'My deaf hairdresser gave me my confidence back'

Natalie Bloor has a growing list of deaf clients who travel across the country to get their hair done

"I'd see other people chatting away with their hairdressers and I'd just be sat there, and I wished I could do the same," said Roisin Burrows, who was born profoundly deaf.

Getting her hair cut used to be a difficult and sometimes lonely experience for Roisin.

The 35-year-old said she would often get her mum to interpret for her or avoid salons altogether.

But after learning about Natalie Bloor, a deaf hairdresser in Nottingham who used British Sign Language (BSL), she joined a growing client list and gained confidence and independence.

Natalie was also born deaf, and when she was two, she had an operation to fit a cochlear implant - an electronic hearing device.

The 21-year-old said she persisted with a challenging hairdressing apprenticeship to follow her passion.

Natalie has been a hairdresser for four years

Natalie, who did her apprenticeship during the coronavirus pandemic, said she faced some struggles.

Although she communicated with clients verbally, she relied on lip-reading, which facemasks made difficult.

"I felt quite low self-esteem, because I wanted to be able to understand [my clients], because I wanted to be a really good hairdresser," she said.

Four years on, Natalie is an award-winning hairdresser based at Goose salon in Hockley, with clients who travel to her from across the country.

"When [deaf clients] first started coming to me and we communicated through sign language, they were always happy at the end and got what they wanted.

"That's how I realised communication accessibility was so important and makes a huge difference to them," she told the BBC.

Before going to Natalie, Roisin's conversations with hairdressers started and ended with them asking what she wanted to drink, she said.

"I'm more independent now because I don't need a hearing person involved.

"I'm 35 years old now, but I do wish when I was younger there were more people in the deaf community who were in these professions," she said.

Annabelle Sonmez said she heard about Natalie through a partner a few years ago and had been going to her since

Annabelle Sonmez, 26, has been travelling from London to get her hair done by Natalie for the past three years.

Like Roisin and Natalie, Annabelle was born deaf and learned BSL from a young age.

"I feel my deaf identity is included at my hair appointments. I can express what I'd like and can talk about my deaf identity, I can talk about my job, my life, everything," she said.

In the past Annabelle - who had never met a deaf hairdresser before Natalie - said she never really got what she wanted when she went to the hairdressers.

She said: "BSL is very important to me, that's the way I communicate.

"Natalie's deaf, I'm deaf - so we can explore ideas together [using sign language], I can try different hairstyles, she can educate me on how to improve the health of my hair.

"It's really important because if I go to a hearing hairdresser, we can't communicate.

"And sometimes I'm not happy with my hair because of the lack of communication."

Annabelle added as well as allowing her to be independent, Natalie was also an "inspiration" to her and the younger deaf community.

Jayeesha Parmar, a registered BSL interpreter, said having a hairdresser who could communicate using BSL "must make a huge difference" to deaf clients.

She said: "Usually, when deaf people to go a hearing person for a service, it can be very tense and uncomfortable.

"It's nice for deaf people to be able to go to a salon and feel comfortable and confident."