To support the children and young people that we currently work with, the Deaf and Hearing Impairment Team recently contacted some of our past students and young people for feedback on their early experiences, as youngsters with hearing losses, living in Devon. We asked them to update us on their current situations. We hoped to be able to celebrate their achievements with them and to share their experiences and advice. We were overwhelmed by their accomplishments, resilience and determination to make their mark. What terrific role models they are.
We were truly thrilled to hear back, with such uplifting and positive stories, and hope that these will help raise aspirations and inspire all our youngsters to aim high and follow their dreams. Read Isaac, George, Holly, Jonathan and Harry’s positive stories below.
We would love to hear from other ex students. Please get in touch and share your stories. Please contact: alison.wells@devon.gov.uk.
Isaac’s story
Where I am now
Hello, my name is Isaac Dundas and I am 20 years old. Currently, I am studying Law with Business (LLB) at the University of Portsmouth and in my final year. I live independently with my university housemates. I have two hearing aids and use a Roger Pen and various equipment to aid my studies. I use a Phonak ComPilot to listen to music and take phone calls. I prefer communicating with people face to face but with the mandated requirement of face masks and Covid-19 I opt to have video calls in order to communicate whilst being able to communicate with others.
What was it like growing up in Devon as a Deaf child?
I am very fortunate to have a group of friends and school that was very accepting of my hearing loss. I studied in a mainstream school and was helped by a teacher of the deaf who regularly visited. I was also provided with a range of different radio aids throughout my tenure. This all aided my studying and school life. There is always challenges for deaf children in the classroom, my main challenge was the group conversations that would happen in class. Often teachers would forget they are wearing the radio aid and so I would be trying to talk in my group whilst the teacher would be discussing a topic with another group. I also suffered a bit of bullying relating to the fact I was ‘different’ but that was quickly resolved by either discussing with teachers or outperforming them.
Outside of school I did a range of activities, I completed the Bronze, Silver and Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. I played hockey and rugby (regularly coaching young children as well). I also completed the 35 miles (twice), 45 and 55 miles Ten Tors Challenge. Tough but worth it. I also had a part-time job and group of friends I was able to spend time with and would often to go the beaches for surfing or kayaking or we would go to Plymouth.
Advice or top tips to our current deaf children and young people
My hearing loss has definitely made me very resilience, determined and eager to succeed. You may be the only kid in school with a hearing impairment at school and so you may feel left out but talk to people, show you are not different and that its just a slight issue. Eventually, you will get a core group of friends who are willing to help all the time which is what really helped me. The reason I mention that I am resilience and determined is no matter where you are, you will unfortunately, face some form of discrimination and when I have encountered that I chose to ignore it and not let it bother me but instead use it to fuel me into getting better grades at school and heading to university. I am now aiming to work in a corporate law firm in London.
My biggest advice or top tip will just to have fun, do as much as you can. I loved doing outdoor activities and so took part in so much events and went on numerous NDCS holidays to do more activities and make more friends.
George’s story
My name is George Greenway and I am 27 years old. I became deaf after contracting meningitis when I was a baby. When I was two and a half years old I had a Cochlear Implant fitted. I attended Countess Wear Combined School in Exeter as it had a hearing support unit but transferred to St Joseph’s primary school in Exmouth when I was in year three and then attended Exmouth Community College. I was very lucky to be supported by three amazing teachers of the deaf from when I was first diagnosed until I left school. During my pre-school years I was seen weekly by a TOD who played games with me and built up my resilience to carry on even when I had had enough. At Countess Wear I was taught structure and encouraged to be curious and learnt how to use my Cochlear Implant by listening and trying to understand my surroundings. Attending mainstream school without the constant support of a TOD was not easy as the staff had to learn how to deal with a deaf child, as I was the only one in my primary school but the support of my teaching assistant and my weekly TOD visit helped everyone in the school. I worked hard and made friends and I was good at sport so I could join in their games and I could teach them some sign language too.
My favourite sport was cricket, which I started playing when I was nine at our local cricket club in Exmouth. When I was 16 I started training with the England Deaf Elite Team and at 17, I was selected to tour Australia, the youngest player to go. I have been to Spain, South Africa and Dubai with the England Deaf team. I am now the Captain of the England Deaf team, a role I am very proud to have achieved.
I attended a deaf youth club at the deaf school in Exeter, where I was able to mix with other deaf children and I was able to improve my signing. Being able to sign was a great help to me when I joined Deaf England cricket as some of the players relied solely on signing.
I am a qualified carpenter and have just bought a house in Exmouth with my girlfriend. I am a hard worker, I have a good sense of humour and am always determined to do well and I never give up. I have always had the help and support of my family and friends, which has got me to where I am now.
My advice is never to be afraid to ask for help as not everyone understands the problems of not being able to hear unless you tell them. Work hard and enjoy yourself.
Holly’s story
My name is Holly Comer and I am 21. I have a moderate/severe bilateral sensori-neural deafness and wear 2 hearing aids.
