Children's Sensory and Physical Needs Service - Support Team for Deaf Children

Pupils supported by the team        

The Team supports the following deaf children from diagnosis (which can be as early as 6 weeks of age) to 19 years old:

• Those with a sensory-neural deafness who are hearing aid wearers
• Those with a permanent bilateral degree of deafness
• Those with a permanent unilateral degree of deafness
• Those with Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder (ANSD)
• Those with a diagnosis of Auditory Processing Disorder (APD)

More information can be found in the Range Guidance, linked to the Bradford Graduated Response

Range of Services

The Team provides qualified and experienced teachers of the deaf to work with both pre-school and school-aged deaf children and young people and their families.

The aim of this support is to ensure that the individual needs of deaf children are met within the context of home and school. These needs are identified in partnership with the pupil, parents, teachers and other professionals.

The Team provides:

• Support and information for families to enable them to make informed choices for their deaf children in relation to language development, communication options and educational pathways, etc
• Support for pupils in mainstream and special schools to access the curriculum
• Support and training to teaching staff and teaching assistants
• Contribution to Stages of Assessment and IEP formulation
• Speech audiometry and other assessments as necessary
• Liaison with other agencies
• Advice on classroom acoustics and the need for additional auditory equipment such as radio aids and soundfield systems
• A teacher of the deaf and specialist practitioner who speak Panjabi/Urdu
• Deaf Instructor support for pre-school deaf children
• Parent-toddler groups that include courses for parents and carers
• Deaf awareness and introductory sign language courses for parents and carers
• Resources which include library, videos, DVDs, information booklets and leaflets

Referrals to the Team

The Support Team for Deaf Children has an open referral system meaning that anyone can complete a referral form to request input. However, most referrals come direct to the Team from Local Health Trusts.

For children identified through the Newborn Hearing Screening Programme. The Early Years Co-ordinator or Team Leader attends the hospital clinics when the degree of deafness is confirmed to parents.

Schools with concerns about a pupil’s hearing are recommended to ask the family to take the child to the GP or ask the school nurse to see the child to determine whether a referral to an ENT consultant is necessary. It is through this route that pupils are referred to the Team. 

All referrals will normally receive a response within 10 working days and within 24 hours in the case of a pre-school child identified through the Newborn Hearing Screening Programme.

The referral form can be found on the following BSO page

https://bso.bradford.gov.uk/content/support-team-for-deaf-children#Referrals

Referrals to the team

Referrals come direct to the Team from Local Health Trusts.

 For children identified through the Newborn Hearing Screening Programme the Early Years Co-ordinator or Team Leader attends the hospital clinics when the hearing loss is confirmed to parents.

Schools with concerns about a pupil’s hearing are recommended to ask the family to take the child to the GP or ask the school nurse to see the child to determine whether a referral to an ENT consultant is necessary. It is through this route that pupils are referred to the Team. 

All referrals will normally receive a response within 10 working days and within 24 hours in the case of a pre-school child.