Minds are at rest thanks to PCSO visits to Shire View  

Service users at Shire View have been airing their views and voicing concerns about community safety after Police and Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) started their regular visits to the centre, to put people’s minds at rest.

 The drop in dates have been organised by staff at Shire View in response to a demand for access to Police services within a familiar environment. coHearentVision is dedicated to ensuring the wellbeing of its service users, and the drop in dates are a prime example of how it is helping people with a sensory loss become more involved with society and to have a say on how community activities progress.

 Sheila Foster is just one of the service users who has benefited from this new service. She said: “Blind People have great mobility issues, particularly in streets with obstructions such as parked cars and wheelie bins. Its reassuring to know that the Police are working with us to overcome the barriers we face when trying to achieve independence.”

Jenna Crewe, Community Development Officer at coHearentVision, said: “The drop in sessions have been arranged with West Yorkshire Police in order to provide an accessible opportunity for blind and visually impaired people to meet the Police and PCSOs in a safe and familiar environment, and to discuss any concerns they may have.”

Upcoming drop in dates are on the website please see our Event Calendar

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 coHearentVision’s Interpreting Department stepped in to provide a BSL interpreter for the 7^th Annual Sports Awards on Monday 15^th February 2010.  Malcolm Dawson of the Leeds Sports Federation said:  “on behalf of the Leeds Sports Federation and the City Council’s Sports and Recreation Department, can I thank coHearentVision for their help in providing a “signer” to support this event.  Keren’s input and support was invaluable and highly professional: she was brilliant!  coHearentVision helped ensure that Mr Paul Young and his group were able to participate fully and enjoy a spectacular evening which honoured the many sports stars we have in the City of Leeds”.

Over 140 people attended the Awards Evening, including many celebrities from the world of sport such as Neil Back and Andy Key (rugby union), Gary Hetherington ( rugby league) and Sean Harvey ( football).  The Awards were held in the presence of the Lord Mayor of Leeds, Councillor Judith Elliott. The Awards Evening celebrated the achievements and successes of athletes, both professional and amateur, administrators and volunteers in all sports. It was organised by the Leeds Sports Federation.

This came about due to the Government’s Transformation Fund whose aim is to promote adult learning. The Thackray Museum is in partnership with other medical museums around the country:

• British Dental Association
• Old Operating Theatre
• Hunterian Museum (Royal College of Surgeons)
• Edward Jenner Museum
• George Marshall Museum

 Each museum is working with a different group of people, who might not typically visit museums. Since the Thackray Museum wanted to build closer links with the deaf and hard of hearing community in Leeds and to find out more about what they want from the museum, Louise Brown, the Project Manager at the Museum, got in touch with Evin Wickremaratne, the Community Liaison Officer, and Sarah Eaton, Sensory Awareness Co-ordinator, at coHearentVision to advertise the course amongst the deaf and hard of hearing community. Louise also attended one of coHearentvision’s Sensory Awareness courses to learn about the communication needs of deaf and hard of hearing people in order to ensure the film-making course are accessible  to people with a hearing loss.

 The opening night 3^rd November 2009, introduced the project and showed a special selection of medical related clips put together by Yorkshire Film Archive to get people inspired. BSL interpreters, booked through coHearentVision’s Sign Language Interpreting Services, have been providing communication support at every class and loop facilities have been purchased by the Museum on advice from coHearentVision, which was loaned to the hard of hearing students during the courses. The extra communication help has enabled the students to take part in the course.

 The aim of the course is to open the Thackray Museum to a wider audience, make learning about health and medicine more accessible, and to enable people to tell their story of health and medicine by making a film about whatever inspires them from Thackray. At the end of the course, there will be a Premiere Event when the films will be shown is on Saturday 13^th March 2-4pm.and people will be invited to attend. This promise to be quite interested and you are welcome to come and see the films that have been made!

Excitingly the BBC programme See hear came to film the course on 10th of February. This programme will be shown on the 3rd of March make sure you remember to watch.

Accessible Information for People with Learning Disabilities

The main aim for the Symbols Service is to improve communication for people with learning disabilities by producing accessible information in a symbol format.

Andrew Wonnacott and Keith Paterson started paid work in January 2010 on a fixed term temporary contract after working in the service voluntary for 2 years.

This is not only a great personal achievement for both Andrew and Keith, but also, it is Keith and Andrew who will check to see if the work and information we produce is easy to understand and accessible.

We are very grateful to Awards for All for a grant we received last year of £6,379 to help us buy new computer equipment and an interactive plasma screen.

Below: customers who volunteer in the Symbols Service receiving the cheque from Awards for All.

Andrew       Wanda      Marie        Philip    Keith         Carl

Valentine Disco – Wednesday 10^th February

Our Valentine Disco in the Deaf Social Club was a great success, and the first of many more social afternoon events.  The social get together gave all our customers an opportunity to meet other people from different centres’ in Leeds, or for customers already in a relationship an opportunity to have a nice fun social afternoon with their partner and friends.

Feedback has been so positive we are now planning a St Patrick’s Day afternoon disco and  social event in the Deaf Social Club on Wednesday March 17^th 1pm – 3pm for Communication Service and Symbols Service customers.

The lovely delicious chocolate fountain with fresh strawberries, melon, pineapple and marsh mellows.

“I liked the chocolate fountain, it was beautiful”

Anna Downey. 

For more information about the Communication Service please contact: julie.newsome@cohearentvision.org.uk

Rob Young, Chief Executive of coHearentVision says: “we are averaging 25-30 fittings, repairs and replacements of equipment a week as a result of detailed assessments that identify the needs of people with a hearing loss.

Despite no real increase in Local Authority funding for the equipment budget for several years, coHearentVision continues to provide a great service for a large number of individuals as well as fantastic value-for-money for Leeds City Council. Relatively minor items of equipment help people with a sensory loss to lead a better life: people like Frank and his colleagues make it happen”.

 If you think you would benefit from a similar, Interpreting work placement with coHearentVision contact: Jonathan.field@cohearentvision.org.uk or matthew.broom@cohearentvision.org.uk

Following the soft launch of the Leeds Society for Deaf and Blind People’s new working name CoHearentVision the brand has seen increasing awareness. The latest recognition comes in the Yorkshire Evening Post

Name change for Leeds charity

 

Published Date: 09 February 2010

By Katie Baldwin

Health Reporter

 

LEEDS Society for Deaf and Blind People is to be rebranded as coHearentVision.

The new name is designed to reflect the forward-thinking approach of the society, which dates back to the 19th century.

Chief executive Rob Young said: “The new name is an important step forward for the organisation, bringing it right up-to-date with similar charities that are operating across the country.

“We are one of the largest regional charities in the UK, but not enough people that could benefit from our services actually know about us and what we do.

“The world of sensory loss can be incredibly lonely and it is easy for many people to feel isolated and invisible to the rest of society.

“CoHearentVision will allow us to spell out exactly what we do, reflecting and encompassing our outdated name.

“It will also provide a great basis for us to challenge, influence and change attitudes towards people with a sensory loss.”

For more information, call 0113 243 8328 or visit www.cohearentvision.org.uk

see http://www.cohearentvision.org.uk/about-us/job-vacancies/ for further details

LEEDS CHARITY TO LAUNCH NEW MODERN BRAND

 Leeds Society for Deaf and Blind People will launch its new brand over the coming months in a transitional, phased approach to the new identity, ‘coHearentVision‘.

coHearentVision will be the new, contemporary working name of the deaf-blind charity and will reflect the forward thinking and innovative approach of its staff, service-users and volunteers.

 Providing a fresh, modernised platform for the voices of thousands of people living with sensory loss, the new identity will appeal to both young and old.

 It will build upon the deep-rooted foundations of Leeds Society for Deaf and Blind People, which dates back to the 19^th century, and will maintain the important sense of community that is already successfully associated with the organisation.

 Rob Young, Chief Executive of coHearentVision, said: “The new name and logo are an extremely important and huge step forward for the organisation, bringing it right up-to-date with similar disability charities that are operating across the country.

 “We are one of the largest regional charities in the UK, yet very few people that could benefit from our services actually know about us and what we do, therefore the rebrand is the first step towards dramatically changing this and really getting our name out there.

 “The world of sensory loss can be incredibly lonely and it can be unnecessarily easy for people to feel isolated and invisible to the rest of society. ‘coHearentVision‘ will allow us to spell out exactly what we do, reflecting and encompassing the old, outdated name, and will also provide the perfect basis for us to challenge and influence people’s views and attitudes towards those sensory loss.”

 The new brand will be formally launched over the coming months alongside a public awareness campaign to increase the numbers of service users and volunteers, and change people’s attitudes towards the deaf-blind community.

 To find out more about the work of coHearentVision and future plans for the organisation, visit www.cohearentvision.org.uk or call 0113 243 8328.