I have always been deaf and rely on lip reading to assist my understanding. I studied Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics at A-Level and am now studying Chemistry at Cardiff University. I also spent a year on an industrial placement, in the laboratory of a pharmaceutical company.
I have passed my driving test and achieved the Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. At university I was captain of the Chemistry Netball Team and belonged to 2 dance societies.
Throughout school I benefitted from regular support from my Teacher of the Deaf, Charlotte, who ensured the teachers and fellow students had deaf awareness training. I used a radio aid and had access to invaluable expert advice/guidance when needed. Importantly, this taught me how to deal with certain issues, myself, in readiness to go to university. Audiology continue to support me while I am still in full-time education.
In school I was encouraged to read news articles regularly to keep up with new vocabulary and plug any gaps. I still do this and find it really helpful.
In between years 12 and 13 I attended a Summer School for Deaf and hard of hearing students at UCL, through their Widening Participation programme. We stayed in University halls, got advice on UCAS applications and had taster lectures. Other Deaf University students and recent graduates shared their experiences of university life with us. It was also really beneficial to meet up with other deaf students with similar challenges and aspirations. I made a really good friend there and we have stayed in touch for over 3 years, sharing experiences and tips.
Prior to University I went on lots of Open Days. After narrowing my choices to just two, I visited the Disability Advisers to discuss my Disabled Support Allowance and my particular needs.
The Local Authority can only provide an Assistive Listening Device (ALD) whilst a deaf student is in school. Funding for equipment like radio aids at University comes through DSA.
During year 12, I borrowed a couple of radio aids from the National Deaf Childrens’ Society (NDCS) loan scheme, “Borrow to Buy”, to see which one best suited my particular hearing loss and me. After testing various different ones, I decided that the Roger touch was the one for me. In year 13 I applied for DSA and was assessed in Exeter. I explained what I needed to allow me to access university education. A report detailed how I lip read as well as use hearing aids and included details of the ALD required. This scheme has funded 2 Roger Touch radio aids. It also funded Teacher of the Deaf visits to support with vocabulary and pronunciation and stipulated that the university would have to employ notetakers for lectures, as I cannot lip read and write notes at the same time. I still have extra time for exams too.
All lectures are recorded but this does not help me much as I struggle to hear the recording. However, having the lectures professionally subtitled is an amazing help and even more helpful than notes. I am not always sure if a notetaker is present in the lecture and the notes I get do vary in quality and length. Some may be written by someone with no scientific background and some are of limited value. I originally requested notetakers with Scientific knowledge but none have been available so far.I didn’t have my lectures professionally subtitled initially but I was eventually able to get this done. Unfortunately this comes as an additional cost to the University and is not funded by the Disabled Students Allowance (DSA). Auto-generated captions are not sufficiently reliable and will be often be inaccurate. Even with this, as a Deaf student, I still need to really concentrate to follow the subtitled lectures (sometimes several times too), decipher and correct the notetakers’ notes and make more usable notes for myself. I also have access to lecture notes prior to lectures in order to prepare myself for any new vocabulary. I have a touchscreen laptop which doubles as a tablet so I can annotate notes directly onto the screen. I use Microsoft OneNote and insert the PowerPoint slides in as a PDF printout.
My first year I lived in catered halls in Cardiff. They had adapted rooms specifically for Deaf and hard of hearing students which included a flashing fire alarm in my room and bathroom. A flashing alarm in the kitchen is useful too. Having a catered evening meal was great as I found new faces and university life exhausting at times. My closest friends now are the people I had dinner with in hall and I lived with them the following year too.
When I am in the library I have a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan in place so someone will come to find me if an alarm sounds and I need to evacuate the building.
I chose to do a degree with a year in industry and have enjoyed working. My colleagues are very deaf aware and have supported me in completing my University projects and exams. One thing I have found challenging however, is the background noise generated by laboratory extractor fans.
I applied for PIP (Personal Independent Payments) , when I started University, as the challenges I faced as a deaf student became clearer. The whole process was stressful and lasted over 2 years, culminating in a tribunal hearing. I was supported by NDCS throughout the process which included providing advice about the impact of hearing loss on everyday life. I was successful at the tribunal.
I am a little anxious about my next and final year at University and the challenges posed by masks and social distancing.
Revision guides and tips
- Draw up a revision timetable – 3 subjects a day for 45 mins each
- Explore different types of revision styles to see which suits you best e.g. mind maps, flash cards etc.
- Clear understanding of the different levels of detail that the different types of question require e.g. Review/Discuss/Describe.
- Live speakers for language listening examinations so be able to lip read.
- Having access to past papers and practise answering questions.
- Using the marks available to indicate the length of answer and detail required.
- Compare answers to the mark scheme to ensure level of detail is correct.
Exam technique
- Get extra time in place and agreed before the exam season starts.
