BSL Legacy Continues At Hughenden Gardens Village
When the cameras stopped rolling at Hughenden Gardens Retirement Village, no one quite expected the legacy Old Hands, New Tricks would leave behind.
The BBC documentary, presented by Rose Ayling-Ellis, set out to explore whether British Sign Language (BSL) could empower older people and change the way they connect. Months later, it’s clear: the answer is a resounding yes.
Heralding much of this transformation is 64-year-old Mark, who stepped into an entirely unexpected role—as the community’s de facto BSL leader.
A former RAF navigator, Mark initially joined the classes alongside his wife Tina, one of the programme’s featured participants. But after the filming ended, Mark continued where the cameras left off. Despite never planning to teach, he now runs weekly BSL practice sessions for a dedicated group of around 20 residents, helping them build confidence and fluency week by week.
“We raised some money to bring in a qualified tutor for formal lessons,” Mark explains, “but alongside that, I hold a weekly group where I put everyone through their paces. It’s become a real fixture here.”
The learning hasn’t stopped. It’s only deepened. There are now three structured sessions each week, often followed by homework and revision in the evenings. The group started with the basics—alphabet and numbers—but quickly moved on to everyday communication, including hosting a signed bingo evening that brought residents together in new ways.
Her confidence has grown remarkably since the show aired, culminating in Tina recently receiving a Level 1 BSL qualification—a proud moment not just for her, but for the entire Hughenden community. She’s one of five residents to achieve the certificate, alongside several staff members, with many more actively learning.
But the real story is what happened after the cameras stopped rolling. Hughenden has since become a hub of deaf awareness and inclusive communication. Mark and Tina have led the way—establishing regular classes, encouraging others to join, and helping to embed BSL into the culture of the retirement village.
A monthly Deaf Café has launched, welcoming guests from the local area and beyond. A group of 29 from the Jewish Deaf Association is due to visit later this month. Residents have welcomed visitors from as far afield as Canada, while other retirement villages across the UK have reached out for guidance on setting up their own BSL groups.
Mark is now helping spearhead broader changes to make Hughenden more deaf-inclusive. Plans include deaf awareness training for all staff, clearer signage, BSL-accessible intercom systems, and the introduction of SignLive—a deaf-led video interpreting app.
“We’re running deaf awareness classes, building links with the local deaf community, and investigating new technologies to help people with hearing problems,” Mark says.
The impact has extended well beyond Hughenden. “Since March we’ve had many interesting visitors—one from Canada, and there’s a deaf club in another retirement village where there are 20 people all learning BSL,” he adds. It’s also brought residents closer together. “There’s nothing like adversity to help a team gel.”
