Local Information
Hard of Hearing Groups
Telford Hard of Hearing Group – Contact: Chris Nock – 01952 604 410
Whitchurch Hear Hear Group – Contact: John Edge – 01948 664 093 / johnedge@btinternet.com
Ludlow Hard of Hearing Group – Contact: Freda Pugh – 01584 872 439
Shrewsbury Hard of Hearing Group – Contact: Catherine Parry – 01743 369 509 / catherine@smudgeandsimba.plus.com
Market Drayton Hard of Hearing Group – Contact: Mrs B Riley – 01630 652 441
Shropshire NHS Audiology
Appointments with Audiology for a first appointment should be made through a GP referral. Patients who are already in the system can contact the departments on:
Royal Shrewsbury Hospital – tel 01743 261 482
Princess Royal Hospital – tel 01952 282 804
Drop-in clinics are available. Please check their web page for the latest details: https://www.sath.nhs.uk/wards-services/az-services/audiology/
Hearing Loss Support, SRCC
The Shropshire Rural Communities Charity (SRCC) manages hearing loss and sight loss support teams, consisting of services for visually and hearing impaired people. It runs a volunteer support service, a hearing aid repair clinic and the Effective Hearing Programme.
https://www.shropshire-rcc.org.uk/services/individuals/hearing-loss-support / tel 01743 342 163
Telford & Wrekin Council Services – Telford tax payers only
For those based in Telford & Wrekin, guidance about help can be found through the My Life portal:
https://telford.mylifeportal.co.uk/ / tel 01952 459 252
See & Hear Van
The See & Hear van visits care homes around the region staffed by volunteers who can repair hearing aids and give advice on hearing and sight loss.
The van is run by Sight Loss Shropshire and manned in conjunction with volunteers from the SRCC.
View more information here.
Lipreading classes
Lipreading is a vital communication skill if you are deaf or have hearing loss. It could help you to avoid social isolation and live your life to the full. Most hearing loss experts recommend that people of all ages, with any degree of hearing loss, learn to lipread.
Although you cannot learn to lipread everything, classes will give you the tools and awareness to develop your skills. They will improve your confidence and are a great way to do something positive and practical about your hearing loss.
In Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin, classes are run by the NHS Audiology department in conjunction with the WEA (Workers’ Educational Association). Courses are free, with one class a week for 10 weeks and each session lasting two hours; there are approximately 14-16 people in each session.
For more information, contact the lipreading coordinator – tel 01743 261 482.
The Effective Hearing Programme
Effective Hearing Programmes (EHPs) are one-day workshops to help you to adjust to having a hearing impairment. Whether or not you wear a hearing aid, EHPs are a chance to share experiences, challenges and successes with others in similar situations. All the EHP tutors have personal experience of hearing loss.
Find out more about Shropshire RCC’s Effective Hearing Programme by clicking here.
Sign Language Café
Second Monday of every month (except August), drop-in, Old Post Office Pub, 1 Milk Street, Shrewsbury, SY1 1SZ.
These are informal sessions for people with some existing British Sign Language (BSL) skills. The Facebook Page can be found by clicking here.
Contact: Alex – 07769 031 619, alex hiam@talktalk.net / Linda – 07781 225 102 / harlow.linda@yahoo.co.uk .
Deaf Clubs
Telford Deaf Club meets for a coffee morning at Wetherspoon’s pub in Wellington every month.
Shrewsbury Deaf Club meets at Signal: The Hub for coffee mornings – please see the Upcoming Events page for details. For information about Shrewsbury Deaf Club, please contact us.
Disability
Shropshire Disability Network is the place for disability information in Shropshire.
Please visit its website for more information, or email info@shropshire-disability.net .
Deaf Church
Regular services are offered in the Lichfield Diocese at St Michael and All Angels, Penkridge. These services are for British Sign Language (BSL) users only.
http://www.stmichaelspenkridge.co.uk/ / tel 01785 712 378
For more information and dates, please check: http://deafchurchlichfield.blogspot.co.uk/.
BSL users wishing to worship at a hearing service should contact Phil Ramsbotham who is looking to set this up.
BSL Interpreting Agency
The Visual Interpreting and Communication Service in Shropshire (VISS) is a not-for-profit company providing professional communication services for Deaf, deafblind and hard-of-hearing people living in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin. Contact them using the details below:
Deaf Facebook Groups
Telford Deaf Club Facebook group can be found by clicking here.