Training and consultancy service

Experienced professionals

Sense has a team of professionals with extensive experience of working with children and adults with both congenital and acquired deafblindness and multi-sensory impairment.

The Training and Consultancy service offers people working in the field with access to specialist assessments, advice and training on all aspects of working with deafblind and multi-sensory impaired people.

• Full and comprehensive assessments of individuals in a variety of settings. Children will usually be assessed at home or in school, whilst adults may be seen in their residential setting, home or day placement. Assessments can also be carried out at fully equipped Sense facilities.

• Functional and developmental assessment reports for community care assessments, or as part of the Statementing process – areas of assessment include communication, multi-sensory needs, vision, hearing, mobility and behaviour.
  
• Training and advice to staff working with deafblind and multi-sensory impaired people, which can be provided on an ongoing basis. This can include planning developmental programmes for individuals, planning appropriate services, advice on environmental adaptations, and support visits.
  
• Flexible, high quality training covering all aspects of dual sensory and multi-sensory impairment, such as awareness of the impact of sensory impairment, mobility, communication, adapting the environment and tactile awareness. Such training can be tailored to meet individual requirements.
  
• Specialist courses designed to meet the needs of professionals and carers in such areas as communication systems and techniques, challenging behaviour, personal and sexual development and massage.
  
• Training courses in Intervenor skills for people working on a one-to-one basis with deafblind or multi-sensory impaired children or adults.
  
• Externally accredited courses, such as Deafblind Awareness, Deafblind Support Worker, and Communication and Guiding Skills, are also available.
  

Sense aims to provide staff in other agencies with the specialist knowledge and skills to enable deafblind and multi-sensory impaired people to maximise their abilities, understand and access their surroundings, and reduce the isolation and disabling effects of dual sensory impairment.

To find out more about Sense services, contact the Information and Advice service team.