Our Team

BSL First > About Us > Our Team

In This Section

Our Team

Staff Team

Akbar Sikder

Executive Director

Andrew Stanley

Training Manager

Amy Baxter

CSW/Administrater

Teaching Team

Alan Murray

Rachael Parker

Cathy Nassimi-Green

Tessa Padden

Marie Webb-Stevens

Jay Thomas-Morton

Paul Michaels

Chance Walton-Ashmore

Mohsin Patel

Stefania Bella

Kam Deo

Timothy Scannell BSc

Nageena Aurangzeb

Akbar Sikder BA (Hons), MA, RSLI, RSLT, A1

Executive Director, Hearing Interpreter, Translator and Assessor

Contact: [email protected]

Course Convenor: Interpreter Development Programme for Heritage Signers, Level 6 Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting

Languages: British Sign Language, English, French, French Sign Language

Qualifications:

BA (Honours) French and Linguistics, University of Manchester

MA Translation and Interpreting, University of Manchester

Registered Sign Language Interpreter

Registered Sign Language Translator

Level 5 Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults

Level 3 Award in Education and Training

A1 Assessor

Member of the Association of Sign Language Interpreters (MASLI)

Bio:

Akbar is a hearing child of two deaf parents, growing up bilingual in English and BSL. He holds a BA (Honours) in French and Linguistics and an MA (Merit) in Translation and Interpreting from the University of Manchester. He is a Registered Sign Language Interpreter (RSLI) and Registered Sign Language Translator (RSLT) with the NRCPD. He is fluent in English, BSL, French, and French Sign Language (LSF).

He is qualified in both spoken language and signed language interpreting and translation and has been working as a professional signed language interpreter since 2009 (qualified 2018). He is experienced in a wide range of domains, specialising in education, legal, Islamic settings and broadcast media, including BBC News and Parliament TV.

He has authored a number of publications on interpreting and translation, including his groundbreaking article 'Power Down' – examining the lack of ethnic diversity in the signed language interpreting profession – published in Newsli and VIEWS in 2020. He is a founding member of the Interpreters of Colour Network (IOCN) and served on the Board from 2020-2022. In 2022, he was awarded the IOCN Evolution Award in recognition of his 'outstanding contribution to the network and the signed language interpreting profession'.

Akbar is a qualified teacher and A1 assessor for the BSL, interpreting and translation qualifications. This includes working closely with awarding bodies on the development and assessment of BSL, interpreting and translation qualifications, and with the NRCPD as a Professional Standards Advisor. He was the course convenor for 2 modules on the MA Translation programme at University College London.

Andrew Stanley BSc, PGCE, RSLT, A1, V1

Training Manager, Deaf Interpreter, Translator, Teacher, Assessor and Verifier

Contact: [email protected]

Course Convenor: British Sign Language courses, Interpreting Foundations

Languages: British Sign Language, Irish Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

BSc (Honours) Product Design

Post Graduate Certificate in Education, University of Huddersfield

A1 Assessor

Internal Quality Assurer

Level 6 Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting & Translation

Registered Sign Language Translator (RSLT)

Bio:

Andrew is a highly experienced British Sign Language and Irish Sign Language teacher with over 20 years of experience teaching both face-to-face and online courses. He has taught all levels of BSL and ISL and is a Signature external examiner for both BSL and ISL qualifications. He holds a Post Graduate Certificate in Education from the University of Huddersfield, A1 Assessor and IQA qualifications. He is fluent in BSL, ISL and ASL. Andrew is a Registered Sign Language Translator (RSLT) with NRCPD, having completed his training with BSL First.

Amy Baxter BA (Hons), QTS, TSLI

CSW/Administrator

Contact: [email protected]

Languages: English, British Sign Language

Qualifications:

BA (Hons) Education, Sunderland University

Level 6 Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting

Level 6 Certificate in British Sign Language

Qualified Teacher Status

Trainee Sign Language Interpreter (TSLI)

Bio:

Amy began learning sign language at a very young age due to a family member's diagnosis of deafness. She is now a Trainee Sign Language Interpreter (TSLI), having completed her Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting at BSL First. She is registered with NRCPD and is a member of the Association of Sign Language Interpreters (ASLI).

In 2009, Amy graduated from Sunderland University with a BA (Hons) in Education and obtained her Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) alongside this. She has since taught in a variety of school settings before embarking on her journey as a sign language interpreter.

