Call for government cash to help others

A boy who was fitted with hearing aids at just two months old has learnt to listen and speak after taking part in an interventon programme.

The family of nine-year-old Callum Herholdt, from Meopham, are now backing Auditory Verbal UK’s (AVUK) campaign calling on the Government to invest in early and effective support for all deaf children.

Callum had an abnormal response to the newborn hearing test and at two months old he was fitted with hearing aids.

His parents were shocked by the diagnosis as they had no history of hearing loss in the family.

At eight months old, a friend recommended AVUK and within a few sessions he was recognising sounds and responding.

Now aged nine, Callum is at a mainstream school and reads everything from the Beano comics to National Geographic books, as well as chatting with his friends and younger sister, Daniella.

“When we got the diagnosis we looked for every other possible reason,” mum Ingrid explained.

“As a completely hearing family it is not something you prepare for. You tell yourself, the test is wrong, that person is wrong, it’s not our boy.

“It’s amazing to listen to him and his sister having a full-on conversation. We are so grateful to AVUK for making this possible.”

It is the only charity in the country providing auditory verbal therapy – a family-centred, early intervention programme which supports deaf babies to learn how to listen and speak.

When they receive hearing technology, like cochlear implants and hearing aids, their brain needs to learn how to make sense of sound as they don’t magically work on their own.

More than 97% of children (without additional needs) who attend an Auditory Verbal programme for two or more years achieve listening and spoken language skills on par with their hearing friends.

‘As a completely hearing family it is not something you prepare for...’

However, only 8% of deaf children under five in the UK have access to a programme.

On Tuesday, the charity delivered a letter to Number 10 calling for a meeting with the Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to discuss increasing access to early intervention programmes through publicly funded services.

AVUK Chief Executive, Anita Grover said: “We know that deaf children in the country currently face the prospect of lower academic achievement, lower employment, and are at higher risk of poor mental health, bullying and social exclusion.

“But it doesn’t have to be this way. When children, like Callum, and their families have access to effective, early support, deaf children can get an equal start at school and their opportunities are transformed.

“This is critically important whether a child uses sign language, spoken language or both.”