Dear parents/carers, young people and colleagues,
Many thanks for taking the time to read the latest edition of our newsletter. As always, the team have pulled together an amazing collection of information and celebrations relating to people of all ages with sensory impairment. It always feels very positive to me to see how much is going on, and how many positive role models there are for the children and young people we work with.
We also have another goodbye this time. Becki Igoe, Teacher of the Deaf, who had worked for the Sensory Inclusion service since 2022, left us in the summer. She has gone onto a job where she will be developing BSL resources for schools and we all wish her all the very best in her new venture. She will be very much missed by us all.
Sending very best wishes to you all,
Debbie Hiom, Manager, Sensory Inclusion Service
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Henshaws - Art zone - Manchester/Merseyside - ages 5+
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Sessions are last Saturday of the month, 11am-1pm.
Online art sessions for Children and Young People living with sight loss. Henshaws staff members lead these sessions.
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Carols by Candlelight concert
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Date: 14/12/2025
Time: 6:45pm
Location: Manchester Cathedral, Victoria Street, Manchester, M3 1SX.
This is always a wonderful event to attend and to come together. It features our very own CYP choir!
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Visit this link or contact Henshaws for more information about these events.
Family Hubs
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- Family Hubs offer the full range of services provided to children and young people age 0 – 19 (or up to 25 for young people with special educational needs and disabilities).
- Family Hub Connect is the smaller version of a Family Hub providing a smaller service offering.
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What's on? Hearing impairment
The Children's Adventure Farm Trust (CAFT)
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Families can book a visit to this amazing farm. They provide 2-hour day visits for children living with an illness, disability and social disadvantage. |
Individual families can enjoy the 10-acre site with an amazing array of things to see and do, allowing children to create, explore and play in an inclusive and accessible environment. All visits are free of charge but if you are able to, you can make a donation.
To visit CAFT, one or more of the children aged 0-17 need to be eligible. You can check the criteria on their website.
East Cheshire Deaf Children’s Society (ECDCS) Event
There is a Christmas Trampolining Party booked for Saturday 29th November 11.15am – 1pm at UA Trampoline Park, Winsford. There will be a trampolining session and food will be provided for the children. |
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Refreshments are available on site and there is a soft play area for little ones. Children must be supervised by an adult throughout the event.
Prizes are also available for the best Christmas Jumpers!🎄 Places are limited so if you’d like to come along, please let Amanda know ASAP on 07793200385 or email her at chair@ecdcs.co.uk
You can also contact Amanda if you are unable to attend this event but would like to be added to the mailing list for future events.
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Road safety tips:
With the darker evenings upon us now is a good time to re-cap road safety procedures with your child. Here are some top tips for staying safe:
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- Wear footwear with good grip to promote stability in wet and icy conditions, or in areas with leaf litter.
- Wear bright and reflective clothing or accessories to increase visibility to drivers and cyclists. Sportswear such as running and cycling clothing, shoes and rucksacks often have reflective markings but are also designed with fashion in mind.
- Use a torch on your phone or a torch with an adjustable beam to help light your path. Some beanies even come with built in lights.
- Keep practicing your routes. Travelling on them in daylight will reinforce the techniques you already know and can give you more confidence in low light.
- Practice any new routes in daylight conditions first.
- Slow down and give yourself more time. Tune into your senses and sound cues around you.
Hearing impairment - useful information and handy tips
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Deaf Education through Listening and Talking, is a voluntary association of young deaf adults, the families and teachers of deaf children. DELTA is a national charity which supports and develops the Natural Aural Approach to the education of deaf children.
They offer online support session for families, so find out more on their website.
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Family Sessions - Deaf Education
They also run bi-monthly online themed sessions through Google Meet for parent/carers to ask questions, discuss and share experiences of raising deaf children at home and at school. They take place every month on a Thursday at 7:30pm lasting for an hour and a half. Don’t worry about a babysitter, they welcome your children on the call!
NDCS Battery Safety - batteries and battery safety | Hearing aids and implants
Storing batteries
Batteries need to be stored correctly so that they don’t touch each other. If the batteries still have power in them, they can get hot if their terminals touch. Never leave batteries in hearing technology when they’re being stored for a long time.
Disposing of batteries
Keep your used batteries in the original packaging to keep them safe and make sure that no old batteries have gone missing. You can return old batteries to your local audiology service to be disposed of properly. Some local supermarkets also offer battery disposal.
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The Sensory Inclusion Service plays a vital role in offering advice during a young person’s transition from school to college, university or employment. |
Careful planning for these times of change is important, especially for practical reasons i.e making sure that the young person has the support and equipment they need in place before starting the next part of their journey.
Our Preparing for Adulthood Questionnaire and Information helps to ensure young people, and their parents are aware of adult services and support available.
This enables young people to take control of their future and allows them to have the freedom to make informed choices about what they want to do next.
RNIB, in partnership with VICTAR, has produced transition guidance for young people who are blind or partially sighted.
Entitled "Your future, your choice: bridging the gap", the guide outlines the support and services available to assist young people through their journey from school, through further and higher education, and into employment. You can download the guide here.
