Stories

John misses the opportunity to do what he wants, when he wants. He said: “A lot of services in our society are just not easy for me to access which is really frustrating.” Luckily, we were able to help.

Living with a severe dual sensory loss is difficult but Mark has found music is a great therapy to help him cope. “It gives me the most amazing sense of wellbeing, I love the discipline, the creativity and the emotion of it. Playing is so exhilarating – it’s a natural high!” He said.

In a bid to help children understand what living with sight and hearing loss is really like, we introduced our member, John, to some primary school children.

“When someone told me about the Deafblind UK group I was there in a shot! I went along to the first group and thought “this is where I belong” – it felt like a big family full of other people just like me.”

Matthew has been a telephone befriender with Deafblind UK for the past three years. As a Producer for BBC News, he has a busy lifestyle but was keen to find a way to make volunteering work for him.

Find out how some social interaction and digital technology helped Sheila to feel more confident and independent.

John has Usher syndrome and with a bit of support, enjoys cycling, cooking, writing and archery!

Back in 2010, John’s world changed forever when a friend introduced him to climbing. “I loved it from the very beginning! I immediately wanted to take it further and it wasn’t long before I was invited to join the Great Britain Paraclimbing Team.” Said John.