A Sainsbury's In Bath Has Become The UK’s First Signing Store

A Sainsbury's superstore in Bath has been temporarily renamed 'Signsbury's' as it becomes the UK's first signing store.

The four-day initiative was launched on Thursday and will run until Sunday, 21^st July as part of a community inclusion initiative to encourage people to learn and use sign language.

Over 100 Sainsbury's employees took part in British Sign Language (BSL) lessons, delivered by local signing school I Can Sign in preparation for the launch.

Employees of the Bath branch can now sign several common words and phrases when interacting with customers - from greeting them at the door to asking if they have a Nectar Card.

Elsewhere in the store, they have lined the aisles with digital screens in the hope of encouraging customers to get involved and learn a few phrases in BSL, such as "milk", "trolley" and "bananas".

Children will also be able to "Sign for a Snack" and will be given a piece of free fruit once they have mastered basic sign communication.

The initiative was suggested by a Sainsbury's employee, Sam Book, who is living with hearing loss and asked the Bath store manager to make the supermarket more an inclusive experience for deaf shoppers.

Bath Store Manager Paul Robertson said of the initiative: "When I heard about our '150 Days of Community' scheme, I thought it was the perfect time to use the opportunity to explore new ways to make our store more deaf-friendly.

"We have many hard of hearing customers in Bath and always want to make their experience as brilliant as possible, and we hope 'Signsbury's' will help better their time in store even more."

Also throwing her support behind campaign is Oscar-winner Rachel Shenton, who is an ambassador of the National Deaf Children's Society.

She added: "This feels like the start of something exciting and I hope it encourages more people to get involved."

The launch of 'Signsbury's' is a part of Sainsbury's 150th birthday celebrations, which includes 150 days of volunteering for all colleagues across the country to help continue the company's legacy of putting local communities first.

This is an initiative we can most definitely get behind!

Featured Image Credit: Sainsbury's

Topics: Life News, Real, sainsbury's

Lisa McLoughlin

Lisa is a freelance journalist working for Tyla and the team's token Dubliner. After graduating with a MA in PR and Digital Marketing from D.I.T., she worked for MailOnline, Sun Online, Irish Independent and broadcaster RTÉ. Got a story of interest or want advice on how to pour the perfect pint of Guinness? Then email her at [email protected].

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