors play a key role in increasing awareness and demand for captioned performances among local deaf, deafened and hard of hearing communities, theatres and the media.

Sheffield Caption Support Group

Local groups and organisations working with deaf, deafened and hard of hearing people have already been successful in helping to introduce captioning to their local theatre.

Sheffield Caption Support Group (SCSG), right, has successfully campaigned for more captioned shows at Sheffield Theatres, raising funds for the purchase of caption units. Recently the group secured funding from Westfield Health to purchase equipment for use at Sheffield City Hall. Read the story here.

For more information on SCSG and how to join, contact Joanne Robinson, Administrator.

ACT - Derbyshire

ACT (Accessing Captioned Performances - Derbyshire) is based in Chesterfield and travels far afield, often down to London, to see captioned shows together with their Sheffield colleagues. The groups also organise other social activities including rambles, coffee mornings and days out, making it a great opportunity to meet new friends.

For more information on ACT and how to join, contact Sally Williams.

West London Hard of Hearing Group

The West London Hard of Hearing group was established in 2009 in Ealing and since then has attended many captioned performances of popular shows including Billy Elliot, Wicked (pictured) and War Horse. They usually meet for a drink or lunch before the show and many often go on to have dinner afterwards. The group also meets up at Tate Modern and at other arts venues which offer accessible talks with speech-to-text.

The trips have proved extremely popular and the group has been able to create a community spirit which has helped some people to feel less isolated. Members travel from as far as Nottingham to meet up and enjoy a day out at the theatre with their friends.

For further information on the group, please email Lidia Best: best-nadp@hotmail.co.uk

Further information

For information on STAGETEXT Ambassadors and how you can help, please contact Lynn Jackson, Communications Officer.