Funding for hearing loops

[lxkev]

Just wondering if anybody new of any grants for the installation of hearing loops? I've been approached by a local school who are in the final stages of completing a large examination hall, which will also be used a dance rehearse space. The school has many visual and hearing impaired students so a hearing loop is a must for the space. Does anybody know of any organisations who would help fund this?

[Bazz339]

Just wondering if anybody new of any grants for the installation of hearing loops? I've been approached by a local school who are in the final stages of completing a large examination hall, which will also be used a dance rehearse space. The school has many visual and hearing impaired students so a hearing loop is a must for the space. Does anybody know of any organisations who would help fund this?

 

They could talk the local council, ask around various local groups, they may have ideas for funding. Our local scout group got some money towards their new hall (with induction loop) from something to do with landfill tax I believe.

 

They might want to consider other options such as radio and/or infra red which can give better audio quality albeit at greater cost.

[Brian]

The school has many visual and hearing impaired students so a hearing loop is a must for the space.

Is grant funding available for something that is probably a statutory requirement?

[Stuart91]

They might want to consider other options such as radio and/or infra red which can give better audio quality albeit at greater cost.

 

The problem with both those options is that the require receivers to be given out to the kids that need them, as opposed to just utilising the hearing aids they already have fitted. Management of that process would be an additional headache that most schools would simply refuse to consider.

[pjb304]

They might want to consider other options such as radio and/or infra red which can give better audio quality albeit at greater cost.

 

The problem with both those options is that the require receivers to be given out to the kids that need them, as opposed to just utilising the hearing aids they already have fitted. Management of that process would be an additional headache that most schools would simply refuse to consider.

Also if needed for danse rehearsals I can't imagine wearing an IR receiver being too comfy/practical, additionall if dancing around I imagine it would be subject to frequent dropouts as line of sight to the Tx couldn't be maintained.

[Andrew C]

Not all hearing aids now come with a "T" position.

 

And yes, you may find funding. Talk to the RNID, they may be able to advise.

[Simon Lewis]

Kev,

 

Ask CAMTAD in Derby - they would probably know if anything is available.

 

Do you know that a loop is going to work in your space?

 

Simon

 

They might want to consider other options such as radio and/or infra red which can give better audio quality albeit at greater cost.

 

It's better quality for people with "normal" hearing. Loops go up to 5kHz, and by the time a schoolkid needs a hearing aid, it's usually fair to say any hearing above 5kHz is probably pretty poor or non existent.

There's also the issue of line of sight (IR) frequency allocation (FM) and unit charging, maintenance and stigma (both IR and FM).

 

However, it may well be that such pupils have personal 1:1 FM aids?

[Bazz339]

They might want to consider other options such as radio and/or infra red which can give better audio quality albeit at greater cost.

 

The problem with both those options is that the require receivers to be given out to the kids that need them, as opposed to just utilising the hearing aids they already have fitted. Management of that process would be an additional headache that most schools would simply refuse to consider.

 

It is the same process as managing microphones, particularly radio mics.

 

They might want to consider other options such as radio and/or infra red which can give better audio quality albeit at greater cost.

 

The problem with both those options is that the require receivers to be given out to the kids that need them, as opposed to just utilising the hearing aids they already have fitted. Management of that process would be an additional headache that most schools would simply refuse to consider.

Also if needed for danse rehearsals I can't imagine wearing an IR receiver being too comfy/practical, additionall if dancing around I imagine it would be subject to frequent dropouts as line of sight to the Tx couldn't be maintained.

 

Performers wear in ear monitors and head band radio mics with belt packs.

 

Kev,

 

Ask CAMTAD in Derby - they would probably know if anything is available.

 

Do you know that a loop is going to work in your space?

 

Simon

 

They might want to consider other options such as radio and/or infra red which can give better audio quality albeit at greater cost.

 

It's better quality for people with "normal" hearing. Loops go up to 5kHz, and by the time a schoolkid needs a hearing aid, it's usually fair to say any hearing above 5kHz is probably pretty poor or non existent.

There's also the issue of line of sight (IR) frequency allocation (FM) and unit charging, maintenance and stigma (both IR and FM).

 

However, it may well be that such pupils have personal 1:1 FM aids?

 

Possibly a bit better at the bottom end as well, I would imagine what frequencies can be heard depend on the type of hearing impairment. Reasonable IR reception is not too difficult to achieve with multiple radiators, receivers also pick up a bit by reflection, RF Frequency allocation - depends on how many different sends are required, 1 send only requires one frequency and can broadcast to as many receivers listeners as required.

 

Batteries- for events there is likely to be battery management needed for radio mics.

Maintenance -Same as above

Stigma- Is there a stigma to using in ear monitors or using earphones with MP3 players?

 

It may well be that an induction loop is the most practical solution my suggestion to consider infra red and radio was intended more for the rehearsal/performance element rather than general hall use. Induction loop receivers are prone to picking up interference from many electrical sources including fluorescents, dimmed lighting and their cables.

 

I

[Simon Lewis]

Wouldn't want to prolong this too much, but if there is technical support, then - yes - have radio packs and receivers galore. My experience of many assisted listening system installations is that they fail unless they are either 'automatic' or managed.

Whilst there are some technical benefits for IR and FM systems, loops remain the system of choice for many hearing impaired people. However, their use as a classroom system becomes problematic due to spill.

