Upbeat music begins and plays throughout the video. The video begins outdoors on a floodlit pitch in the evening, with a group of people passing a rugby ball. The players are wearing a variety of different sports kits.
The scene changes to show the back of a jacket which reads Bec Belles Love the Hill. The scene then changes again, showing a Communication Support Worker outdoors using British Sign Language (BSL). The frame changes once more to a white screen framed by a colourful border in the Buddle colours. The Buddle logo appears at the top of the screen, with supported by Sport England and The National Lottery logo beneath it. The title of the video, Deaf inclusion – Bec Belles RFC, appears below in dark navy text.
As the spoken audio begins, the frame transitions with vertical Buddle‑coloured stripes moving across the screen. Subtitles appear at the bottom of the screen, accompanying the audio throughout.
The frame shows several people in a clubhouse interacting with each other using sign language, before transitioning to an individual, identified as Harriet, sitting in a changing room with Bec Belles shirts hanging in the background (referred to as the interview room throughout). Harriet is sat facing the camera signing; her signing is accompanied by a voiceover. A lower third banner appears on the screen with the Buddle logo and text Harriet Rice, Player, Bec Belles RFC. As Harriet continues signing, the frame transitions to show a large group of people rugby training on a floodlit grass pitch.
Alongside this scene Harriet has signed: “When I go to a new space that’s not accessible, I feel really anxious about it. I want to go to my rugby club and switch off and have an enjoyable time. I don’t want to spend my time having to lip read and struggle to follow along. For deaf people, it’s normal to arrive at a club and experience communication breakdown. And this is really the first time that I’ve arrived at a club and been so impressed with the hearing people. They’ve adapted for me, it’s not me being adaptive for them.”
The scene changes to a show group of people sitting in a larger changing room, they appear to be communicating with BSL, smiling and laughing. The scene moves on to show Harriet smiling in the clubhouse before returning to her facing the camera in the interview room using BSL.
The voiceover continues as the frame changes to show another individual, later identified as Beth, wearing a grey hoodie and communicating using sign language. Another shot of Beth is shown, she’s wearing a navy jacket and using sign language in the larger changing room. The frame transitions again to show Beth seated and facing the camera in the interview room. A lower third banner appears with the Buddle logo and words Beth Kelly, Player, Bec Belles RFC.
The interpreter’s voiceover continues: “I’ve been involved in sports my whole life and I’ve never been able to engage fully with them, because they don’t sign, so they don’t understand my language. Whereas when I come to this team, because the whole team can sign, it’s just fantastic. I can make jokes, I can understand their jokes, and we’ve got a bit of banter within the team and that’s so important. I can make lifelong friends with that and I never thought that I could make friendships through sports.”
During this segment, the frame transitions to Beth and her teammates passing and running with a rugby ball outdoors. The shot moves to show the Communication Support Worker giving instructions to the group of players using sign language. After a quick shot of the rugby training, the frame changes again to a side angle of Beth, communicating with team members using sign language inside the clubhouse and then changing room.
The voiceover changes to a new speaker, later identified as Sophie who begins by saying: “Bec Belles are an NC1 women’s rugby team. What makes Bec Belles special is our inclusion and at the moment the big thing is that we are an integrated deaf and hearing team.
The frame transitions to show Sophie smiling and wearing a dark navy sweatshirt with embroidered logos on the left and right sides of their jumper. The frame then changes again to a group of players coming together in a team huddle. The camera zooms in on the huddle, showing the coach speaking to the group while the Communication Support Worker signs. The frame then transitions to show Sophie seated and facing the camera in the interview room, a lower third banner appears with the Buddle logo and text Sophie Reid, Captain, Bec Belles RFC.
Back in the clubhouse, the frame now shows Rachel, signing to a group who are laughing and smiling. The voiceover changes to a new voice, Rachel, who’s sat in the interview room, facing the camera. The lower third banner appears with the Buddle logo and text Rachel Nowikow, Player, Bec Belles RFC. Rachel begins to say: “You can’t say it’s been an easy journey, but something we’ve definitely embraced.”
The frame moves back into the clubhouse where Sally is signing in conversation with Beth. The voiceover changes to Sally, who begins to say: “Three years ago we were a small club and no one could sign, we didn’t have any deaf awareness. Then we had two deaf players join, Beth and Harriet, and also a CSW [Communication Support Worker] who volunteered for us as well.” As Sally is speaking, the frame changes to show Sally seated and facing the camera in the interview room. The lower third appears with the Buddle logo and text Sally Goillon, Player, Bec Belles RFC. The frame then changes again to show Sally communicating with another team member using sign language on the grass pitch. A quick transition then shows a group of people playing rugby on the pitch, followed by the Communication Support Worker giving instructions using sign language.
Sophie’s voiceover resumes and says: “Every training session and game, we are providing access for both hearing and deaf players. That means having Communication Support Workers at our training sessions and same on game days, having someone there that provides language access for everyone there.”
The frame changes to show Sophie outdoors, catching a rugby ball during passing drills. The frame then quickly reverts to Sophie seated in the interview room, facing the camera. As Sophie is speaking, the frame transitions to the Communication Support Worker giving instructions using sign language, before moving back to show Sophie in the interview room.
The voiceover returns to the interpreter, providing the audio for Harriet’s signing, who says: “Before, the coach would shout a colour and depending on what colour they shouted, different things would happen and I didn’t know what colour was shouted and I couldn’t follow. But now the coach will hold up a cone of different colours and I can follow along. So it’s small adaptions like that, make it really inclusive.”
