If you have a hearing or vision impairment then Bath and North East Somerset Council has a team who can offer advice, information and assessment. They are called the Sensory Service Team

Who does the Sensory Service Team work with?

The Sensory Service Team is based at the Town Hall in Keynsham and covers the whole of Bath & North East Somerset. As a team we work with people who are visually impaired, have a combination of sight and hearing loss or are deaf.

The focus of the team is to offer specialist assessments in relation to how your sensory impairment may affect you in your day to day living. This could be undertaking tasks in the home such as making a cup of tea or involve issues when going out and about.

Who qualifies for an assessment and services?

Under the National Health Service & Community Care Act 1990 you are entitled to have an assessment of your needs. You do not need to be registered with a visual impairment, or a combination of visual or hearing impairment or a hearing loss.  

Instead, if you feel these impairments are affecting you, you are entitled to an assessment.

This assessment will identify your needs and these may be met by social services if they meet our financial criteria and Fair Access to Care Services (FACS) criteria.

With regards to our financial criteria social services each year sets an upper limit on finances to determine who is supported.

With regards to FACS, this is a government initiative introduced in 2003 to give councils a framework for deciding who will receive adult services.

Within this, some needs may be identified that are eligible for services and some that are not; social services will only meet the needs that are eligible. If you do not meet our eligibility criteria we try to direct you to alternative organisations offering support.    

How will an assessment help me?

The assessment will identify whether you may need help with mobility, personal care, safety and summoning help issues, domestic tasks, social contacts, learning, work and leisure activities, finance or housing issues.

Also this assessment can identify whether you need time to talk as we recognise there is an acceptable and natural reaction for some people to feel frustrated or upset by their sight and or hearing loss.

This can take the form of the assessor offering you that immediate time, or joining a local support group such as the Macular Degeneration group or having counselling services from the RNIB.

Other needs may be met by a number of different services including home care, day care, community meals, occupational therapy or a specialist rehabilitation worker who can look at mobility training and daily living and kitchen skills. Or alternatively you may decide to have your needs met via a direct payment or individual budget and then arrange your services yourself. The cost of services will depend upon the completion of a financial assessment.

The assessment will also identify whether specialist equipment would reduce the impact of your sensory impairment. Currently the Sensory Services Team is able to provide some of this equipment such as talking clocks, writing and reading templates, symbol and guide canes, task lights and talking kitchen scales and microwaves.

With regards to equipment we do not provide we are able to direct you to appropriate organisations where you will generally be able to view the equipment and may have it on loan before you decide to purchase it.

Do you have a combination of sight and hearing loss?

If you have a combination of sight and hearing loss resulting in difficulties in communication, mobility and accessing information, you may be entitled to specialist support services to enable you to live independently. These support services can be in the form of one to one assistance from some-one called a guide communicator. They can help you to participate in the local community and access everyday services. This might include:

• Attending a support or social  group
• Accompanying you on a journey or outing maybe for a meal/ drink or to the theatre.
• Help you to take part in different sports or other leisure activities.
• Assistance with correspondence and other reading.

Assessments and Services for deaf people

Additionally the Sensory Services Team also provides assessments and services for deaf adults who generally use British Sign Language and deaf children.

The Referral Process:

If you feel your visual impairment and/or hearing impairment is affecting your life and would like support or information from this team, you need to contact Adult Duty. This can involve you phoning directly or asking someone to do it on your behalf. The telephone number is 01225 477000 and you will need to ask for Adult Duty Team.

We may also get to know about you from forms completed at the Eye Clinic known as CVI or at the Opticians known as LV1. Once these forms have been received by the Adult Duty Team they will contact you to discuss whether you would like to receive support from the Sensory Service Team or other teams if appropriate.