The service exists to provide essential educational support for children and young people with a hearing impairment from the time of diagnosis at pre-school throughout their placement in full-time education.
The service is staffed by 2 Qualified Teachers of the Deaf (QTOD)
The Deaf Sensory Service offers:
Depending on the age of the child, support may be offered at home, at nursery or within a school setting.
The nature and frequency of support will depend on the needs of the child. The teacher of the deaf will work closely with the family and any other professional people involved with the child to ensure that they are given every opportunity to achieve his/her potential.
'Deaf' refers to a hearing loss of any level, ie any child whose response to sound is not normal - the hearing loss can range from minimal to profoundly deaf.
A temporary hearing loss can be caused by ear infections, catarrh, wax etc.
A permanent hearing loss is usually acquired before or during birth or by contracting an illness later in life, for example meningitis, mumps or measles.
Support, guidance and intervention is available to ensure that all deaf children have the best possible outcome of developing language/s.
At the pre-five stage the development of speech, language and listening skills can be impacted by deafness. Curricular areas such as reading, math and spelling can be impacted by any level of deafness. Working in partnership with teachers of the deaf, audiologist and other educational professionals is essential.
If you are concerned about a child's hearing, please contact: