At SignHealth we believe in sharing knowledge and working together to improve health outcomes for the deaf community. That is why we have created a comprehensive deaf mental health library – open to all.

About deaf mental health

The Joint Commissioning Panel for Mental Health has shown that between 30 and 60 per cent of deaf people experience mental health issues during their lifetime, more than double the figure for the hearing population.

At SignHealth, we see the impact of this on a daily basis. We provide the only NHS Therapies Service for deaf people with anxiety and depression, delivered entirely in British Sign Language. 

The landmark Shaping the Future of Deaf Mental Health Report, published in 2023 highlighted the many challenges deaf people face in accessing mental health support.

You can read the report’s key findings as well as the full report.  

What is the deaf mental health library?

There is so much work to be done in improving deaf people’s mental health. As the UK’s sole deaf health charity, this is at the core of our identity.

One important way to improve mental health outcomes is by sharing information and research. For that reason, we are pleased to host the UK’s first dedicated deaf mental health library. Please browse through the reports below to learn more about deaf mental health.

If you have browsed our library and think we are missing something, let us know campaigns@signhealth.org.uk.

Some of these reports use an upper case “D” in reference to the culturally deaf community. Other reports use lower case “d”. Some reports use both. We have left this unaltered to reflect the original meaning of each report.

Research

Other online resources:

The British Society for Mental Health and Deaf People

Deaf Community and Mental Health Care (verywellmind.com)

John Denmark Unit

Social Research with Deaf People (SORD) | The University of Manchester

If you think we are missing something in the Deaf Mental Health Library, please let us know campaigns@signhealth.org.uk.