SignPort Fringe Pilot Puts BSL Requests in Deaf Users Hands

Deaf Action has added a Fringe-specific request tool to its SignPort app so deaf festivalgoers can browse more than 3000 Edinburgh shows and ask for British Sign Language interpreters for up to two performances each. The £5000 Fringe Society grant covers the interpretation costs for this pilot year.

Only about 2.4 percent of the programme already lists BSL. The update turns the rest into potential targets and tests whether user-led requests can outpace the old limited scheme.

How a Fringe Request Moves From App to Stage

Users open the catalogue, filter by venue or show type, pick a performance and submit. Deaf Action’s bookings team then contacts the artist and venue, checks lighting and seating, and matches an available interpreter. Confirmed users see interpreter details, chat inside the app and get a direct ticket link.

• Browse the full Fringe list or search specific venues and genres
• Submit a request for one or two shows per person
• Receive updates and chat with the arranging team
• View the assigned interpreter and buy tickets once viable

The Fringe accessibility page details the process and notes a preferred seven-day notice window. Shorter notice sometimes works but is not guaranteed. The same page confirms street events also carry BSL on set August dates.

Artists and venues take no advance action. Contact arrives only if a request lands. Interpreters may need a prior viewing, video or script. The Fringe Society covers the interpreter’s preview ticket when required.

Sixteen Shows Before, Thousands Now in Reach

The previous BSL on Request partnership, now in its third year after a 2024 pilot, enabled 16 shows. That total sat inside a programme that routinely tops 3000 titles. The new catalogue makes every eligible performance visible and requestable instead of relying on pre-selected slots.

The jump in potential reach is clear. Viability still depends on interpreter supply, venue lighting and artist agreement. Mercy Cherono, SignPort manager, said the scale of the Fringe “opens the door to cultural experiences that have traditionally been difficult to access” while also spotlighting deaf artists and inclusive work.

Nathan Rollinson’s Two Bookings and the Daily Friction

Nathan Rollinson, 36, deaf since birth and working as a photographer and tastemaker in Edinburgh, used the feature for two shows this year. He described the old hunt for access information as frustrating and overwhelming.

It has been very frustrating and disappointing at times, especially when you want to enjoy the same cultural experiences as everyone else but cannot easily find information about BSL-interpreted performances. The Fringe has so many shows but without clear access information, it can feel overwhelming and discouraging. SignPort has helped so much already. It makes the process much smoother, clearer and more effective. Having an easy way to find BSL-interpreted performances and book interpreters will make a real difference for deaf audiences. It removes a lot of barriers and makes the performing arts feel much more accessible.

Rollinson added a direct funding appeal: more money would mean more availability and fuller participation. His experience tracks the design goal of the SignPort mobile app for BSL bookings, which puts choice and chat control with the deaf user rather than leaving them to chase fragmented emails.

Five Thousand Pounds Tests a Larger Scottish Build

The Fringe Society grant is modest. Westaly Duignan, its head of fundraising and strategic relationships, called the new approach a way for BSL users to request an interpreter “quickly and easily” for the show of their choice after three years of the earlier partnership.

SignPort itself arrived in October 2025 with far heavier backing. Deaf Action and Burrotech built it through the Scottish Government’s CivTech programme. The government provided £350,000 Scottish Government CivTech support. The app is free for deaf BSL users and interpreters; public bodies pay an annual subscription. Six bodies had already written it into their BSL plans at launch. Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes described it as community-led innovation that removes long-standing booking barriers and reinvests as a social enterprise.

Phillip Gerrard, Deaf Action chief executive, thanked the Fringe Society for the pilot and said the hope is that it is only the beginning. Similar investment from other Edinburgh festivals and cultural groups could create a city-wide request scheme.

From Festival Stages to Hospitals and Councils

Cherono noted that if the technology works across a programme of Fringe scale, it could adapt to hospital appointments, council services, workplaces, conferences and major events. That second step is the real measure. The Fringe is a high-visibility stress test with tight timelines, multiple venues and variable show formats. Success here supplies proof for the everyday services where missed interpreters have higher stakes.

• Hospital and clinic appointments currently prone to email delays
• Council and public body meetings under BSL plans
• Workplaces seeking reliable on-demand cover
• Other festivals and large cultural programmes in Edinburgh and beyond

The app already supports general bookings outside the Fringe. The festival catalogue and request flow simply add a temporary high-volume layer. Interpreters gain more flexible work options; organisations gain a cleaner fulfilment route.

What Still Limits Full Access

Even with requests live, listed BSL coverage remains low. Interpreter availability, lighting constraints and short-notice limits will reject some applications. The UK has tens of thousands of people who use BSL as a main language and larger numbers with some signing skill. RNID estimates of BSL users across the UK put main-language users near 25,000 and total users far higher; Scotland’s census showed 117,300 people able to use BSL. Cultural demand exists. Supply of theatre-experienced interpreters does not automatically expand with the request volume.

What we know

• Grant-funded pilot covers interpreter costs for approved Fringe requests in 2026
• Users limited to two performances each; seven-day preferred notice
• Prior scheme delivered 16 shows; listed BSL sits at roughly 2.4 percent

What remains open

• How many requests will be fulfilled before the Fringe ends
• Whether other festivals or the city will match the funding model
• Long-term interpreter capacity for both cultural and public-service demand

Rollinson’s call for funders to treat equal cultural access as essential sits beside Gerrard’s hope for a city-wide scheme. The app removes the information and booking friction. Money and people still decide how many stages actually become accessible. The Fringe pilot will supply the first hard numbers on that gap.