How Brian from RAD supports the deaf community into employment

Meet Brian Kokoruwe and find out how he breaks down barriers to employment for deaf people

Interview by Sonia Bryan, External Engagement Support Officer, Connecting Choices

Brian Kokoruwe is a Specialist Employment Advisor for the Royal Association for Deaf people (RAD) in Stoke on Trent and Staffordshire, and is one of our partners on our Connecting Choices programme supporting those furthest from the job market into training, education, volunteering and work.

Find out how he supports the deaf community into employment, how he has adjusted during lockdown – and what he does in his free time!

Photo of Brian and the team, taken pre-social distancing.

How do you break down barriers for deaf people wanting to move into employment?

There have been a lot of things that I have been doing to get the message that deaf people face a lot of barriers in accessing employment. Educating the employment services, job centres and recruiters about the access requirements of deaf people has been a key activity. Attending events such as job fairs, job centre team meetings and open days prior to the lockdown has also been useful.

I have worked previously within various fields such as banking, education, social services and local government which have all developed my knowledge of various employment fields enabling me to support clients in their employment search. I am also a qualified teacher, gym coach, athletics coach and a former Great Britain Deaflympians and Team Manager.

I am also the founder of Deafinitequality, which specialises in the development of knowledge in all areas relating to hearing loss.

How has your approach changed since lockdown?

Since the initial lockdown I have attended Zoom meetings instead of face-to-face meetings. In these meetings, I make use of British Sign Language Interpreters to enable me to access the communications due to my own deafness.

I have also produced various videos for public access regarding support requirements for deaf people and for deaf people themselves to watch to understand how to apply for jobs while they are at home.

How do you deal with communication and face masks?

People wearing a face mask is a challenge for me. What I do is as soon as I meet someone that is wearing a mask and who I need to communicate with, I tell that person “I am deaf. I will not be able to hear or lip read what you may be saying.” In most cases, the staff take off their mask and stand within 2m or between the visible protection barriers. Sometimes, if staff refuse to take their mask off and if it was in a shop, they will either write something down or show me where what I am looking for is located.

How do you support participants with hearing difficulties?

I support participants with hearing difficulties currently via WhatsApp video calls, facetime, text messages or emails. I have recently received a clear mask, and when we are given the go ahead to meet with clients and stay within appropriate distance while wearing the mask, I may be able to do some face to face appointments where it is too complicated to do so via online, such as filling hardcopy forms.

Brian wearing a technomask – a transparent and reusable face covering. Find out more about technomask here.

What do you do in your free time?

Last year I wrote and published part one of my autobiography ‘When Mother Cried’, and part two of my autobiography ‘My Father Tried’ was released in September 2020!

Royal Association for Deaf people

Founded in 1841, the Royal Association for Deaf people (RAD) provides services to Deaf people in their first language, usually British Sign Language (BSL) and supports mainstream providers to be more accessible to Deaf people.

Connecting Choices supports those furthest from the job marketing by breaking down barriers and opening doors to opportunities in training, education, volunteering and work.