Added: 18 May 2017
Ipswich Building Society signs up to British Sign Language course
Ipswich Building Society has encouraged its staff to take part in a British Sign Language course to enhance its face-to-face customer service capabilities. Nine employees recently participated in a total of ten hours training, where they were taught the basics of British Sign Language for the purpose of customer interactions and everyday use.
The taster course was managed by Eileen Murphy of Sensing Change, a Social Work Practice which provides a range of services including rehabilitation, support and communication to people with sight and hearing impairments. Eileen tailored the course to replicate the typical day to day customer interactions at the Society. As well as learning how to sign the alphabet and numbers, staff were taught how to use sign language to introduce themselves and communicate every day and specialist words that would enable them to provide exceptional customer service in a professional environment with new and existing Society members.
Eileen Murphy, Tutor at Sensing Change, explained, “The group were enthusiastic and keen to learn basic sign language and banking vocabulary signs. I have since received feedback from a deaf customer at Ipswich Building Society, expressing how pleased she was by the positive attitude that counter staff have towards deaf customers.”
Richard Norrington, CEO at Ipswich Building Society, commented, “We are committed to serving members in our local community and are always seeking opportunities to enhance our in-branch experience. We are pleased to have had a number of staff participate in a tailored British Sign Language course to improve our communication skills, helping us to address the needs of a wider group of members and ensure they fully understand our products and services. We are confident that our learnings will help us continue to enhance our valued face-to-face service.”