Is it you?
1 in 5 people in Cornwall has hearing loss, so chances are, either you or people you know are living with it.
Hearing Loss can be caused by a number of things, and not everyone is born with it. For many, it appears gradually, or due to an accident or injury later in life. For some people, their hearing loss is total, for most, some sounds can still be heard, and for others they live with a constant ringing in their ears, called tinnitus.
For people with hearing loss, being able participate in daily life can be a struggle. They need to be able to see someone clearly in order to lipread. They might need a British Sign Language interpreter, if they use sign language. And they need extra support for the things that many of take for granted, like hearing the doorbell ring.
You might not be able to tell that someone has a hearing loss – many modern hearing aids are almost invisible, and some people don’t use them anyway. And did you know that some deaf people have assistance dogs? Hearing Dogs for the Deaf trains dogs to support in situations where there are audio cues that could be missed.
If you work with someone with hearing loss, or there’s someone in your family living with it, you may already be aware od some of these issues. But how friendly is your business for people with any kind of difficulties with hearing?
Cornwall Equality and Diversity Network is running a campaign in June with Hearing Loss Cornwall to help raise awareness of the small things that people can do to support those who have some level of hearing loss. Small things like ensuring that there is light on your face, if someone is going to be lipreading from you. Check out our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter posts, from 6 June.
However, if you work with the public, in a shop, or a voluntary organisation, or offering some kind of service, is your business accessible to people with hearing loss? Do you publicise an email address, or take bookings via Facebook, as well as by telephone? Is your front desk or checkout area well lit? Can you offer people a quieter table to eat at, and turn down background music if requested?
Hearing Loss Cornwall offers Deaf Awareness courses for businesses and groups, to help them understand how to make their small piece of the world more accessible to people with hearing loss. Contact them for more details.
There aren’t enough people who can translate British Sign Language in Cornwall, and definitely not enough teachers. If you are interested in learning some BSL, or even becoming a BSL translator, or teacher, then you would be welcomed by the Deaf community with open arms. Please get in touch with Hearing Loss Cornwall to find out more.
Cornwall Equality and Diversity Network (CEDN) has recently carried out a survey which suggests that most of our member organisations would be interested in Deaf Awareness Training, although some do have people in their organisations who speak British Sign Language. If you’re interested in general issues of equality, diversity and inclusion, please get in touch with CEDN via bev.wilson@cornwall.gov.uk