Amy has recently joined our team in an administrative role and is happy to assist with any enquiries regarding upcoming courses.

Alan Murray MBE, BA, CertEd, RSLT, MVLP, A1, V1, V2

Deaf Interpreter, Translator, Teacher, Assessor and Verifier

Course Teacher: Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting, Diploma in Sign Language Translation

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

BA (Honours) Education and Training, University of Greenwich

Certificate in Education, University of Greenwich

Registered Sign Language Interpreter

Registered Sign Language Translator

A1 Assessor

Internal Quality Assurer

External Quality Assurer

Bio:

Alan was born Deaf and is a BSL user. He started his career in law at Gray’s Inn, later becoming a management accountant before embarking on a new career in further education as the manager of a BSL unit, later becoming Head of Additional Learning Support and then the lead disability coordinator for four campuses in west London. His last employment before retirement was CEO of a user-led disability organisation.

A highly experienced BSL teacher, assessor and verifier, with over 35 years in the field, Alan is a qualified Interlingual Interpreter and Translator, also holds the OCR External Quality Assurer Award, City & Guilds D34 Internal Verifier and D32/D33 Assessor qualifications, and a Certificate in Education. Furthermore, Alan is a Fellow of Chartered Management Institute and Institute of Financial Accountants.

Alan led the development of the BDA Sign Language Policy 1999-2001 and was a part of the team that raised the profile of BSL, leading to 18 March 2003 acceptance of BSL.

Outside of the world of teaching, Alan has served on the Boards of several influential Deaf organisations and received the British Deaf Association Medal of Honour. Alan is currently on the board of deafPlus and NRCPD.

In addition, he is a BSL Guide at the British Museum, Foundling Museum, National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, Old Royal Naval College, Tate Britain and English Heritage.

Rachael Parker BA, CertEd, RSLT, A1, V1, V2

Deaf Translator, Teacher, Assessor and Verifier

Course Teacher: Deaf Interpreter Development Programme

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

BA (Honours) Art with Education

Certificate in Education, University of Southampton

Registered Sign Language Translator

A1 Assessor

Internal Quality Assurer

External Quality Assurer

Bio:

Rachael holds a Certificate in Education from the University of Southampton, A1 assessor and internal and external verifier qualifications. She is a Registered Sign Language Translator with the NRCPD. She has been teaching and assessing all levels of BSL for 15 years and currently runs BSLCourses.co.uk, delivering online BSL courses from levels 1 to 6. She is a highly experienced assessor and verifier for BSL qualifications, and has taught on interpreter development programmes. She has been a qualified sign language translator since 2017 and has experience working as both a BSL/English translator and a deaf relay interpreter.

Cathy Nassimi-Green CTLLS, A1

Deaf Teacher and Assessor

Course Teacher: Interpreter Development Programme for Heritage Signers, British Sign Language courses

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

Level 4 Certificate in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector

A1 Assessor

Bio:

Cathy is a deaf child of deaf parents and comes from a large deaf family. She has been teaching BSL for over 10 years and has experience in teaching all levels of BSL. She holds the Level 4 Certificate in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (CTLLS) and the A1 Assessor qualifications. She also has skills and experience in International Sign interpreting and deaf-blind interpreting.

Tessa Padden MA, RSLI, RSLT, MASLI

Deaf Interpreter and Translator

Course Teacher: Interpreter Development Programme for Heritage Signers, Deaf Interpreter Development Programme

Languages: British Sign Language, Irish Sign Language, American Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

MA Management, University of Newcastle

Registered Sign Language Interpreter

Registered Sign Language Translator

Member of Association of Sign Language Interpreters

Bio:

Tessa is the deaf child of deaf Irish parents who lived in England for over 50 years. She is trilingual in British Sign Language (BSL), Irish Sign Language (ISL) and English. She is a Registered Sign Language Interpreter (RSLI) and Registered Sign Language Translator (RSLT) with the NRCPD, working between ISL, BSL and International Sign. She is an experienced BSL teacher, teacher trainer, translator, television presenter and interpreter. She has taught and trained BSL teachers and sign language interpreters all over the world and for institutions including Durham University, Bristol University, Wolverhampton University, City University London, Queen’s University Belfast, The British Deaf Association, The Royal National Institute for Deaf People, The National Deaf Children’s Society, The Irish Deaf Society and Deaf Action (Scotland).

