British Deaf Association: Digital Archivist

The British Deaf Association (BDA) is the UK’s national representative organisation for Deaf people who use British Sign Language (BSL) and Irish Sign Language (ISL)—the first or preferred language of approximately 87,000 Deaf people. We exist to advance human rights and equality for Deaf people. Working in partnership with our members and stakeholders, we influence governments and drive systemic change to achieve sign language equity across the UK.

The BDA has played a pivotal role in securing legal recognition for sign languages, including the BSL (Scotland) Act 2015, the BSL Act 2022, and more recently the BSL (Wales) Act 2026 and Northern Ireland Sign Language Act 2026. These landmark achievements recognise BSL and ISL as protected minority languages—an important step towards addressing long‑standing inequality and enabling Deaf people to participate fully as equal and valued members of society.

We are proudly Deaf‑led: all of our Board of Trustees and 88% of our staff are Deaf, and our working languages are BSL and ISL. Our lived experience shapes everything we do, and we invest in sign language development across our workforce, including a comprehensive and inclusive onboarding programme. As a membership organisation, we are deeply rooted in Deaf communities across all four UK nations. This ensures our work is informed, representative, and responsive to the communities we serve.

Trusted by Deaf communities and respected by governments, the BDA is a leading voice for change—protecting and promoting the language, culture, community, diversity, and heritage of Deaf people across the UK.

Overview

The Digital Archivist will lead the development, management, and safeguarding of the BDA’s digital heritage collections. This includes the digitisation, cataloguing, preservation, and access of Deaf heritage materials such as BSL films, photographs, documents, oral histories, artefacts, and community records. The role is central to ensuring Deaf heritage is preserved by Deaf people, for Deaf people, and made accessible in British Sign Language as well as written English, in line with best practice in digital preservation and inclusive archiving.

The Role

• Digital Archiving & Preservation: Provide a digital archivist lead for the Heritage Lottery Fund ‘Deaf Heritage Sorted’ project. Lead the digitisation, cataloguing, and long‑term preservation of Deaf heritage collections, including audiovisual BSL content, photographs, manuscripts, and born‑digital materials. Implement and maintain digital preservation standards, workflows, and metadata frameworks appropriate to mixed‑media and sign language collections. Ensure collections meet recognised archival, museum, and heritage standards while reflecting Deaf cultural values and lived experience.
• Collection Management & Documentation: Develop and manage digital asset registers, catalogues, and collection management systems. Create and maintain metadata in both English and BSL, ensuring accessibility and cultural accuracy. Support accessioning, rights management, licensing, and ethical use of archival materials.
• Deaf‑Led & Community‑Centred Practice: Assist the Heritage Manager to work collaboratively with Deaf communities, historians, artists, and organisations to identify, document, and preserve heritage materials. Support community‑led collecting, co‑curation, and participatory archiving approaches. Ensure that Deaf people are meaningfully involved in decisions about how their heritage is preserved, described, and shared.
• Access, Engagement & Learning: Support the development of accessible digital platforms, exhibitions, and online resources for Deaf and hearing audiences. Contribute to public engagement, education, and research use of collections, including support for exhibitions, events, and learning programmes. Work with communications and policy teams to ensure Deaf heritage content is shared responsibly and widely.
• Governance, Ethics & Compliance: Ensure compliance with data protection, copyright, safeguarding, and ethical standards. Contribute to policies on digital preservation, access, collections development, and risk management. Support funding applications, reporting, and evaluation relating to heritage and digital projects.

This list is not to be regarded as exclusive or exhaustive, as there may be other duties and requirements associated with the post, which BDA may call upon the post‑holder to perform from time to time.

Person Specification

Essential:

• Degree or equivalent experience in Archives, Digital Preservation, Library & Information Studies, Heritage, or a related field.
• Proven experience working with digital archives, audiovisual collections, or heritage collections.
• Knowledge of digital preservation standards, metadata, and collection management systems.
• Strong understanding of inclusive access, ethics, and rights management in heritage contexts.
• Commitment to Deaf culture, language, and community‑led practice.
• Ability to work collaboratively with a wide range of stakeholders.

Desirable:

• British Sign Language (BSL) skills.
• Experience working with Deaf communities, sign language collections, or minority language heritage.
• Experience of heritage funding environments (e.g. Heritage Lottery Fund or similar).
• Knowledge of audiovisual digitisation workflows and accessibility standards.
• Experience contributing to exhibitions, digital platforms, or public engagement projects.

Values & Accessibility

• Purpose‑driven – We believe in what the BDA stands for and are motivated by a shared commitment to advancing Deaf people’s rights and equality.
• Community‑led – We recognise that Deaf people’s lived experiences of inequality, injustice, and marginalisation must inform our strategies, campaigns, and services.
• Collaborative and engaging – We work together, share knowledge openly, and build strong partnerships and alliances to maximise our impact.
• Courageous and independent – We value our independence, enabling us to challenge poor practice, policy, stigma, and discrimination with confidence and integrity.
• Inclusive and respectful – We create an environment where people feel valued, supported, and able to be themselves, respecting diverse perspectives and experiences.
• Empowering and accountable – We support others to contribute their views, take ownership of our actions, and learn openly from our mistakes.
• Driven by impact – We are passionate, proactive, and committed to making a meaningful difference for the Deaf community.

The BDA is a Deaf‑led organisation. We actively encourage applications from Deaf and disabled candidates. We are committed to providing reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process and in the workplace. BSL users are welcome to submit applications in BSL (video format), and interviews will be fully accessible.

How to Apply

• A CV (or equivalent experience statement)
• A brief supporting statement (max 1 side A4, min font 11) explaining how you meet the role requirements OR a video statement in British Sign Language

Deadline 22 June 9am

Send to: To discuss the role, please email Rebecca Mansell, CEO on rebecca.mansell@bda.org.uk

Applications in British Sign Language are welcomed.