SIGN language was a new skill for vicar Cathy Nightingale to learn when she decided her career lay in helping other deaf people.

For although 33-year-old Cathy was born profoundly deaf herself, she had only ever learned to lip read.

Now settled in Farnworth as part of the Church of Englands Farnworth and East Kearsley team, Cathy is the Manchester Diocese's first chaplain among the deaf community who is deaf herself.

She works three days a week as a team vicar, based at St Johns Church, and spends the rest of her time travelling round the Greater Manchester area visiting schools, colleges and other groups, and organising services designed for deaf people.

Born in Surrey, Cathy was brought up as a Christian and attended church.

"There was a bit of frustration and a bit of naughtiness because I didn't understand what was going on," she said.

It was only after going to Birmingham University to study biochemistry that she rediscovered her faith.

She went to Tanzania working for Mission Aviation Fellowship, and came home and wanted to continue working with the deaf.

Cathy learned sign language so she could talk with others like herself.

She worked in India, and spent four years teaching literacy skills to deaf people in further education colleges.

In one group she had four deaf students of different faiths.

"Because I was deaf too they started to ask me faith questions," said Cathy.

It was then she chose to become a priest and was ordained at Wakefield Cathedral in 2001, with an interpreter standing behind the Bishop as he conducted the service.

For the past 18 months she has been living in Farnworth.

She conducts services there and around the diocese, and recently she was delighted to preside at the wedding of a deaf couple.

Including deaf people in services has led Cathy to be inventive with her sermons.

But she hopes her work will develop so more deaf Christians will not feel the isolation she did.

"I hope to set up teams in different areas. I don't want to be a one person show," she said.