As the voiceover continues, the frame transitions to focus on three people in the clubhouse interacting with each other using sign language. The frame then changes to show Harriet outdoors, catching and passing a rugby ball with teammates, before transitioning to her seated in the interview room, signing to the camera.
The scene changes to a coach wearing a black jacket, holding up blue and orange cones. As the coach is holding up the cones, the team can be seen performing rugby training drills.
The voiceover and frame changes back to Rachel, who is sitting facing the camera in the interview room. Rachel continues: “We make sure of little things, for example, one person speaks at a time. Sometimes when there’s too many people talking, it can be disorientating or confusing.” The frame changes to Beth and other teammates sitting in the changing room communicating using sign language.
The frame changes back to Beth who is sitting in the interview room. As she is signing, the voiceover continues with the interpreter who says: “We’ve set up the BSL club as well. Sometimes we’ll go out for lunch or breakfast and we’ll try and focus on having voice off time. So that means that in those social situations, it’s fully accessible for everybody because nobody’s talking.” As the voiceover continues, the frame transitions to a group of people interacting with each other in the clubhouse. The frame then reverts back to Beth.
The voiceover returns to Sophie, who says: “If you look at how many have learnt BSL, the friendships that have been made through this team are something really special.” As Sophie is speaking, the frame shows a group of people sitting in the changing room and communicating using sign language. The scene then changes to show Sophie seated in the interview room, speaking to the camera. As the voiceover stops, the frame transitions to a larger group sitting inside a changing room, all interacting using sign language.
The voiceover returns to the interpreter, Beth is signing: “Sport is a big part of mental health, so if you can make that accessible for deaf people then it means that their mental health can improve.” As the voiceover continues, a close up of Beth’s hands signing is shown before reverting back to Beth in the interview room.
The voiceover changes to Sophie: “You don’t have to start at where we are. I think little by little you can create a space that is accessible for people.” The frame shows a group interacting in the clubhouse, before transitioning to show Beth communicating with someone using sign language.
The frame then transitions with vertical Buddle‑coloured stripes moving across the screen. A white background appears, with orange text in the centre reading, How can you get involved?
Sally continues: “My advice to clubs who want to be more deaf inclusive is, make the first step, show willing, show that you want to include people. Learn about deaf awareness. Dip your toe into deaf culture and then I think when people come, they’ll be very grateful for that and happy to work with you on the next however many steps there are to come.”
The vertical Buddle‑coloured stripes clear the screen, revealing Sally seated and facing the camera in the interview room. The frame changes again to show the Communication Support Worker outdoors, interpreting the coach’s instructions using sign language, before transitioning to a group of people communicating with one another using sign language inside the changing room. The frame then reverts back to Sally in the interview room.
The frame moves to the floodlit pitch showing a group people completing rugby training drills before Rachel appears on screen sitting and facing the camera in the interview room. Rachel says: “There’s deaf awareness training out there. A deaf organisation would be more than happy to do a bit of deaf awareness training in the first instance.”
The voiceover then returns to the interpreter for Beth, who says: “If a deaf person wants to be in your team, ask them, what can I do for you, find out what helps them, because deafness is such a spectrum.”
During this audio, the frame is following Beth in her training before showing a group of players in a huddle, with the coach and the Communication Support Worker interacting with the group. The camera then shifts to a close‑up shot of the Communication Support Worker giving instructions using sign language.
The frame moves to Harriet signing in the interview room, the interpreter can be heard: “There are a lot of little things that you can do. Learning basic BSL signs, subtitling on your social media. I feel incredibly proud. Honestly, I love coming here and I think this has built a really lovely community. I don’t know what I’d do without this rugby club now.”
As the voiceover continues, the frame reverts back to shots of the training drills and then to a team huddle. The frame returns to Harriet signing in the interview room.
The shot in the interview rooms swap to Sophie, who says: “I’m so proud of the team, I’m proud of all of the individual players. For us to have been able to do this is something quite amazing.” A series of fast‑paced shots then follow; first, an individual running with a rugby ball, followed by another individual catching a rugby ball and finally the Communication Support Worker giving instructions using sign language.
The frame returns to Beth in the interview room signing, the interpreter says: “I’m still like, ‘is this real?’ I’m not sure, I’m just in awe, I’m still in awe.”
Sally can be heard once again: “Being at Belles has genuinely changed the trajectory of my life. Being at Belles has introduced me to an entire new community and culture that I didn’t know of before. That is so rich in my life, now I know a new language. My experience with getting to know our deaf players and their experiences has lit a bit of a fire in my belly for access and inclusion.”
As Sally is speaking, the shot is focussed on the back of a blue top, which reads Bec Rugby. The scene then shows Sally in the interview room before switching to her and a teammate signing to each other outside. The frame then transitions back to Sally in the interview room, before changing again to show the group playing rugby on a floodlit pitch, followed by the group celebrating and interacting using sign language.
The frame returns to Sophie speaking to the camera in the interview room: “It’s helped us become a really close-knit community team, that I think people will remember and hold on to.” The frame then moves to Sophie and her teammates in the club house before showing a group in a huddle outside, their hands are in the centre before raising them and all cheering “Bec!”
The frame clears with a horizontal Buddle branded colour swipe to reveal a white screen with a Buddle coloured border. The Buddle logo appears centrally at the top of the screen, with supported by Sport England beneath. The National Lottery logo appears below. Beneath this reads www.buddle.co, www.sportengland.org. The music stops and the video ends.