Preparing for Adulthood support from our Sensory Inclusion Service
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The Sensory Inclusion Service (SIS) is supporting young people with hearing and visual impairments in planning their futures.
Students in Year 10 and above have been completing questionnaires with SIS teachers to explore their next steps.
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Most students aim to continue their education at sixth form, college, or university, with a wide range of career aspirations including musical theatre, classical history, forestry, medicine, audiology, and aeronautical engineering.
SIS has also informed students about the support available in higher education and employment. This includes:
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Deafness and Sensory Network (DSN) for practical advice,
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Disabled Students’ Allowance for university support,
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Access to Work for funding technology or workplace adaptations
There is a copy of the Sensory Inclusion Service – Preparing for Adulthood questionnaire on our Live Well page. It contains information about several talking points and sources of support for students in year 9 and above, including the Disabled Students Allowance, for undergraduate and post graduate students, and Access to Work.
 Sight Loss Councils, funded by Thomas Pocklington Trust, are regional groups led by blind and partially sighted (BPS) volunteers. They use their lived experience to tackle the things that really matter to blind and partially sighted people, every day.
They prioritise issues identified by BPS people locally and nationally. These priorities include accessible transport and streets so everyone can travel independently and safely, and health and fitness. They also work to increase the accessibility of museums, galleries, retail and leisure locations, depending on the need in the local area.
Examples of their work include influencing senior decision makers to create positive change, developing and testing new ways of working to increase accessibility, increasing understanding of sight loss, giving service providers accessibility feedback and running events for blind and partially sighted people.
East Cheshire Deaf Children’s Society
Children and their families who came along to the bowling event in Crewe on 11th October had a wonderful time socialising, meeting others with similar hearing needs, bowling and eating lunch together.
If you would like to be added to the mailing list about future events then please let Amanda know on 07793200385 or email her at chair@ecdcs.co.uk
SPOTLIGHT ON
Lindow Primary: Deaf Resource Base
 We have had a busy few terms here at the Deaf Resource Base at Lindow Primary School. We have had some new BSL communication boards installed in our playground, which makes communicating in sign language accessible for all. They also have handy QR codes on so parents can scan them and access videos to show them how to sign each word.
We have created a Specialist Deaf Curriculum, which not only supports children in growing confidence in their D/deaf identity and their pride in being a member of the D/deaf community but also provides opportunities for children across school, both deaf and hearing to gain knowledge of deaf history, identity, culture, access to sound and different modes of communication.
Finally, we are in the process of refining our BSL curriculum offer, which will also provide all children, both deaf and hearing, weekly access to BSL lessons to develop their fluency and skills in communicating in sign language. We also have some whole school staff BSL training in the New Year which will provide all staff with more confidence to communicate in BSL to our pupils and parents.
Sharon Brown – Teacher of the Deaf, Lindow Primary
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We have been learning British Sign Language (BSL) to say our names and to talk about who is in our family.
Both children and parents are now getting really good at signing our songs at the end of the session and several of our Mum’s are now on BSL courses.
Keep going super signers!
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We will shortly be learning our signed Christmas songs to sign to Santa when he visits us at our Christmas Party on the 17th December and Welcoming Rhythm Time for a Christmas Special!
At Little Stars we have been learning ‘All about Me’. We made paper plate faces and even drew around some children!
GCSE Success for Adele
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Congratulations to Adele on her excellent GCSE results and her stunning art coursework.
Adele is now enrolled at college and enjoying her studies - we are all so proud of you!
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 Tactile learning starts young!
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One of our youngest pupils, Noah, has just started exploring what all the parts of a brailler does.
Noah is currently in nursery but witnessing his keenness to have a go pressing, turning and lifting all the bits, it has left us all in no doubt that he’s going to be a fantastic braille user in the future!
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 A talented young author
Bobby Tovee has been doing a fantastic job developing touch typing skills to support his access to learning.
It was wonderful to hear that all his hard work was recognised by his school this week, when he received the ‘Writer of the Month’ award for a piece of work he independently typed.
New to school
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Congratulations to all the ‘Reception’ school starters this September. They are all enjoying ‘big school’ and making new friends.
“I love my new school because I go to the base to see Mrs Brown and play puzzles. Today we learnt about hearing aids and cochlear implants and who is deaf and who is hearing. At school I have deaf friends and hearing friends and I really love all my school friends so much.”
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A-level Success for Lois
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Well done to Brine Leas student Lois who passed her Drama, Psychology and Religious Studies A-levels and got an A* in her Extended Project Qualification (EPQ). She is now at the University of Winchester studying for a BA (Hons) in Primary Education. |
Going for Gold
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Congratulation to Alsager High student Isabelle Berrisford who won the Gold medal in the 2025 TeamGym British Championships.
TeamGym is a fantastic combination of team floor routines, somersaults on the tumble track and trampette.
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What is your sensory superpower?
- “I can listen. I can hear. I can hear my best friend. I can hear my teachers.”