Jonathan’s Story
My name is Jonathan Cadoux-Hudson, aged 33. I am profoundly deaf and have been since 6 months old when I contracted meningitis. Growing up I wore hearing aids until I decided to go down the option of having a cochlear implant when 17.
Throughout my life, I have always relied on my capability to lipread people be that through face to face or via video conferencing. I have taught a few of my friends to lipread as well such we could have conversations across a room / bar which annoyed others! However since the adoption of the cochlear implant, I was able to hear more than with hearing aids and I have slowly encouraged myself to practice my hearing rather than being reliant on lipreading. I have had limited success with this and it is much easier with people I know such as my family (such as being able to phone them which is something I never expected).
Growing up, I learnt to love maths and science which came from my parents through playing chess and doing mathematical quizzes and fostered by my teachers at TBGS which ultimately was the deciding factor for me to go to University and study a masters in theoretical physics. After completion of that degree, I applied and got onto the EDF Energy nuclear graduate scheme. Over the last 10 years I have worked my way up to a technical leader position which provides challenges especially during this lockdown period in terms of wearing masks and using video conferences to talk with people. On a personal nature, I am married and we have a dog who takes over the sofa when I am not around!
What was it like growing up in Devon as a Deaf child?
I grew up living on the edge of Dartmoor national park so ended up spending a lot of time outdoors. So naturally I got involved with outdoor sport as well! I went to primary school with friends who went on to play cricket and hockey, so I followed in their footsteps. Also given that I had an older brother who was into cricket, that made us become very competitive (lots of cricket in the garden – no broken windows luckily!)
I still play cricket these days, as I enjoy the fact that you don’t need to hear to participate and get involved with the game. My greatest achievement with cricket was being picked for the England Deaf Cricket team and going with them on a tour of Australia when was 16, a close second was scoring 100* which only happened this summer just gone!
Throughout my time in Devon and TBGS I had plenty of support which without I would have not been where I am now. The main support came from my family, encouraging me to push my boundaries and allowed me to gain confidence to be able to do things in life.
It was a very strange feeling starting at TBGS as I was the only deaf person out of 1000 pupils and none of them had any experience of deaf people. It was hard for me in the first few months making friends and communicating with them but the school staff became more aware of my needs – for instance the need to speak slowly and directly at me so I could lip read and communicate back. One member of staff even shaved off his beard so I could lip read him!
During my time at the grammar school I made some amazing friends who interestingly took the time to learn to lip read so we had whacky conversations across the room in boring classes without the teachers knowing!
Advice or top tips to our current deaf children and young people
Growing up, I really struggled to deal with the fact that I was deaf however it was through my family and friends that I turned that around and looked at the positive benefits of being deaf rather than looking at the downsides (such as silent conversations across a whole room).
I have faced many challenges throughout my life where I felt like giving up as I couldn’t get past these imaginary brick walls and I still do. However my parents have taught me the lesson of not giving up and to keep trying different tactics to break down barriers, which I am forever grateful for. This has helped me to be very driven and I’m always looking forward to the next challenge.
The last word from me is that, don’t feel like you are alone in the world, there are people around you who will always support you and help you get around or overcome obstacles that are standing between you and your potential.
Harry’s story
Where I am now
I am nearly 34 years old. I rent a flat where I live independently. I am profoundly deaf and British Sign Language (BSL) is my first language. I do not use any aids at all having never felt any benefit from them.
Lately work has been difficult but I am a plasterer and general builder. I am also a qualified lifeguard and surf instructor. I do this in the summers, teaching disability groups of children and adults. I also teach other groups with no disability.
What was it like growing up in Devon as a Deaf child?
Growing up here was fantastic. I was able to skateboard, bike and roam in my village with my mates. I surfed from 9 years old and swan competitively from 11 for the GB Deaf swim squad. I swam for GB in Melbourne, Australia in the Deaf Olympics, this was amazing! I also represented GB in the World Deaf Surfing Champs in Hawaii coming 2nd in 4 groups. I did this twice, travelling on my own.
I left Exeter at 16 and went to my local mainstream college where I received brilliant support from 3 communication support workers (CSWs) from the Deaf Academy (school back then). My ToD would visit regularly to help with my maths and English. English has always been a problem as I am dyslexic. I obtained an A level in photography.
I carried onto Plymouth College for 3 years and achieved a 2:1 degree in Photography. I had full time BSL interpreter support for the first 2 years. The final year the interpreter left but I was lucky enough to get my best friend into the post so he supported me for my final year. He was level 3 (BSL) then, now level 6 with hardly a lesson, he learnt from me.
Advice or top tips
- Never say “I can do that because I am Deaf.” Always put yourself out there.
- Keep a foot in both worlds with deaf and hearing mates.
- It can be difficult at times but keep striving for what you wish in life, anything is possible.
- Challenge yourself!
- Have a sense of humour, don’t take yourself too seriously and be determined!
- I am a very chilled person. I was always told I could pass a GCSE in chill!