Tessa was the founding Chair of IBSL and Chair of the BDA’s BSL Academy in 2006-2015. In 2011, she founded Signworld, an online learning resource to support sign language learners and teachers. She became one of the first deaf people in the UK to qualify as both a sign language translator (English/BSL) and a sign language interpreter (BSL/ASL).

Marie Webb-Stevens BSc, RSLI, A1

Hearing Interpreter and Assessor

Course Teacher: Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

BSc Psychology (hons)

Registered Sign Language Interpreter

A1 Assessor

Qualified Mentor

VLP Member

Bio:

Marie is a Registered Sign Language Interpreter (RSLI) with the NRCPD, a member with Visual Language Professionals (VLP) and holds a Certificate in Assessing Vocational Achievement (CAVA).

She qualified as an interpreter in 2011 and has experience working in various domains especially social work, religion, medical and education. Marie has a qualification in mentoring which is a useful asset while assessing candidates. She is also a trustee for a Deaf charity which raises awareness and funds to support the education of children and young people in the pacific.

Jay Thomas-Morton RSLI, RSLT, A1, V1

Deaf Interpreter, Translator, Teacher, Assessor and Verifier

Course Teacher: Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting, Deaf Interpreter Development Programme

Languages: British Sign Language, American Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

Registered Sign Language Interpreter (RSLI)

Registered Sign Language Translator (RSLT)

Level 6 Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting

A1 Assessor

Internal Quality Assurance (IQA)

Bio:

Jay has extensive experience in the BSL training field, having worked as a BSL teacher since 2005. Jay is a qualified teacher, assessor and internal quality assurer, and has worked extensively with awarding bodies on qualification development, quality assurance and qualifications training. Since 2021, he has worked as a freelance relay-intralingual interpreter and BSL translator, and has completed an impressive portfolio of translation assignments. Jay also has experience as an International Sign interpreter. He is a Registered Sign Language Interpreter (RSLI) and Registered Sign Language Translator (RSLT) with the NRCPD, and a board member of the Deaf Interpreters Network. Jay completed his interpreter and translator training at BSL First.

Paul Michaels MA, PGDip, RSLI, A1

Hearing Interpreter and Assessor

Course Teacher: Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

Postgraduate Diploma in Interpreting with the Deaf Community, Durham University (2009 - Distinction)

Postgraduate Diploma in Interpreting and Translation, University of Central Lancashire (2011 - Merit)

Master’s Degree by Research, Durham University (2015)

Diploma in Supervision, 360 Supervision (2018)

Level 3 Certificate in Assessing Vocational Achievement (CAVA/A1) (2022)

Bio:

Paul first started to learn sign language when his niece was diagnosed as deaf in 2001. He holds two Postgraduate Diplomas in Interpreting (Durham University and University of Central Lancashire) and a Master’s Degree (Durham University) and is currently undertaking a PhD (Durham University). He is a Registered Sign Language Interpreter (RSLI) with the NRCPD and a member of the Association of Sign Language Interpreters (ASLI), Visual Language Professionals (VLP), European Forum of Sign Language Interpreters (efsli), World Association of Sign Language Interpreters (WASLI) and British Sociological Association (BSA).

He has been working as a professional signed language interpreter since 2009 (qualified 2011). He is experienced in a wide range of domains including education, medical and performance. In addition, he has presented his research at numerous conferences in both the UK and internationally. He has authored several publications and serves as an Editorial Board Advisor for Newsli (ASLI quarterly magazine).

Paul is a qualified Professional/Clinical Supervisor working with individuals and groups and more recently qualified as an assessor (CAVA). He is an approved TSLI supervisor and Complaints Case Examiner with NRCPD.

Chance Walton-Ashmore BA (Hons), RSLI, A1

Hearing Interpreter and Assessor

Course Teacher: Interpreting Foundations, Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

BA (Honours) British Sign Language/English Interpreting, University of Wolverhampton

Registered Sign Language Interpreter

A1 Assessor

Bio:

Chance Walton-Ashmore began learning BSL at a very young age as his mother is an interpreter. He trained at Wolverhampton University on the interpreting programme, graduating in 2015 with a first-class BA Hons degree and progressed to become RSLI in 2017. He works as a freelance interpreter mainly in the East Midlands, interpreting in medical, community and legal settings.