- “I can hear people’s faces.” (referring to hearing tone of voice to understand unseen facial expressions)
- “I can hear my family sing when it’s my birthday.”
- “I like playing hide and seek. I hear my best friend counting.”
- “My Superpower is being able to hear TikTok videos without anyone knowing.” (Bluetooth - direct to hearing aids)
- “I can type faster than any of my friends!”
- “I love Bluetooth, it makes the music clearer to listen to.”
- “My hearing aids help me hear the teacher and my friends – I can hear them when we play tag.”
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Ruby’s Fund
Ruby’s Fund is a charity based in Congleton who support children and young people aged 0-18 years with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.
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They have developed a sensory resource library that families can loan sensory items from. To borrow an item from the library you must be registered with the centre. An item can be borrowed for 2 weeks.
Look Podcast:
Living with Albinism: Identity, Confidence and Representation. In this podcast episode, Look Mentors explore their lived experience with albinism. They cover common myths, mental health and the role of social media.
Online Game
There is a free accessible online game for VI – Land of Livia, that has been created by Split Atom Labs for the over 12s age group.
This is a relaxing and accessible adventure and can be accessed here.
2025 Deaflympics
The 2025 Deaflympics will take place in Tokyo, Japan from 15th-26th November. This year’s event is extra special as it’s the 100th celebration Summer Deaflympics. |
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Team DeaflympicsGB will be representing Great Britain in Tokyo and deaf athletes across the country are training hard to be ready to compete at the highest levels in their sport.
The DeaflympicsGB athletes will be competing in 7 sports; athletics, football, golf, swimming, cycling, shooting and tennis.
Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID)
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The RNID are running ‘It does matter’, where people can sign up to receive videos to learn some common BSL phrases and advice for communicating with people who are deaf or who have hearing loss.
They have also produced various tip sheets about deaf awareness, communication tips and learning BSL (British Sign Language).
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Code of Silence
It was good to see Rose Ayling-Ellis back on our screens earlier this summer when she appeared in the drama Code of Silence. The drama focuses around using the lip-reading skills of the character played by Rose. You can stream this on the itv hub.
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Sensory Impairment
Our Live Well page with information about the service and links to other services. Click the link below to visit the website.
Children with Sensory Impairments
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Useful Contacts
A collection of links and organisations which we have put together and which we hope will be helpful for you, including all the major national charities who offer specialist support, advice, services, and opportunities. Click the link below to access the information.
Cheshire East Sensory Inclusion Service
Cheshire East Parent Carer Forum
The Cheshire East Parent Carer Forum which is led by parents for parents and carers of children and young people aged 0-25 with additional support needs and disabilities in Cheshire East.
Cheshire East Parent Carer Forum | CheshireEast MarketPlace
Visual Impairment
Cheshire East Social Care Visual Impairment Service provide assessments and support for visually impaired adults, children and young people across Cheshire East.
Visual impairment, sight loss and blindness | CheshireEast MarketPlace
East Cheshire Eye Society
The Society operates a resource centre in Macclesfield (Mon to Fri 9.00am -1.30pm) offering advice, support and a selection of daily living aids and specialised living equipment. These include talking clocks, watches, microwave ovens, bathroom and kitchen scales, a range of magnifiers including specialised electronic magnifiers and computer software. Social groups are run in Macclesfield, Wilmslow, Congleton and Poynton.
East Cheshire Eye Society | CheshireEast MarketPlace
Henshaws
A North West charity offering support, advice and training to enable young people and their families.
Henshaws - Beyond Expectations
East Cheshire Deaf Children's Society (ECDCS)
The local branch of the NDCS who organise social activities for Deaf young people and their families. They also raise funds and support families. They are a group run by parents and volunteers, and always welcome new members. Please speak to your Teacher of the Deaf if you would like to find out more!
ECDCS | Home
Deaf & Sensory Network (DSN)
Deaf & Sensory Network (DSN) provides information, advice and practical support including ‘drop-in' services and access to technical equipment e.g., amplification aids. They also run a youth club, Youth Vibe, for young people between the ages of 8 and 19.
Home - dsn
The Cheshire CHSWG (Children’s Hearing Service Working Group)
The Cheshire CHSWG (Children’s Hearing Service Working Group) is a group representing all services involved with children and young people with hearing impairment, including parents. We welcome parents and young people at our meetings. For more information, please contact your Teacher of the Deaf or email sensoryinclusionservice@cheshireeast.gov.uk
CHSWG
Safeguarding Information
Many schools now have a team of Safeguarding Officers or Ambassadors. These important children and young people work closely with the schools’ Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) to help others if they are feeling sad or unsafe. They organise Children’s Mental Health Weeks, activities and assemblies. They help to explain what mental health means. ‘Daisy’s Dragon’ is a recommended book about feelings. Please talk to your child’s school if you are worried about anything. More information to keep all children and young people ‘Safe and Happy’ can be found at;
Childline – 08001111
NSPCC – Pants are Private
Thinkuknow.co.uk
Please let us know if you would prefer not to receive this newsletter and similar items please email: sensoryinclusionservice@cheshireeast.gov.uk
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