Sense Specialist Services for Children and Young People

Sense is a national charity that supports and campaigns for children and adults who are deafblind.  We provide tailored support, advice and information as well as specialist services to all deafblind people, their families, carers and professionals who work with them.  In addition, we support people who have a single sensory impairment with additional needs.

Our core offer of support

In order to be clear and open about the support we can provide to families we have developed a core offer of support which is available to all children and young people.

•  We will get in touch within two working days from when you first contact Sense

• You will meet a Sense specialist within eight weeks of first getting in touch with us

• You will have your own identified worker

• You will have the opportunity to attend at least one family event per year

• We will keep in touch through an annual contact

• You will have access to the information and advice service

• We will offer you the chance to join Sense through our membership programme

• An outcome of Sense supporting you may involve our working alongside your local authority to provide an individual service solution tailored to your needs.

 This offer is provided through Sense's work as a charity. 

Children's Specialist Service can also offer other support at times of particular need, including:

• Help when your child is first diagnosed - including giving you practical ideas about how to develop your child's skills, and advice on suitable play activities.

• Assessments that look at your child as a whole - which focus on what your child can do.

• Extra support at times of crisis - such as when a family is under considerable strain.

• Support with significant periods of change for your child (transitions) - such as starting school and moving into adulthood.

•  Resource libraries which lend sensory toys and equipment (nearest resource based in Market Deeping).

The support offered in this way will be time limited, depending on the level of family need.

 Our aim is to always start with what a child is able to do and then look at how that can be built on. When we support a family we begin by finding out what their key issues are and work in partnership with the family (and other professionals) to help resolve these.