If sight or hearing is making everyday life more difficult, our sensory needs service can help. We work with you to understand what matters to you and find ways to help you stay independent, communicate with others and manage daily activities with confidence.
On this page:
You can contact us yourself or ask a relative or friend. If you are contacting us about someone else, please involve them wherever possible and tell us whether they know you are getting in touch.
Email: Adult.SensoryNeeds@reading.gov.uk
Telephone: 0118 937 3747 — Adult Social Care. Tell us you are asking about sensory needs support.
You do not need to complete an online form to contact us.
When you get in touch, please tell us:
Tell us if you need support to contact us, understand information or take part in an assessment.
For example, you may need a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter, information in a different format, or more time for a conversation. We will discuss your needs and how to support you.
If you cannot use the telephone, you can email us or ask someone you trust to help you make contact. Let us know if a telephone callback would not be suitable.
Our service supports adults living in Reading borough who:
You can contact us whether your sensory needs are recent or have been part of your life for many years.
We offer information, advice and assessment to help you manage the effects of sight or hearing loss.
Support depends on your individual needs. It may include practical advice, equipment, changes to how you do things or help to access another service.
We can explore ways to make daily tasks easier and safer, such as:
Small changes at home can make everyday tasks easier. We can advise on options such as:
We work with Berkshire Vision to arrange specialist vision rehabilitation where needed.
A Vision Rehabilitation Specialist (VRS), previously known as a Rehabilitation Officer for Visual Impairment (ROVI), helps people develop skills and confidence for daily life. Depending on your needs, this may include learning different ways to carry out tasks or move around safely, including specialist mobility and long-cane training.
We can discuss whether a referral to a vision rehabilitation specialist would be helpful.
We can help you find organisations, activities and other support relevant to your needs. This may include opportunities to meet other people, practical help with technology or support with adjusting to sensory loss.
Even if your sight loss and hearing loss each seem mild, together they can make everyday life more difficult. You may find it harder to use your hearing to make up for what you cannot see, or your sight to help you understand what you cannot hear.
This can affect conversations, reading and accessing information, recognising people and finding your way around.
Combined sight and hearing loss is sometimes called dual sensory loss or deafblindness. You do not have to be completely deaf or completely blind, and you may not use these words to describe yourself.
Please tell us about difficulties with both your sight and hearing, even if neither seems severe on its own. We can discuss how they affect your daily life and the specialist assessment or support you may need.
We will talk with you about:
This helps us understand the next steps. These may include advice, arranging an assessment or a referral to another service.
An assessment is a conversation about your needs and what you want to achieve. You can tell us if you would like someone you trust to support you during it.
If you also need help with other aspects of daily living or care, we can discuss support from the wider Adult Social Care service. If your needs change while you are waiting for support, please contact us again and explain what has changed.
Certification and registration are two separate steps.
A consultant ophthalmologist – a specialist eye doctor – assesses whether you meet the criteria to be certified as sight impaired (partially sighted) or severely sight impaired (blind).
If you meet the criteria, they complete a Certificate of Vision Impairment (CVI). You receive a copy and, with your permission, the eye clinic also sends a copy to your local council.
Registration means being added to your local council’s sight impairment register. It is voluntary and requires your agreement.
Registration can help provide evidence of your sight impairment when applying for certain benefits and concessions. What you qualify for depends on the scheme and your circumstances.
You do not need to be registered or have a CVI to contact us or have your support needs considered.
If you would like advice about registration, or are unsure whether you are already registered, please contact us.
Equipment can help people with sight or hearing loss manage everyday activities more easily.
Examples include:
The right equipment depends on your needs and how you will use it.
There is no charge for information, advice or a needs assessment. Contact us to discuss what equipment may help, how to access it and whether any charges apply.
These organisations offer further information and support:
By answering a few questions, AskSARA will provide personalised advice about equipment for health, assistive technology and daily living ideas. This service is free and there is no sign-up required.