signalong

[support worker]

just wanted to say how brilliant signalong is.i have been working with a service user who was new to me and this has helped
tremendously.communication is so much easier now and
misunderstandings are minimum.keep up the good work

[Signalong]

Thank you so much for your encouragement. We know that Signalong works (we wouldn't be here otherwise), but it's great to hear from people in the front line. We would welcome a report of your work for our newsletter due out later this year if you could manage it!

Mike

[sharonhore]

It certainly does work. Communication is so important and using a system that enables someone to understand us or be understood more clearly is fab. :-)

[stevensmum]

hello there,
i am a mum of 4 , and all my kids have communication difficulties- two attend special schools for help with communication, my reason for posting tonight is that my youngest (3yrs old) is non verbal and communicates only on the most basic level of pointing at things or crying in fustration. i have a copy of the signalong book and attend classes to be tutored in using it with him.
however , i have been searching all over the internet for images of the signalong core vocab book, as it it very expensive i can't afford to buy as many copies as i need , why do i need more than one copy? simple i am fortunate enough to have an extremly large and supportive family.

my eldest child , my husband , myself , all trying to study and refer to the same book is a headache , however nothing compared to when my mother in law 6 uncles and numerous aunts and cousins are also trying to learn as much as they can as fast as they can .

i have tried taking photos of the pages - but doesnt work as theyre on red paper same goes for photocopying and scanning

now i am very lucky my family is willing and eager to learn signalong as it really is the kids only reliable method of communication, and we all spend a lot of time together as a family , so they want to speak to him as well as to understand the signs he is making to them .

i really do not understand why these books are so obscenley expensive!!! and why the problem is then compounded by then being printed on coloured paper so they cant be copied - surely for signalong to survive as an effective means of communication the inhibiting cost of manuals impeds progress?

as i said before i have searched numerous sites for images of signalong and can't find any!!! why is this?

i have really become to hate it as my son has effectivly been taught a form of communication that is ineffectual and pointless - at least with makaton it is used everywhere - even to the point of being used in childrens programming - and not just by mr tumbles!

i look forward to a response and hope someone can provide me with some answers as to why greed is being allowed to overide sense and drasticaly reduce the spread of this otherwise useful language.

[Signalong]

I'm sorry you're having problems with getting the vocabulary that you need, but I can assure you that it's not a question of greed.

Signalong is a charity which doesn't get any funding from central or local government and we have to rely on income from sales of our manuals and training and on donations from individuals and grant-making trusts. After a big loss due to relocation in 2003-4, in 2005 to 2007 we made small surpluses (you can see our accounts on the Charity Commission website) which we used to expand our services, but by the end of 2007 it became clear that the financial crisis was beginning to bite and in 2008 we made a £23,474 loss.

In order to survive we have shed 2 members of staff, one of our founders has voluntarily cut her (paid) hours and we haven't had any increase in salaries for the past 2 years. So greed just doesn't come into it. The economies that we have made have turned the finances round for the time being but we are only able to keep going through the dedication of those who work for Signalong - and the indications are that the government is going to make things worse.

I'm not offended by your angry words as I do understand that you are struggling too, not only financially but in trying to meet the needs of your children.

I want to deal with your last point first. I'm not sure why you think that Signalong is ineffectual and pointless. Makaton have a very good marketing machine and an inside track to the BBC, but I can assure you that it is not used everywhere. We are constantly meeting people who are switching to Signalong out of frustration with Makaton's lack of vocabulary and restrictions on training and use. As it happens, both systems use signs from British Sign Language and in most cases use the same signs - but we have many thousands more in publication. As your children grow, if they continue to need signing we will continue to meet their needs, but we have to still be here to do that.

Like Makaton, we have to defend our copyright as the income from publications is our lifeblood, contributing about 60% of our budget. We are constantly looking for additional funds - as are thousands of other charities, and like many other small organisations we are frustrated that the mega-charities can afford large fundraising and PR departments which monopolise the generosity of the British public. Unless and until we can find a major donor willing to cover our core costs for an extended period we are forced to charge for our publications and prevent copying.

You are indeed fortunate to have a supportive family and I congratulate you all for pulling together. Have you asked the schools and children's services if they can help? Are you also receiving all of the benefits to which you are entitled as the parent of children with disabilities?

I'm sorry that I can't offer you any immediate solutions - in order to be able to support your children and others as they grow up we have to be around, and to do that we have to earn our income in an increasingly harsh environment. If you want to speak to me off-forum, my direct line number is 0845 450 8423.

Mike Kennard
Chief Executive
The Signalong Group

[stevensmum]

thank you for taking the time to reply to me, its v much appreciated
, and i'm sorry to say i did not realise that all your work was charity based - i had assumed there was government funding under the education department remit , however of course being a charity would explain the cost and red paper to stop copies being made , although still rather frustrating for parents such as myself but at least now i know there is a reason.
however my immediate problem has been solved as my youngest is now at a special needs nursery and we have been given additional resources (crib sheets) by the school which has helped the extended family , all i have to do now is learn it as fast as he is so i can keep up with him

[clockett]

Hows about a few words loss leader for basic starting by everyone avail.on internet to download and then charges for more at dimminishing costs as you buy more from a registered account. Or have I missed this already?

[Signalong]

Thanks for the suggestion. We are currently reviewing our website and having a small set of free signs each month is one idea that we are looking at.

The site needs redesigning - it's currently very cluttered and quite text-based, but we don't have the expertise in-house to do it or the financial resources to pay for a professional web designer, so it's taking a little time, but we will get there

Mike

[AW]

I know this is long after the original post but thought it might be of use for other people reading this thread- many other charities may be able to help with the cost of books- I often recommend calling contact-a-family who have an excellent database of funding available and will search it on your behalf and send out a list of the charities which can help.

[Signalong]

Glad to be of assistance. We love to hear from practitioners about their successes - and their problems, if they arise. Don't forget that if you get stuck for a sign you can call or email us for the sign description - no charge.

If you're working with teenage or older service users you might be interested in our new Social Awareness Resource Pack, which showsdiscussion pictures of 40 different social situations, with suggested vocabulary on the reverse, signs published in full in the accompanying manual. I haven't yet had time to get the full description onto the website and shop, but I'll do that next week.

Best wishes

Mike Kennard

[Signalong]

Sorry for the rather strange response to the last posting. The board came up in the wrong order on my computer and I was replying to an old post.

The Family Fund should be able to help with financing manuals and training courses for families in financial difficulties. At one point it looked as if the new government was going to do away with it but they've kept it and put more money in.

Re the free signs, we've put 2 sheets up on the News page of the website so far, and in 2011 we are going to do it on a monthly basis, with signs relevant to the monthly theme of Hello!, the National Year of Communication

[tina peck]

Hi!
I appreciate having access to free signs but am not clear on how we can use them...are we okay to print them off?

T x ;D