A Communication Skills Group provides an ideal opportunity to practice lipreading skills in a friendly, relaxed and informal setting. You will learn from each other and the tutor those situations and behaviours, which make it challenging to lipread and the strategies you can use to help yourself and others around you. Sharing experiences of living with a hearing loss can be invaluable, as being deaf or hard of hearing can be very isolating.

Classes are FREE and take place weekly (during term-time). The classes run ten weeks for two terms.

Groups are held in Frome, Glastonbury and Castle Cary.  For the current dates, times and locations please contact as below or follow Deafplus Somerset on Facebook.

Fully accessible advice line for British Sign Language (BSL) users. Delivering advice on a range of issues, helping clients understand their assessments, civil rights and other services they need to access.  The advice line enables BSL users to sign ‘face to face’ with a trained advisor who is also a native BSL user.

Also offered as a text-based service for deaf clients who do not use BSL to ensure it is accessible for everyone.

The DeafPLUS Mobile Advisory Service gives advice and information on all aspects of hearing loss, deafness and deaf issues, raises awareness and gives equipment demonstrations.

Visits to the Mobile Advisory Service are currently by appointment only. Please contact Stewart Weston as below for more details and to book.

If you have an NHS hearing aid supplied by Musgrove Park Hospital you can request a repair appointment by contacting the Audiology Department at Musgrove Hospital. Contact details below or text the word ‘audiology’ followed by your message to 07768-258508

We train dogs to alert deaf people to sounds they would otherwise miss – simple sounds that many people take for granted like the doorbell, alarm clock and even danger signals like the fire alarm. Being aware of these – thanks to a hearing dog – makes a real difference to deaf people’s lives.

A hearing dog and their deaf recipient need to be carefully matched to ensure the partnership will work well. Matches can take up to three years. There is so much more to find out so please contact Hearing Dogs for Deaf People.

Information, specialist services and guidance to support people with hearing loss. Working towards a world where everyone can enjoy life and participate fully and confidently, whatever their level of hearing.

Services are accessible across the UK.

*Covid pandemic update – This Health Connections group is currently suspended*

This monthly cafe is hosted by Health Connections Mendip alongside voluntary sector organisations that will be available to offer support and information. Come along for a cup of tea or coffee to meet other people who are in a similar situation to you. Drop in anytime between 9.30 and 11.30 am. Held at Frome Medical Practice in the Boardroom.

*Covid pandemic update-This group is currently suspended* 

This monthly café is hosted by Health Connections Mendip alongside voluntary sector organisations that will be available to offer support and information. Come along for a cup of tea or coffee to meet other people who are in a similar situation to you. Drop in anytime between 1-30 -3pm. Held at Shepton Mallet Community Hospital alongside the hearing aid maintenance service.

COVID-19 Update: Please note due to current coronavirus restrictions this service may be affected. Please check with the service provider.

This leaflet contains information on support organisations for people with hearing loss in Mendip. Click on leaflet below.

*Covid pandemic update – this Health Connections group is currently suspended*

Come along to this free, friendly, supportive Meniere’s Peer Support Group and meet others who have been affected by this condition. Friends and family members are welcome.

Upstairs boardroom at Frome Medical Practice, Enos Way, Frome BA11 2FH

1pm to 2.30pm, dates to be confirmed.

COVID-19 Update: Please note due to current coronavirus restrictions this service may be affected. Please check with the service provider.

Mid Somerset Tinnitus Self Help Group – Wells

This is a self-help group for people with tinnitus which can often be accompanied by hyperacusis. Support groups can be very useful,  at the very least, you learn that you are not alone and can exchange helpful coping strategies. It’s also very useful for family and friends as they will get a much better appreciation of the extent and range of problems. We have a member who is a hearing therapist with tinnitus and we have had visits from other professionals.

We welcome anyone – people with tinnitus, friends, relatives or those who just wish to learn more – to our meetings, which are held quarterly in the evening. We meet in the Wells Fire Station Community Room. Meeting details are available on the British Tinnitus Association website  www.tinnitus.org.uk or by emailing or calling Mike Rowe

RNID (Action on Hearing) are experts in providing support and information for people with hearing loss and tinnitus. We supply communication services and training. We offer practical advice to help people protect their hearing. We send out leaflets and catalogues. We have a Samaritan trained person to support  people overwhelmed by Tinnitus. For more information about the service, visit our website or call the freephone number below.

COVID-19 Update: Please note due to current coronavirus restrictions this service may be affected. Please check with the service provider.

Somerset County Council’s sensory loss team are trained to work with people with sight and/or hearing loss. Workers can visit you at home and arrange to provide you with support to help keep you independent. Services include provision of equipment and rehabilitation, along with advice and information on a range of specialist organisations for people with sight and/or hearing loss.

For home eye tests and home hearing tests free on the NHS for people who find getting out a problem. The service remains open for routine and urgent eye and hearing care throughout the UK following government guidance.