Abstract
How the police prepare for and engage with a citizen who is deaf and uses British Sign Language (BSL) is a national problem. From the perspective of deaf sign language users, the police remain largely inaccessible and unprepared in how to accommodate their linguistic needs. Four regional forces have responded to this issue by introducing a local solution, a bespoke 101 non-emergency video relay service (101VRS). Independent VRS companies function as the auxiliary service, mediating video calls to a 101 helpline. This service was identified as a simple solution that relied on minimal resourcing and input from the police. In using Pinch and Bijker’s social construction of technology (SCOT) framework, we look at competing interpretations of the 101VRS concept and how this has led to a range of intended and unintended solutions and problems (Pinch TJ and Bijker WE (1984) The social construction of facts and artefacts: or how the sociology of science and the sociology of technology might benefit each other. Social Studies of Science 14(3): 399–441). To maintain the investment in improving access to the police, we recommend harmonization of 101VRS nationally, and ongoing consultation with how front-line services can become better prepared at assisting deaf citizens.
Highlights
How the police assist or deal with a deaf sign language user is a national issue, especially for unplanned encounters
This study focuses on the early stages of introducing video relay service (VRS) across four regional police forces and how technology was viewed as a solution to improve access to specific front-line services
The presentation of results focuses first on the technical frame: why 101 non-emergency VRS platform (101VRS) and not a broader solution that included video remote interpreting (VRI)? The discussion moves on to the actual experiences in using the 101VRS platform. This includes the interpreters’ experience, those who held the most experience in fielding 101VRS calls
Summary
How the police assist or deal with a deaf sign language user is a national issue, especially for unplanned encounters. Unlike Braun et al.’s (2018) findings, VRS and VRI platforms have been developed for spoken–signed language interpreter-mediated communication These technical solutions are often introduced with conditions of use and subsequently become objects of politics (Alley, 2019; Brunson, 2011; Haualand, 2014; Napier et al, 2017; Skinner et al, 2018). The 101VRS model being developed in the UK is substantially different, and there is regular communication between a regional force and their nominated VRS provider This network of actors is small scale, how this closed group define and resolve access to front-line police services for deaf BSL citizens is of interest to this study. Ethical approval was received from the Heriot-Watt University School of Management and Languages Ethics Review Committee
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