A research centre that focuses on dual sensory loss opened at Birmingham City University (BCU) last month (23 October).
The Deafblind UK Education and Research Centre aims to raise awareness of deafblindness by connecting practitioners, researchers, and those living with the condition.
The centre is a partnership between BCU and Deafblind UK.
Deafblind UK is a charity that offers advice and practical support for people with deafblindness in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The charity also leads research into how those with deafblindness can live better lives.
Deafblind athlete Samantha Gough, who has captained England’s blind women football team and is also a rower, officially opened the centre.
“This is going to be an amazing hub for raising awareness, but also building on education and research around deafblindness,” Gough said.
There are often misconceptions about dual sensory loss, including that people cannot be both deaf and blind, Gough explained.
She added: “I want to use my platform to spread awareness that dual sensory loss affects hundreds of thousands of people, but also to share my journey living with sight and hearing loss.
“This centre is going to be life-changing for so many people.”
A UK first
Deafblind UK’s chief executive, Nikki Morris, and chair, Robert Nolan, also attended the opening.
“This centre is the first of its kind in the UK – and it wouldn’t have been possible without our partnership with BCU,” Morris said.
The charity noted that nearly 450,000 people in the UK, equating to around six in every 1000 people, are deafblind. This number is expected to rise to more than 600,000 by 2030.
In 2019, Deafblind UK and BCU partnered to launch both a certificate and a diploma in Professional Studies (Deafblind Studies), which was the first course of its kind in the UK.
Dr Peter Simcock, associate professor of social work and centre lead at BCU, said the centre’s work will have a global impact.
An international project that explores the lived experiences of deafblind people across the world and a study exploring the social care experiences of deafblind people in Wales have already begun, Simcock said.
Th centre has “a pivotal role in equipping junior researchers and the future workforce with the knowledge and skills to become future leaders in deafblind research and practice,” he added.
Morris said: “BCU is a university that is making a difference to those affected by deafblindness, building on trust and integrity with us as a partner.
“With this centre, we can answer questions and come up with innovations that will make the world of deafblindess and those affected by it a better place to be.”
Lead image: Dr Peter Simcock, Nikki Morris, Robert Nolan, and Samantha Gough