British Airways has announced a new partnership with Signcode, an organisation dedicated to ensuring equal access to information, products and services for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community.
The partnership will allow customers to access key travel information in signed video form, including BA’s onboard safety briefing.
This will be available by the end of 2023, with customers able to access it either via ba.com or onboard via a QR code which BA’s Mainline cabin crew will have on their mobile devices.
Deaf and hard of hearing passenger will then have the choice of either viewing the safety briefing on their personal device, or receiving a personalised briefing delivered by a crew member face-to-face (as is already the case).
Ahead of this a signed video has been available on ba.com, which offers “a comprehensive overview of British Airways’ service proposition throughout the entire journey, including booking process, the airport experience, onboard services and the in-flight entertainment offering”.
This video also includes a BSL introduction from Fredrick Da Costa, British Airways’ first deaf customer experience agent.
The videos will be provided in both British Sign Language (BSL) and American Sign Language (ASL), and the partnership is exploring the potential to expand into other languages such as Spanish, as well as adding more content in the coming year.
BA also highlighted its support of minicom systems for the deaf and hard of hearing, and its ongoing partnership with SignLive to use British Sign Language in its customer engagement centres.
Commenting on the news Carrie Harris, director of sustainability at British Airways, said:
“We are proud to partner with Signcode UK to further improve our accessibility offering for our deaf and hard of hearing customers. This collaboration aligns with our ongoing commitment to ensure that all our customers have a seamless experience and can travel with confidence, with dignity and in comfort.”
To read our recent feature on what is being done to improve accessibility for business travellers, see:
