One of our previous clients, Maria, who is profoundly deaf, requested that we deliver Deaf Awareness training to her employer. Maria was working at an art gallery when we first worked with her to provide professional coaching services. She then found a more senior position working across two new places of work; Wysing Arts Centre and Grand Union, both excellent art galleries.
Maria’s employers wanted to ensure their employee was provided with opportunities to succeed in her role and understood their responsibility to do so. We were delighted to deliver Deaf Awareness training to both of Maria’s new employers.

Tailored training sessions

The training for each gallery was different because of differences in priorities and setup. The first training session, for Wysing Arts Centre in Cambridge, was delivered online; the second, for Grand Union in Digbeth, was delivered face-to-face.
Both sessions were led by Rachel, who is a qualified trainer and has lived experience of hearing loss. The course was designed to meet the needs of the employer, employee and to be relevant to the arts sector. Participants were shown a presentation and given plenty of opportunity to ask questions and take part in discussions. There were several exercises to take part in throughout the session.

Feedback

The feedback from both galleries was overwhelmingly positive; with attendees enjoying the sessions, finding the information valuable and useful for taking forward into their work.

After the training, Maria’s employers and coworkers felt they were in a good position going forward to sustain a more accessible workplace and support deaf employees.