Carlisle United praised by national charity for matchday deaf fan initiative

Carlisle United's initiative to improve matchday experiences for deaf fans has received praise from a national charity.

The club's EDI (equality, diversity, and inclusiveness) tent, situated in the Brunton Park fan zone, has been working to address the needs of potential fans who face barriers in fully enjoying the matchday atmosphere.

Rebecca Kiggins and Shelly Harrison, both of the Cumbria Deaf Association (CDA), staff the tent. The CDA has commended the club's efforts in enhancing accessibility for deaf individuals.

For more information on making workplaces more accessible to deaf people, contact the Cumbria Deaf Association.

Ms Kiggins thinks that their presence is helping to give greater access to all sectors of the community: "For example one in four people in the UK have hearing difficulty or are deaf, in a sporting arena the main way of communicating is often over the loud speakers, which isn’t much help if you are deaf, we're trying to look at alternatives that make a deaf person safe, enjoy the game, and also feel part of the whole event."

Ms Harrison adds that since they have been doing this they have been bowled over by the response from all fans home and away and they genuinely believe that it is doing lots of good for everyone, especially Carlisle’s deaf and hard of hearing fans, saying: "Carlisle United are quite literally trailblazing in this respect and we'd like to thank them for opening their doors - and their minds, to this initiative."

Cumbria Deaf Associations CEO, Caroline Howsley, said: "this is an exciting excellent initiative and has been a real success for both the CDA and CUFC I'd like to see it replicated in other events right across the county, and when others see how well it works, right across the country."