![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
I use Speech to Text Reporting "STTR" as my preferred communication support in some situations.
STTR allows me to
1) Use my residual hearing with hearing aids and lipreading to get what I can from speakers.
2) Benefit from my fast reading speed and excellent memory for things I have seen in text.
Successfully getting STTR provided by organisations, conferences, events etc can however be challenging as:
People often don't know what STTR is or how to book it.
People ask repeatedly if a "signer" is needed instead and when told "No, STTR is needed" refuse to listen or believe the only communication support they can arrange for deaf and HOH people relates to sign language.
Non-STTR support options like respeaking or electronic notetaking are booked instead and described as STTR.
People believe deaf/HOH people who don't sign fluently can't be deaf enough to need communication support.
Organisations simply don't respond to the request and ignore communications about it.
Large government organisations like DWP, HMRC and the NHS are all guilty of many or all of these; as are a a maddening number of "disability" organisations, who really ought to know better.
Don't get mad, control the situation
So when I request STTR I try to give the person I am contacting everything they need and guidance on how to do it right by sending something like the following
Emails like the above often work well. It gives organisations an opportunity to do it right or talk to me about any problems they have while there is still time to resolve them. Sometimes I suspect an event which is unfunded and low/free entry can't afford STTR so I'll ask them to let me know if they are unfunded and use my AtW budget but I have to try first to be allowed to do that.
Where an organisation claims they will meet my access needs I have learned to not trust any standard-email sent to all delegates claiming access requests will be met or anything short of a confirmed named STTR/agency booking. If concrete information is not forthcoming I have to chase it as that's a sign screwups are happening.
Where I don't get a response to my access-requests or STTR (or other adjustments) are not provided I need to remember I am entitled to complain and if necessary make it clear that the organisation is in breach of their Equality Act duties to make reasonable adjustments for me.
As both Rob and Melissa reminded me tonight on twitter a lot of this is basic customer service! I sometimes forget that I'm entitled to that as well.
Random question - do BSL users get given the 'wrong' type of communication support such as lipspeakers and STTR?
STTR allows me to
1) Use my residual hearing with hearing aids and lipreading to get what I can from speakers.
2) Benefit from my fast reading speed and excellent memory for things I have seen in text.
Successfully getting STTR provided by organisations, conferences, events etc can however be challenging as:
Large government organisations like DWP, HMRC and the NHS are all guilty of many or all of these; as are a a maddening number of "disability" organisations, who really ought to know better.
Don't get mad, control the situation
So when I request STTR I try to give the person I am contacting everything they need and guidance on how to do it right by sending something like the following
Dear Organiser/organisation,
Re: $EVENT on $DATE at $LOCATION
Please can you arrange Speech to Text Reporting (STTR) communication support for $EVENT so that I can access it as I am deaf. In case you haven't heard of it, an excellent explanation of what STTR is can be found at http://121captions.com/communication-support-speech-to-text/.
I believe in-person STTR is likely to be most appropriate in terms of reliability and quality of support. Due to the length of the event it is likely that two STTR operators will be needed to co-work together. The STTR operators need to be registered with the NRCPD at http://www.nrcpd.org.uk/.
Alternative communication support such as Electronic Notetaking, British Sign Language (BSL) or Respeaking are not acceptable substitutes for my access needs. It is important that it is STTR that you provide.
There are two main ways you can arrange reliable STTR support:
1) The easiest is to contact my preferred agency $AGENCY on bookings@$AGENCY.com - their website is www.$AGENCY.com. I recommend this agency because they prioritise reliability and quality of provision and communicate promptly and effectively with clients.
2) Another way which involves you doing more work is to go to the Association of Verbatim Speech to Text Reporters (AVSTTR) website at http://avsttr.org.uk, click on book a reporter link and provide the details of $EVENT.
It is important that you start the process of booking STTR as soon as possible because it can be difficult to arrange support with less than $TIME notice.
I am happy for you to tell either $AGENCY or AVSTTR that the job is for me by name as $AGENCY and many STTR operators know me well.
At least 3-4 days before $EVENT the STTR operators and I will need draft copies of any slides and any materials which outline likely vocabulary so that appropriate preparation can be made. Good preparation materials hugely increase the speed and accuracy of an STTR's captions.
At $EVENT itself the STTR operators will need to be provided with at least 4 power sockets near to their seating; height-adjustable chairs without arms and a table to hold the captions-screen on it for me to read. It is usually best to place the STTR ops and me towards the front of the room in such a way that I can see the main speakers and the STTR screen. If you have access to a large screen ensuring the STTRs can connect to it via VGA cables makes the captions available to everyone. STTR operators are usually able to advise on suitable locations or I can arrive early and help too.
Please can you reply to me as soon as possible letting me know which agencies or STTR operators have confirmed a booking to provide STTR for this $EVENT. If you have any questions or concerns at any time, please do not hesitate to let me know.
I look forward to hearing back from you.
SIGNOFF
Emails like the above often work well. It gives organisations an opportunity to do it right or talk to me about any problems they have while there is still time to resolve them. Sometimes I suspect an event which is unfunded and low/free entry can't afford STTR so I'll ask them to let me know if they are unfunded and use my AtW budget but I have to try first to be allowed to do that.
Where an organisation claims they will meet my access needs I have learned to not trust any standard-email sent to all delegates claiming access requests will be met or anything short of a confirmed named STTR/agency booking. If concrete information is not forthcoming I have to chase it as that's a sign screwups are happening.
Where I don't get a response to my access-requests or STTR (or other adjustments) are not provided I need to remember I am entitled to complain and if necessary make it clear that the organisation is in breach of their Equality Act duties to make reasonable adjustments for me.
As both Rob and Melissa reminded me tonight on twitter a lot of this is basic customer service! I sometimes forget that I'm entitled to that as well.
Random question - do BSL users get given the 'wrong' type of communication support such as lipspeakers and STTR?
