Sarah Hercod: Access to Work and the time the dog ate my hearing aids (BSL)

When I first entered the world of work, I was keen to cover up my deafness. If I’m honest, I didn’t fully understand the impact that deafness was having on my day to day interactions; I wasn’t a consistent hearing aid wearer and couldn’t engage in the back and forth of conversations in the staff room or in the corridors.

But I was well rehearsed at reading facial expressions and body language, so I followed along and laughed when everyone else did, never fully comprehending the punchline.

I now cringe as I realise how rude I must have seemed when I interrupted, how ignorant when I changed the subject, walked away or appeared to ignore people because I hadn’t picked up what they were saying. I was fooling everyone, including myself. Or so I thought…

Within three years of qualifying and getting my first teaching job, I was exhausted and disheartened by the daily effort of keeping up. I left my role to pursue a passion for art, thinking that it would be quieter and more reflective, and would suit me better.

But I still wasn’t making use of my hearing aids and I found that day to day interactions outside of work continued to be challenging.

I was also a lot poorer and on one occasion, having failed to sustain a conversation across the counter and get the help I needed from the bank, I left in tears. I was promptly told by my friend, who was waiting outside for me, to go back in and, “tell them you can’t hear.” I didn’t argue.

After this, I went back to audiology, was fitted with discrete in-the-ear hearing aids and started to wear them for work.

A few years later the dog ate my hearing aids (luckily, not the poisonous batteries), and I naively thought the NHS would provide like for like replacements. I liked the fact that, unless I said I was deaf, no-one had to know that under my long hair (which I always wore down) I was wearing two hearing aids.

I was devastated when the audiologist supplied me with a new pair that sat behind the ear, not just because they were less well hidden, but because of their tendency to feedback with every wisp of hair that brushed past the microphone.

I wasn’t ready to wear my hair up to and broadcast to the world the fact that I was deaf. I wrote to the audiologist, asking them to reconsider but was only offered Hearing Therapy and some information about Access to Work.

At that time, I’d left teaching again and was a self-employed childminder. The dog was my assistant – trotting around the house to let me know when the baby woke up from naptime, or if there was someone at the door.

Access to Work issued me with a range of equipment, some of which was instantly useful like flashing lights to alert me to the phone, fire alarm and baby monitor, and a landline phone that could be programmed to my audiological profile. I was also given a Roger Pen radio aid, which I mostly used to amplify the speaker on the TV.

You can see how this all worked out nicely for the delinquent dog because all this equipment meant that she could spend less time doing my job for me and more time working out how to eat things she shouldn’t.

When I returned to teaching, Access to Work supported me again. I was provided with a cordless adaptive telephone for the classroom and Deaf Awareness training for the team.

This time, I learned the importance of applying for support within 6 weeks of starting a new role. Applying beyond this deadline means your employer will have to pay more towards the cost of equipment.

Last summer, having moved to a new teaching role in a nursery, Access to Work funded acoustic treatment. Young children are very LOUD and research suggests that indoor sound levels in nurseries are typically around 80dB – not far off the levels where hearing protection is recommended.

We can’t wholly blame the children though because buildings and contents also have a role to play in how sound travels. Rectangular rooms, like the one I work in, create flutter echo as sound distorts off the walls and ceiling. Plus, wooden, metal and plastic surfaces can bounce sound around too.

The acoustic panels are made of wool and shaped like fluffy clouds. They’re installed on the ceiling to absorb sound waves and create a better environment for communication. Speech is not only easier to hear but it is easier to deliver, as we don’t have to strain our voices to be heard and this has the knock-on effect of bringing overall sound levels down.

It also means that children’s attention levels can be more effectively supported.

During the process of getting the clouds installed, conversations opened up with colleagues about their own levels of deafness and listening comfort and the great thing about acoustic treatment is that it benefits everyone. A feature of true inclusion.

Cutting noise levels creates a calmer atmosphere for everyone, not just those of us with interaction challenges. Everyone has a better chance of hearing and understanding each other.

Access to Work isn’t easy to navigate and if you’re juggling work, life, family etc it can be time consuming on top of everything else. I found it helpful to keep a notebook for audiology appointments, to write down their advice and the details of my hearing aids, so I had these to hand when communicating with AtW about my challenges.

They wanted to know lots of information including;

When were you diagnosed or when did the disability/condition occur?
What level of hearing loss do you have (with aids if applicable)?
How does this condition affect you in work where are you having difficulty?
Which days in the week do you work and hours?
Do you work at home any days, if so how many days per week?

I connected with other d/Deaf/HoH teachers to find out what they found useful in their day to day work and used an app called ‘Decibel X’ to take sound level readings when the children were in nursery (this app needs to be calibrated.)

Another app, called ‘Clap Reverb,’ measured reverberation in the nursery when it was empty at the end of the day. In the UK, legislation exists for reverberation levels in certain types of buildings and the best people to advise on this are acoustic treatment companies.

Roberts Audio Solutions provided a free acoustic audit and quoted for the work, then I had to secure two more quotes from similar companies. After I’d submitted my application and my employer had been contacted by Access to Work, an assessor came out to verify the need for acoustic clouds – she didn’t question this once she stepped into the playroom!

The application was approved, I received a report via email and my employer booked the install. The work was completed within Access to Work’s specified time frame.

This is all thanks, I guess, to that time when the dog ate my hearing aids.

Sarah Hercod is a Qualified Teacher of Deaf Children and Young People and an Illustrator. She lives with her husband and two dogs in the South Cornwall riverside town where she grew up. Sarah would love to hear from you if you’re keen to chat about access to work. You can connect with Sarah on Instagram and Twitter @sarahhercodillustrates.