The Hearing Concern Adviser Network, which numbers well over 100 individuals throughout the UK, was inaugurated in 1965 to provide information, support and advice to hard of hearing and deafened people. Advisers are often deaf or hard of hearing themselves and wish to put something back into society after having come to terms with their own hearing loss. When recruiting new Advisers, we look for people with a combination of common sense and a caring nature.
New recruits come from all walks of life.
Some are members of Hearing Concern affiliated clubs and groups, some are members of the public who have heard about our work in the media or by word of mouth. Some are even past clients who have been so impressed with the help they received that they too want to help, while still others are people recommended to us by workers in the statutory sector. Every year about 20 candidates are selected for training, and they go on to attend two residential courses which are held roughly six weeks apart and have been recognised by the Department of Health. Here they learn from Audiology, hearing therapy, social services and Hearing Concern trainers about a wide range of subject matter. This includes basic anatomy and physiology of the ear, hearing aids and technical aids, deafness and it's causes, and the psychological implications of acquired deafness.