In 1974 CACDP was born with an initial two-year grant from the Department of Health. Through their work many more sign language classes became available and a structured professional training pathway was developed for sign language interpreters.

The Manpower Services Commission was set up and offered a free, structured one-year Communicator training programme, hosted by several colleges throughout England and Wales. The course taught deaf awareness, sign language to Level 2, notetaking for deaf people and, as an optional unit, Level 1 lipspeaking. The successful students would become Communicators working alongside deaf young people in colleges of further education.

This was the first time lipspeaker training was nationally available outside the BAHOH umbrella. However, the tutors and examiners for the lipspeaking unit were all recruited by the BAHOH lipspeaker training team, now being led by Glenda Bateman. During the 1980s this team was employed by the Manpower Services Commission and for the first time lipspeaker training tutors and examiners were paid for their expertise and teaching skills. This team worked throughout England, in Wales and Northern Ireland and successfully trained over 100 lipspeakers to Level 1. The majority of these went on to become registered sign language interpreters, working in every sphere of public life.

Lipspeaking certification was awarded jointly by Hearing Concern and CACDP. The curriculum and examination development was still taking place within Hearing Concern, while Bill Tate was Chairman of the Education Committee.

Digital hearing aids, technical aids and the almost universal use of the computer and its many spin-offs have made life much easier and more enjoyable for very many hard of hearing people. Cochlear implants have given back hearing to many people who were deafened through illness. But these aids are not always quite enough in every situation and there remains a significant number of deaf and deafened people who rely entirely on lipreading.

For them, using a lipspeaker means independence, while staying in touch with other people and events as they unfold. It means being able to access higher education, work alongside colleagues as equals, obtain access to justice, enjoy lifelong learning within student groups, participate fully in many leisure activities previously inaccessible (eg art gallery talks), assured privacy and understanding at hospital and GP visits, with dentist, solicitor or Citizens Advice Bureaux, and at job interviews. It means experiencing first-hand the joys and sorrows of christenings, weddings, funerals and thanksgiving services. The list is endless.

There is now a Directory of lipspeakers on the ALS website. Every region of the UK has lipspeakers, although some have very few. We are trying to encourage more people to train. We also have an information stand that we take to conferences and other events to advertise our services. You can look at the website or contact our information office if you want to find your nearest lipspeaker.

The training and skills of lipspeakers today means that they can use their voice if you are uncertain of your lipreading skills on a particular day; they can relay (speak) your message for you if you feel your voice is not clear enough for the occasion; they will use gesture and facial expression to get the message across to lipreaders who like extra visual clues. They will tailor-make their service to meet your preferred style.

The cost of these services is mostly met with government funding in one way or another. Even private art venues, such as the Royal Academy of Art, provide lipspoken gallery talks to support their exhibitions, without extra cost to the lipreader. The amount of funding is reviewed regularly. To make sure that these services remain available, they should be well advertised, fully used and carefully audited by organisations of users, such as Hearing Concern.

The current position of lipspeaking, its recognition as a registered form of communication by the central government, the police and Courts, employers and arts organisations ensures continuing enrichment of the lives of very many deafened and hard of hearing people around the UK.