Signs point to top award for teacher Janice

Story from Blackpool Gazette – Blackpool teacher Janice Crossland-Jones is in line for a top award honouring those who help bridge the communication gap between the hearing and the deaf.

Janice, who runs Fylde Coast BSL Centre in Dickson Road, is in the running for the Teacher of the Year in the North West regional finals of the Signature Award.

Signature, the only charity that champions excellence in communication with deaf people, will announce its regional winners this week. And if Janice gets through she will be in the national final in November. The awards are designed to recognise and reward those who have made, in their own way, a significant contribution toward achieving a society in which deaf and deafblind people have full access.

Profoundly deaf herself, Janice set up the BSL centre in Blackpool in 2007, and since then she and her team have taught hundreds of people, children and adults, to sign. British Sign Language is her language and before founding her school she taught in a number of places including universities in the North West and London. She said: "In these socially aware times, more and more people want to enhance their lives by learning signing. They may have a member of their family or a friend who is deaf, or they may just want to make friends with the deaf. I have taught people from every walk of life. Sign language has no barriers.

Signature Chief Executive, Jim Edwards, said: "We’ve been thrilled by the variety of teachers and learners nominated this year. These individuals are truly remarkable and have clearly made a huge impression on the people who nominated them. It will be hard to pick our winners as they all deserve so much credit."

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