Sensory Services
The Sensory Services Team offers a service to all Deaf, Deaf blind and visually impaired adults living within Trafford. The team's focus is to offer community care and specialist assessments in relation to an individual's needs to enable them to live independent lives.
Services for visually impaired adults
The Visual Impairment Service includes Rehabilitation officers and a Technical Officer who are specifically trained to support Blind and Partially sighted people. The service focuses on enabling people with a visual impairment to be fully active and independent in the community by provide training, advice and information.
Services include:
- Information and advice on all aspects of vision loss.
- Specialist assessment of the rehabilitation needs of people with visual impairment, specifically following registration as blind or partially sighted.
- Help to develop Independent Living Skills.
- Mobility / orientation training
- Issue of certain items of specialist equipment used in Rehabilitation.
- Referral to Talking Book Service.
- Referral to Wireless for the Blind.
In addition, the social worker for Deafblind and visually impaired adults can undertake community care assessments and care management, for people under 65, who have need for home care support.
Target Group
Visually impaired adults or blind people who have rehabilitation and/or social care needs arising from sight loss and require appropriate services. Appropriate support services are developed to meet those needs.
Services for deaf people
The Deaf and Hard of Hearing Service provides social work support, advice, information and guidance to people who are profoundly Deaf and use BSL as their first language. All staff within the Sensory team have BSL skills. In addition, there is a contract with RNID, monitored by the team, to provide BSL interpreting services for all Service Users who need to communicate with Social Services adult teams.
Click Here for more Information on Deaf Genie Project
Services include:
- Social work support.
- Advice, guidance and assistance and advocacy, to enable independent living.
- Information on Deaf issues.
- Assessment of needs, formulation of care plans, and care management of cases where required.
There will be someone from Sensory Services with BSL skills/qualifications, on duty every Friday morning at a drop-in session from 10am til 12 noon in partnership with Genie Office for simple social work advice or any issues with Equipment for Deaf people. The person on duty may arrange referrals to Social Worker with Deaf People or Equipment with Deaf people.
Target group
All Deaf People requiring specialist social support in relation to communication, mobility and access to information needs. It aims to maximise people's independence, including helping them access main stream services.
Services for Deafblind adults
Dual sensory loss is unique. Even a slight loss to both these senses can make everyday living very difficult. The main areas of life that it restricts are communication, mobility and access to information. This can make people frustrated, angry, isolated etc (and these behaviour changes are sometimes not recognised as linked to the sensory loss). By addressing the sensory problems, other problems and issues may be alleviated.
Services include:
- Social work support
- Specialist assessment of Deafblind adults, formulation of care plans and care management.
- Advice, guidance and assistance leading to independent living
- Specialist Rehabilitation assessment and formulation of rehabilitation plans.
- Referral to agency providing essential equipment to assist daily living at home
- Information on Deafblind issues
- Deafblind awareness to staff and relatives
Target group
Deafblind people needing direct help to access services. The aim is to develop personal support networks to enable individuals to live independently. The team is committed to identifying this previously under represented group and developing services to address their needs.
In addition to providing equipment for people with hearing loss, DIAL Trafford offer an information service to all Trafford Councilresidents about disability matters. In addition, they can assess and advise people with vision loss on the purchase of additional equipment, which they can supply from their stock.
Who to Contact
The Sensory Services Team
3rd Floor Annexe
Trafford Town Hall
Stretford
Manchester
M32 0YT
Telephone: 0161 912 4450/4451/4263
Fax: 0161 912 4076
Minicom: 0161 912 4377/4381
This page was last updated on 7 November 2007
