“Ground-breaking” video technology that helps the deaf community wins award

Connect Assist, a contact centre based in Nantgarw in South Wales, is celebrating a win at the annual Welsh Contact Centre Awards 2022 for its helpline for the deaf community, Sign Assist.

The prestigious awards celebrate excellence and innovative practice from individuals and companies across Wales, with some of the finest teams within the contact centre industry being recognised.

Connect Assist is a provider of contact centre and digital services. It works with organisations in the public, private, and third sectors, ensuring the delivery of high-quality contact centre services that have a positive impact on thousands of people every day.

The award, in the ‘Best Inclusion Strategy’ category, was presented by Richard Ayoade and recognises the “ground-breaking” innovation offered through Connect Assist’s British Sign Language (BSL) video helpline, Sign Assist.

Ron Moody, CEO at Connect Assist, said: “Our mission has always been about helping people facing challenging circumstances. With Sign Assist, we want to be able to support the Deaf Community by giving them the help and support they need by communicating with them in the right way.”

Launched in April 2022, Sign Assist is designed to remove barriers for deaf people, allowing BSL users to access support and communicate in their native language.

As the first UK contact centre to offer the service, Sign Assist uses its live video engagement platform to connect deaf and hearing-impaired people directly to staff fluent in BSL and those with lived experience from the deaf community to offer an inclusive experience for all.

Amanda Mullans, Sales Director at Connect Assist, commented: “We are absolutely delighted that the team at Welsh Contact Centre Forum have recognised this service and our colleagues with the Best Inclusion Strategy award, for the outstanding contribution we offer to the Deaf community. We hope to inspire others to organise their own contact strategies to be more inclusive and truly accessible for all.”