Contact this service for support with Deaf and Visually Impaired children and young people in nurseries, schools and Further Education settings.
Our team works with nurseries, schools and parents to provide support for children and young people aged 0 to 25 who have Visual Impairment and/or Deafness.
Examples of impairments include Conductive and Sensori Neural Deafness, vision impairment or blindness.
Our team consists of specialist SEN teachers who hold mandatory qualifications in Deafness or visual impairment, and SEN specialist practitioners with qualifications in Braille, British Sign Language and habilitation.
We also have:
The Specialist Provision for Deaf Children at Bevendean Primary School is an integral part of our service.
Our team:
Parent guidance and advice are important aspects of the pre-school provision offered by the the VI and Deafness Team.
Our teachers work alongside parents, offering information and support as soon as a deafness or visual impairment has been diagnosed. Advice is given on developmental and educational issues arising from the diagnosis.
Regular contact with parents also enables the teachers to discuss the options and possibilities for future educational provision.
Teachers liaise between parents and organised groups such as playgroups, nursery schools, voluntary organisations and other associated support services.
The service has a team of visiting teachers who go into Brighton & Hove mainstream and special schools, attended by pupils with sensory needs. The team:
Visiting teachers work with children and young people from pre-school to further education.
Children's progress is monitored using a range of assessment materials. Appropriate targets are identified, which may form part of the child's Individual Education Plan.
CHSWG is a locally based multi-agency group working together to provide for and meet the needs of all children within our area who have been identified as having deafness.
Find out more about CHSWG.
A small number of children have needs best met in our Specialist Provision for Deaf Children. The service is staffed by qualified teachers of the Deaf and is located within a mainstream school.
The Deafness Team is responsible for the staffing and overall management of the Specialist Provision for Deaf Children at Bevendean Primary School.
Some secondary-age pupils attend Lewes Priory School in East Sussex, where there's a successful Hearing Support Facility (HSF).
Find out more about the Specialist Provision for Deaf Children.
We provide and maintain radio aids and other audiological equipment for Deaf pupils on our caseload. We also provide a full audiological service in co-operation with the Health Authority.
Our team provides specialist access to technology available for loan for our visually impaired pupils, for assessment purposes. Teachers offer a small library of large print books to the children they work with.
Our team advise schools and parents to manage the resources provided so they can make full and effective use of them.
Teachers in the VI and Deafness Team are experienced in offering advice on the needs of visually impaired and Deaf pupils in educational assessment procedures.
Special arrangements may be made, and test materials and presentations can be modified (and/or extra time allowed) in Standard Assessment Tasks, GCSEs, A-Levels and GNVQs.
Teachers from the VI and Deafness Team offer INSET annually to:
For more information about families get-together, send an email to Caroline.J.Palmer@brighton-hove.gov.uk.
For more information about F.R.I.E.N.D.S., send an email to Caroline.J.Palmer@brighton-hove.gov.uk.
Deafness and Visual are usually identified through new born hearing screening, or during regular health and developmental checks carried out by a doctor, health visitor or other medical professional.
Children with identified Deafness or Visual Impairments typically receive support from us before they start school, and this support will continue once they begin.
Some children's needs may only be identified during scheduled hearing and sight tests at school, typically during their Reception year. These children will be referred to the relevant health service (such as Children's Audiology) for further assessment and to BHISS to ensure they get the right support in school.
If you have concerns about your child's sight or hearing, you can speak to their class teacher or the school SENCO, or seek advice from your GP or an optician.
The BHISS VI and Deafness service is a free service offered to all early years settings and schools funded by the local authority. Independent schools (also known as private schools) can access this service on a “traded” basis.