“If someone is in a wheelchair, you have to put the ramp out first. They won’t come in if there’s no ramp there in the first place.”
The same holds true with provisions for deaf people, Vicki Ashmore explains to the JC. “Deaf people won’t join a synagogue because there’s no access,” she says.
But it’s a vicious circle – a synagogue is unlikely to improve deaf accessibility when it doesn’t have any deaf members. So, something needs to change, says the British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter.
That’s where DeafShul comes in. Founded by Vicki at the start of 2025, it aims to make Jewish services and resources accessible for people who use BSL.
What started as six Kabbalat Shabbat events on Zoom has snowballed into many other initiatives.
For instance, Bromley Reform Synagogue, where Vicki was formerly cheder headteacher, has “put their money where their mouth is” by providing a grant to put BSL interpreters on six Jewish education videos as a “tikkun olam” project, Vicki says.
“There are not even any deaf members there – they’ve just done it for the greater good. DeafShul is opening the door and inviting them in.”
Whether they decide to enter or not is another matter, Vicki says. “Most deaf Jews are used to not being given any provisions [in synagogues], so they’ve stopped asking.”
Vicki interpreting at a Holocaust memorial event sponsored by JDA and DeafShul[Missing Credit]
But it won’t be for a lack of trying on Vicki’s part. Her project with BRS is far from her only endeavour so far in DeafShul’s fledgling existence.
She is currently working with the Liberal Jewish Synagogue to deliver a free Taste of Judaism course to BSL users.
Together, they also hosted a Rosh Hashanah dinner on Zoom with a team of three BSL interpreters to convey the words of the shul’s Rabbi Lily Solochek, and subsequently, a Chanukah party, to which Chabad donated 18 menorahs.
And there’s plenty more – in just the last year Vicki spoke at an event for SACRE, the Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education, supported a deaf woman at an interfaith Iftar meal, supplied Beit K’lal Yisrael in Birmingham with an interpreter for one of their study sessions, and helped build a tailor-made barmitzvah for a deaf teenager at East London & Essex Liberal Synagogue.
Vicki is able to do all of this because she is the only person in the UK, as far as she knows, who can interpret between BSL and Hebrew.
“I’m trying to get all the different kinds of Jews to join us and make their shuls, services and videos accessible for the deaf community,” says US-born Vicki, who moved to the UK in the 1990s.
“These deaf Jews don’t have any way of being Jewish – people were telling me that they had been excluded from services their entire life. They couldn’t go to cheder either. Deaf children were being raised without any sort of Jewish education; they just knew they were Jewish and celebrated the holidays.”
DeafShul does not affiliate with any denomination, albeit Vicki has observed that there has been a significantly greater uptake among the Progressive communities. This could be partly because Orthodox congregations aren’t able to use Zoom for BSL Shabbat or Yom Tov services.
However, for the past couple of years, the United Synagogue has been putting inclusion at the top of its agenda, implementing small adjustments to make its services and buildings more accessible to people with disabilities.
Fortunately, the awareness of hearing difficulties and how they affect people are becoming more salient in UK society too. Today is World Hearing Day, an important scheme considering that across the UK, one in three people will experience hearing loss in their lifetime.
And next week, on March 9, a storyline has been written in collaboration with the National Deaf Children’s Society for an episode of Peppa Pig, whereby Peppa’s younger brother George is introduced to hearing aids for moderate hearing loss.
Vicki (R) celebrating Rosh Hashanah at the JDA[Missing Credit]
DeafShul has been embraced by the Jewish Deaf Association (JDA), who have collaborated with Vicki on various projects. At Purim, she read the Megillah in BSL at a JDA event for Purim and made mishloach manot with the guests.
At the JDA’s request, she has also started teaching other interpreters how to interpret Hebrew, with a view to making shul prayers more understandable.
Sue Cipin, JDA’s CEO, is unreserved in her praise for Vicki at DeafShul, saying: “We’ve been looking for someone like Vicki for the past 20 years!”
“Through DeafShul, deaf Jews scattered all over the country who were not previously affiliated with their heritage are now connecting with each other and sharing Jewish experiences together. It’s wonderful to see.”
She described it as “truly emotional” when Vicki attended an event for Yom HaShoah in April 2025, “interpreting with her entire body, heart and soul the voices of the children’s choirs singing Oseh Shalom”.
And she commended Vicki’s efforts in helping to train JDA’s interpreting team with specific reference to funerals and shivas, for which it is usually tricky to provide a BSL interpreter at such short notice.
“It will be such a relief when Jewish deaf and deafblind people can take part in family funeral and shiva services, understand everything that is being said, follow or even sign the eulogy themselves,” Sue said.
“Vicki is now an integral part of the JDA family, and we are thrilled to be supporting and promoting DeafShul.”
JDA itself has been a pillar of the UK’s deaf community since 1951. Last year, it supported 4,829 people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or affected by tinnitus – up by 93 per cent on 2024.
Their activities, which include outreach training programmes in care homes, synagogues, schools, and community organisations to promote accessibility, cost them more than £1.1 million in 2025.
Perhaps some of that burden will be relieved by DeafShul, whose chief donor is Paul Simon, 70, who lives in Connecticut.
He told us that “supporting DeafShul is a mitzvah I think all of us should be doing. We need to make sure all Jewish people have access to the beauty of the Hebrew language and services. We are all responsible for one another.”
deafshul.co.uk
jdeaf.org.uk
‘Jewish deaf people don’t often go to shul. We can’t follow the service because people speak too fast’
Alan D. Murray[Missing Credit]
Alan D. Murray, who is in his 70s and lives in Ealing, is deaf and uses BSL. He has an MBE for his services to the deaf community.
“There is a significant lack of BSL access in the shul services. As much as I would have liked to participate fully, the absence of accessible communication means I am unable to engage effectively.
“Our community is known to have some reluctance in accepting deafness and the use of BSL, largely due to cultural and heritage reasons. Other religious denominations like Christians and Muslims have made efforts to be welcoming to deaf people, encouraging their participation in services using BSL. However, in our synagogues, deaf individuals are not participating or being actively involved.
“Improving attitudes within the community is essential. This could be achieved by having a deaf representative on the Board of Deputies to ensure that deaf voices are heard and considered in decision-making.”
Neil Kaufman[Missing Credit]
Neil Kaufman who lives in Finchley, has just celebrated his 80th birthday. He is deaf and use BSL.
“Jewish deaf people do not go to synagogue often because of several reasons. We cannot follow the services because they speak too fast. We do not feel like a part of the congregation. The hearing people talk to each other and we cannot follow them.
“There used to be a Residential Jewish Deaf School in Balham, South London. Unfortunately, the school closed down some years ago. Jewish deaf children now go to non-Jewish schools. The encouragement of Jewish tradition has been lost.
“It would be nice to have a Rabbi who can lead the services in BSL or SSE (Sign Support English). The problem is Jewish deaf people live all over the UK. It's not practical to have a Rabbi trained in BSL or SSE just for one or two people among hundreds of hearing congregations.”
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