Well done BSCS Team - it is great for your work with pupils, families and schools is recognised.

• Deaf Awareness Week 2023

  Wed 07 Jun 2023

  For Deaf Awareness week this year we ran a competition for our young people to create a poster or a poem. Here are some of the fabulous entries and we think they really rose to the challenge of using this competition to educate others and help other people understand what it means to wear hearing aids or cochlear implants. Thank you to all those who contributed. We think you are AMAZING!

  

• Winner of our Logo competition

  Mon 23 Jan 2023

   

  We are delighted to announce the winner of our logo competition for our 25th anniversary year.   It was a difficult choice but we had to pick just one and we are delighted to announce that Noah was our winning entry.  We loved its individuality, the use of children and balloons and the versatility that we can use either both together or separately.

   

  We received some fantastic entries and were so impressed by all the entries and by  the very talented and creative young people that we support and will  be posting some of the runners up on our website over the next couple of weeks

  Noah is pictured here with his winning entry and we look forward to using the logo for our communications regarding our 25th anniversary.

   

  

• Runners up for our logo competition

  Sun 22 Jan 2023

  We had some amazing entries to our Logo competition from our very talented young people.  It was very difficult to pick a winner and we wanted to share the runners up entries.  Well done from all at BSCS!

   

  

• Family Fun Day

  Mon 05 Sep 2022

  On Sunday 17th July Berkshire Sensory Consortium held a Family Day to celebrate

  the achievements of the children and young people we support.  We held  two events side by side. 

   

  At Thames Valley Adventure Playground we were delighted to welcome Theresa May MP to open our event.  The children were kept busy exploring all that TVAP has to offer as well as enjoying a variety of activities that our Teachers were running.  These included face painting, lego building, jar decorating and planting.

  The warm and sunny weather made Engage Watersports an ideal location for the afternoon and 

  it was great to see the children and young people take to the water on both kayaks and paddle boards.  

  Both events created a fabulous opportunity for families to meet each other as well as meeting the Teachers who support the children and young people. 

   

   

   

  

• Deaf Awareness Week - May 2022

  Mon 16 May 2022

  Berkshire Sensory consortium ran two competitions during Deaf Awareness week May 2022.  We wanted our young people to let their creativity run wild and create either posters or poems. We have been so impressed by the creations that have been put forward.  Some have made us laugh, some have touched our hearts and some have made us think.  But all are AMAZING.  Thank you to all who took part and here is a selection of the entries.

   

   

   

  

• Well done Ed! We have loved reading about all your fabulous achievements. You are amazing!

  Tue 18 Jan 2022

  My name is Ed, and I am 13 years old. I was born with a genetic condition called Oculocutaneous Albinism, which effects my level of pigmentation and causes vision impairment, which makes day to day life a little harder at times, along with this I also have type 1 diabetes. . Now, after primary school, I am working hard and managing with a lot more ease at my school, where I am encouraged, provided with help and support as well as being surrounded by a fun and accepting community. In the past year, I have achieved a number of things that I honestly never thought would happen to me! Firstly, I consider myself pretty good at music, and love both Euphonium, which is a small Tuba like instrument and piano. In brass lessons I am completing my grade 3, and I hope to continue piano further and further because it is definitely something, I enjoy. Secondly, both science and maths were both exciting to me last school year, and I was able to work hard in order to be awarded a scholar award for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math which was a big confidence booster and privilege that I am still proud of. I hope to continue to enjoy school, and continue to try hard but also I think its important for other vision impaired kids to harness their interests and make sure they get the right help to achieve because for everyone it is definitely possible.

   

   

  

• Recognition of the work of the Berkshire Sensory Consortium Service in the Slough SEND Inspection report under strengths published in November 2021

  Wed 24 Nov 2021 Jane Peters Head of Service

  The effectiveness of the area in meeting the needs of children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities

  Parents and carers of children and young people with sensory needs, such as visual and hearing impairment, were overwhelmingly positive about the support given to their children, for example in teaching braille. (Sept 21)

  The effectiveness of the area in improving outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities

   

  Many staff are deeply committed to the area’s children and young people with SEND, and groups of children and young people experience positive outcomes as a result of high-quality identification and support. Examples include children and young people and their families supported by specialist staff for hearing and visual impairment, looked after children and young people involved with the Youth Offending Service. In such cases, children, young people and their families play a notably active part in setting targets and reviewing progress. (Sept 21)

   

   

• Well done Barney -- we love your transition booklet

  Tue 20 Jul 2021

  Barney has just completed his Reception year - he has had an amazing first year at school, so confident and sociable, independent and loves learning, and is working at the expected level across the curriculum within the EYFS.

   

  Barney and his Teacher of the Deaf made a transition booklet for his new Year 1 teacher explaining what the adults can do to help him with his listening. You can see his independent writing.

   

  Well done Barney, have a great summer holidays and enjoy starting Year 1 in September 

  

• Berkshire Sensory Consortium Service (BSCS) provide over 100 new radio aids this academic year so far!

  Mon 05 Jul 2021 Jane Peters - Head of Service

   

  Our sensory impaired children and young people use a range of additional assistive technology to support their access to learning which is provided by BSCS. This year during the COVID pandemic it has been a challenge to ensure they have had the right equipment at home which they normally use in school so they can continue to  access lessons and develop the other skills which BSCS staff would normally be working on as part of their teaching or advisory support programme.  

  During the year BSCS staff have travelled all over Berkshire delivering and setting up equipment on people’s doorsteps, in the garden and providing advice and training online as part of our drive to ensure that every young person has the what they and their family have needed. It is therefore remarkable that our BSCS Educational Audiologist Lisa Bull and Teachers of the Deaf have been able to provide and set up over 100 new radio aids for pupils with hearing loss across Berkshire since last September! Here is Lisa and Julia during the first lockdown setting up a radio aid on a parent’s doorstep! This is an incredible achievement and amazing milestone. We normally issue around 70 radio aids every year to every pre-schooler or young person who would benefit from one. This year more of our young people have wanted to try one and have realised the benefits which will now support them going forward.

  A Radio aid is an assistive listening device consisting of a transmitter, worn by a teacher, peer or parent, and a receiver(s), worn by the young person. It works by making the speakers voice clearer in relation to the unwanted background noise which masks out important parts of speech. It also overcomes the problem of distance from the speaker. We know that hearing aids and cochlear implants work most effectively over a distance of less than 2 metres and therefore social distancing has had a negative impact on understanding spoken language. Although modern hearing aids and cochlear implants allow most wearers to hear quiet speech in ideal listening situations, we know that busy classrooms, background noise at home and distance from the person speaking can make hearing clearly extremely difficult. This problem has been exacerbated by the use of face masks, listening via a computer where the sound quality is significantly impacted and social distancing of 2 metres has been required. Radio aids have been even more important than ever for those with a hearing loss. For many of our young people who have a hearing loss the impact of the challenges around listening at home or in their educational setting also impacted on mental health and young people told us they felt more isolated. Radio aid provision particularly in the circumstances has therefore been a lifeline for our young people with more young people keen to try one out. As a Service we manage a huge number of radio aids every year but the push to provide greater access for a wider group of young people has been a focus of support. Of course we continue to ensure teachers understand the impact of a hearing loss through advice and training and have been advising on the strategies which are helpful including the use of subtitles on line and ensuring everyone continues to use the equipment effectively while managing how to take account of the COVID restrictions and guidance.

  For more information about BSCS and how we support CYP with hearing, vision or multisensory impairment visit our website http://www.berkshiresensoryconsortium.co.uk/