The stigma issue still haunts many users, but admittedly MP3 players have gone some way to ameliorating this. IR receivers can hardly be seen as cool though. Also, getting enough transmitters to work well in a 360 degree performance setting is going to be pretty pricey, whereas a loop would just work.

With regards to interference, if there's high levels of background magnetic noise, then given that many ALS users will have a neck loop and aid on T position as the final connecting device (rather than earpieces that bypass their aid) then they will pick that noise up anyway.

I'm a believer in using the right technology, but I've come cross a number of installers trying to promote IR as vastly superior and loops as yesterday's technology. Neither sentiments are correct, but neither are loops the answer to every problem!

[paulears]

I'm more amazed by the school looking for external funding for what is not only a statutory requirement, but a fundamental element of what schools and colleges promote as their inclusive learning policy. Provision for learners of all abilities has been pushed as a feature for years now. Funds should always be available for this, and I'm firmly of the opinion that state funded education should not need to obtain extra funds for essential items. When the old DDA came into force, plenty of cash strapped venues had to buy the kit, needed or not. I'd really have thought that particularly where examinations are happening, there would be a very good case for candidates to formally complain that they have been discriminated against - and the law would seem to support this. Money is NOT a factor in providing this kind of equipment - they just have to find it. I suspect that people like the RNIB would have a policy problem with funding one school. It certainly doesn't hurt to ask, but instead of blowing their income on all the trivial or unnecessary items, they should focus on providing learning support - because that's exactly what assisted hearing systems are in this case!

[Simon Lewis]

I agree that this sort of provision should be a no brainer. I am, however, mildly pessimistic about many assisted listening systems. Simply put, most don't work properly, if at all. It's not that the technologies can't work, but that they often don't have technical support, or never get checked because no one can listen to them. Of course there are notable exceptions, but also many abject failures.

[audiomik]

Kevin

you don't say if the School is run by the Local Authority.

LAs have DDA funds to meet their obligations so you might get the School to try there?

 

Also the "Grant Finder" website may be of use, www.grantfinder.co.uk/

Not all Funders have the Statutory Requirement exclusion.

Your LA DDA Officer should have access to this, so should be able to assist the School itself as they will be the Grant Applicant.

 

Hope this helps

Mik

[lxkev]

Thanks for all the feedback,

 

To answer the questions "why is the school looking for funding". The building project has been going on for many years, the school was on the "list" for building schools for the future but unfortunately lost all the funding by only a few weeks due to the change in government. This massive loss of funds has impacted the school in many ways . Thus a lot of money for the new build has come from donations and fund raising. The building was started 5 years ago and as funds get raised more work is done.

The school already has 1:1fm systems, but as with infra red hearing systems it is not ideal to have these devices hanging around people necks while doing dance and acrobatics. As Simion said ", most don't work properly, if at all." The School has got some funds available for a basic system, but if grants are available we could install a system that "works properly" and can be tailored to the individuals needs

In an ideal world I would like to install a hearing loop and infra-red/fm system, even look at integrating IEM personal monitoring technology that would allow the users to select what sources they can hear... Eg, a microphone worn by the teachers, the ambient microphones, the playback devices…

Unfortunately schools don’t have a unlimited funds, and a lot of the time the cheapest option is normal chosen due to the fact schools don’t get enough money and the government keeps taking funding away.

 

Again thanks for all the feedback on funding.

[paulears]

I suspect the real problem is that in general funding is spent by people who don't understand what they're buying, and the people that use them cannot make them understand the importance. If a school failed to but the most appropriate system for their pupils, it would be hard to say they hadn't been disadvantaged. We're not talking about some flowery nice to have facility that makes news in the local papers, we're talking basic systems. To use your example of dancers - if they cannot hear the music, they will get worse grades than somebody without the hearing impairment. This could have been rectified, but was ignored because of lack of funding? I'd have thought that not only the equalities people, but also Ofsted would find the funding very difficult to justify.

[Simon Lewis]

Even if the "right" kit is specificed, there's no guarantee it will be installed sensibly.

 

I am mindful of a higher education establishment which had specified IR systems in 4 largish lecture theatres situated in a brand new building. Sure enough, two expensive Sennheiser transmitters were fitted to each room, together with a low cost boundary mic screwed 10 feet up the wall behind the front desk. This was further away than the students were from the lecturer. Inputs were controlled (for some reason) by a 12 channel InterM mixer. This desk sat on the floor, along with the IR power supply, and had no means of being powered up. Furthermore, there was no means of connecting it to the room's AV system (such as it was). Many of the neckloop receivers were lost because no-one could work out who should take responsibility for them or keep track of them. When last checked, the neckloop charger's power supply was missing.

 

The system could never work properly, had not been integrated with other technologies planned for the room, and little in the way of induction, management or troubleshooting was passed onto anyone who could have done something about it.

 

A few years ago I had a research student survey counter type loop systems in Derby. Around 49 were tested, and of those (from memory) about 10 worked well enough to help someone with hearing loss. The others were either non functioning, had vital parts missing or were installed in such a hostile magnetic noise environment that it was impossible to use them. A few shops were concerned enough to say "I'll let the manager know it's not working". Some were of the opinion that as long as there was a "we have a loop" sticker in the window, that was all that mattered.