He qualified as an assessor in 2019. He currently sits on the board of directors for the Visual Language professionals (VLP) organising their CPD programme and a Standard Advisor for NRCPD. He also offers training for communication professionals on Sexual Health and the LGBTQIA+ terminology and vocabulary.

Walking the dog and travelling are the things that he looks forward to.

Mohsin Patel BA (Hons), DTLLS

Course Teacher: Level 1 and Level 2 British Sign Language

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (DTLLS)

Level 4 NVQ Certificate in British Sign Language

Bio:

Mohsin is a deaf, native BSL user. He is a qualified British Sign Language teacher with over 17 years of experience teaching BSL courses. He holds a Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (DTLLS). Mohsin is also a Specialist Mental Health Worker, supporting deaf people with mental health issues, a Public Relations Officer for Deaf Muslim UK (DMUK), and the UK Ambassador for the Global Deaf Muslim Federation (GDMF), the international representative body that represents deaf Muslims at the United Nations.

Stefania Bella DTLLS

Course Teacher: Level 1 and Level 2 British Sign Language

Languages: English, German, Italian, British Sign Language, Italian Sign Language, German Sign Language

Qualifications:

Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector

Level 6 Certificate in British Sign Language

Bio:

Stefania is a deaf, native BSL user. She is a qualified British Sign Language teacher with 19 years of experience teaching BSL courses. She holds a Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (DTLLS). She has a strong relationship with the British deaf community and has a passion for her language and culture that she would like to share.

Kam Deo BA (Hons), MA, QTS, RSLI

Course Teacher: Interpreter Development Programme for Heritage Signers

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

BA (Hons) Interpreting BSL/English, University of Wolverhampton

Level 6 NVQ Diploma in Sign Language Interpreting

Qualified Teacher Status (English), Hertfordshire & Buckingham SCITT

MA Special Education: Hearing Impairment

Registered Sign Language Interpreter

Bio:

Kam is a hearing child of deaf parents, growing up bilingual in English and BSL. He is a qualified BSL/English interpreter and qualified teacher of the deaf (English specialism). He holds a BA (Hons) in BSL/English Interpreting from the University of Wolverhampton. He has been working as a BSL/English interpreter for over 12 years, including working internationally across Europe and Asia. He has extensive experience working within governmental, NGO, arts, academia and arts sectors. He is also an experienced VRS/VRI interpreter.

Timothy Scannell BSc

Course Teacher: Level 1 British Sign Language

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

BSc Multimedia System Design

Level 6 Certificate in British Sign Language

Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector (PTLLS)

Bio:

With over 10 years of experience in British Sign Language (BSL) teaching, I earned my BSL Level 6 certificate after starting my journey at 15. I've also explored American Sign Language due to my ties to California and delved into Jordanian Sign Language during voluntary work before pursuing a computer business course at university. Post-graduation, I've taught BSL in colleges, schools, centres, and diverse settings.

Nageena Aurangzeb

Course Teacher: Level 1 British Sign Language

Languages: British Sign Language, English

Qualifications:

Level 6 Certificate in British Sign Language

Level 3 Education and Training

Bio:

Nageena is a deaf, native BSL user. She is a qualified British Sign Language teacher with 10 years of experience teaching BSL courses. Nageena has extensive teaching experience working in different education establishments such as schools and universities as well as local authorities and private companies delivering Deaf Awareness sessions and BSL classes.

Nageena was the founder of the Deaf Women’s Society in 2017, in later years she became a project manager for the group. Nageena understands the many challenges faced by people with disabilities through both lived experience and working life, she is passionate about promoting the social model of disability, reducing inequalities and promoting inclusion to improve the health and well-being of people.

She acts as an advocate for people with disabilities to empower them to achieve and not limit themselves by adopting a “can do “approach. Nageena has experience in creating engagement initiatives to build a strong organisation culture working with underrepresented groups to build confidence and progress to a fulfilled future.

Nageena has a strong relationship with the British deaf community and has a passion for her language and culture that she likes to share with hearing people reducing the challenges and barriers the deaf community faces with everyday living.

When Nageena is not working you will find her at the gym or extending her knowledge by learning new things and challenging herself. Also, researching activities and ways to improve the well-being of the deaf community.

Our Team

Our Team

Staff Team

Teaching Team

Interpreting & Translation

BSL Courses

Interpreter Training