Trowbridge event for Deaf Awareness Week

Wiltshire Council’s Hearing and Sight Team are holding an event to answer questions and share advice about sight and hearing impairment as part of Deaf Awareness Week. (opens a new window) this month.

The team will be at County Hall, Trowbridge, on Tuesday 25th June between 11am and 3pm.

People can meet with dual sensory specialists to ask questions about dual sensory loss and what support is available. A small selection of equipment will also be on display and people can try learning a tactile form of communication, such as the deafblind manual or the Block Alphabet.

Justin, who now works for Wiltshire Council, explains his journey with deafblindness and how he has adapted his life to suit his needs.

I was born in South Africa with defective optic nerves. Doctors labeled the condition optic atrophy. I lost my hearing about five years after contracting tick bite fever. So I grew up with minimal vision and no hearing most of my life. I didn’t know about the deafblind manual or practical sign language. My mom tried writing letters on my palm, which seemed to work, and that became my main way of communicating.

I have worked in various roles at HSBC for 15 years. I started as a children’s social care analyst at Wiltshire Council after being made redundant six years ago. I go to the office with my guide dog Ned, who is very popular and makes a fuss of everyone at work. I use screen magnification software to read the computer screen and have always had a CCTV video magnifier for paper documents etc but use it less and less as everything is digital these days and easier to access online. The chat facility in Teams makes it easy to communicate with colleagues on the team and across the business.

Cllr Richard Clewer, leader of Wiltshire Council, said: Our team will be at Trowbridge, County Hall on June 25 to answer any questions people may have, as well as providing an insight into life for those who are deafblind and the support available to them.

This is an invaluable session and I would encourage people to come and talk to the team, whether it’s to find out more about deaf awareness or to ask about the support available for a loved one or themselves.

I would like to thank the team for their continued work and dedication to supporting those who are adjusting their lives to come to terms with this diagnosis.

Wiltshire Council’s Hearing and Vision Team offers a range of services to people who are blind, have limited or impaired sight, are deaf or have hearing loss. They also help people with deafblindness, which is known as dual sensory impairment (a person who has a significant combination of hearing and vision loss). If you have problems with everyday life, such as using the phone, preparing meals or being active in the community, the hearing and vision team can help.