University hosts creative workshop for deaf school students

The University of Wolverhampton recently hosted a workshop day for deaf school pupils giving them a flavour of working in creative industries.  

Pupils from Braidwood School for the Deaf and St Matthias School attended the workshop and participated in a number of activities, supported by two University British Sign Language Interpreters (Louise Rhodes and Richard Breeze) and three deaf students (Molly Thomas, Miah Ireson-Meese and Olivia Jordan-Caws) from the University.  

Each school sent three members of staff who were either deaf themselves or signed or both to support the school children. Members of staff from the City of Wolverhampton’s Council Sensory Inclusion Service also attended.   

Activities included creating character profiles, hand designing their own costumes, using collages to bring their design to life and then to have their work photographed in illustrative dioramas.  

Another workshop took place at the Wolverhampton Screen School and involved the students working both in front of and behind the camera. Students were given the opportunity to interview each other about their day, what they enjoyed most and to describe the design they had created in the previous workshop. Pupils also had the opportunity to visit the production gallery.  

A presentation was also played which focused on staff talking about the careers involved in their subject areas. The presentation also highlighted the careers of deaf graduates from the University, including Chris Fonseca, now Co-Artistic Director at Fuse Theatre CIC, and Hamza Shaikh and Abigail Gorman, Board Members at the British Deaf Association.   

Reflecting on the day, Paula Harrison, Access, Skills and Widening Participation Coordinator at the University, said: “The day went very well and it gave pupils an opportunity to be on a University campus, see the brilliant facilities, hear about courses at the University and what other students with lived experience have gone on to do in their careers. This was extremely powerful in terms of raising the aspirations of the school pupils. 

“One of the key messages from the day was that creative industries don’t work in silos, and this was demonstrated by offering multi-disciplinary workshops. 

“It is vitally important that the University continues to raise aspirations; help break down barriers and promote accessibility and inclusivity for all those who are underrepresented in Higher Education.  

“The Access, Skills and Widening Participation department already run several programmes and activities for underrepresented groups of all ages. However, we are always looking for new projects and ways to engage with our partners and communities. This is the start of another exciting new partnership, and we look forward to developing this area of work even further.”  

Anyone interested in studying for courses at the Faculty of Arts, Business and Social Sciences at the University of Wolverhampton should register for one of our forthcoming Open Days.