Cambridgeshire Deaf Association was proud to host Rt Hon Sir Stephen Timms MP, Minister of State for Social Security and Disability, at a coffee morning in Peterborough on 22 June 2026, where he announced £15,000 in new government funding to increase the number of specialist interpreters for Deafblind people across the UK.
The funding, revealed during Deafblind Awareness Week, will support competency assessment sessions for interpreters, run over a series of weekends. It is expected to increase the number of registered interpreters for Deafblind people more than eightfold, from just 8 to 68, helping around 12,000 Deafblind people nationwide access essential communication support more quickly and easily.
The funding was designed in collaboration with the government’s independent British Sign Language (BSL) Advisory Board, working alongside Signature and the National Registers of Communication Professionals working with Deaf and Deafblind people (NRCPD).
For CDA, the visit was more than a photo opportunity. As one of the organisations chosen to host the announcement, we were glad to welcome the Minister and to be recognised as an example of the kind of deaf-led, community-based support the government wants to see more of. Our Chief Executive, Andrew Palmer, was honoured to host Sir Timms, and stressed how significant this investment will be for Cambridgeshire specifically – with more specialist interpreters becoming available to support Deafblind people at hospital and GP appointments, and in other essential day-to-day settings.
We will continue working alongside the BSL Advisory Board, NRCPD and Signature to make sure this new capacity translates into real support for the Deafblind community here in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
Watch highlights from the Minister’s visit:
Watch the video from the visit on Facebook.
Watch the reel from the visit on Instagram.