A cohort of nine charities supporting deaf people have written to Public Health England and NHS England calling on the bodies to commission transparent masks to prevent deaf people facing an increased risk of isolation and loneliness.
They have also called on the government to update guidance to include advice on speaking to deaf or deafblind people whilst wearing face masks or coverings.
In England, masks are already mandatory on public transport and will become mandatory in most shops and during hospital visits from Friday (24 July).
There are currently as many as nine million people in England who are deaf or live with a hearing loss and almost all of them rely on seeing faces clearly, as it helps with lip-reading and reading facial expressions, the coalition, which includes the National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS), Action on Hearing Loss, the British Association of Teachers of the Deaf, Sense and the UK Council on Deafness warns.
Register Now to Continue Reading
Thank you for visiting Children & Young People Now and making use of our archive of more than 60,000 expert features, topics hubs, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:
What's Included
-
Free access to 4 subscriber-only articles per month
-
Email newsletter providing advice and guidance across the sector
Already have an account? Sign in here
