Manchester-based Esmail Patel, founder of the Deaf Education Advocacy Fellowship (DEAF), is celebrating its recent business expansion.

The new office, which will be paid for by the Deaf Education Advocacy Fellowship, has been leased for six months. This will enable Esmail to provide more support to clients with the facility to grow his operations.

Esmail, who was born deaf in 1983, graduated from UCLan in 2006 and established DEAF in September 2009 to address obstacles that many deaf people face living life in a hearing world.

DEAF provides a range of services relating to Employment, Education, Advocacy, Deaf Awareness and British Sign Language Training - which all focus around providing guidance to those wishing to work with deaf people and to encourage members of the deaf community to “take control” of their own lives Esmail Patel, Director of DEAF said: “The new office is much bigger than our previous premises, I feel more comfortable in this office and the additional space allows me to provide a much more professional, dedicated service to my clients. I plan to grow even more as my client base develops.”

Esmail has also recently won the coveted University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) Northern Lights - Business of the Month award for July 2010 adding another accolade to his growing list. Each month, UCLan’s business incubation programme invites businesses to apply for the Business of the Month award to win the cash prize of £250.

Esmail said, “The business support team at Northern Lights have been fantastic. DEAF has grown into a successful organisation I am incredibly proud of.

“The business advice I have received has been invaluable in shaping my business model. Winning this award has given me more inspiration to develop my business further, I am grateful for the opportunity this has given me.”

DEAF has received numerous awards for their work within the deaf community from UnLtd, Ethnic Minority Business Forum, Greater Manchester Police and Bolton Diversity Awards which has culminated in Esmail recently being invited to a garden party at Buckingham Palace.