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We will be carrying out essential maintenance on our website on Tuesday 23 April 2024 between the hours of 8.00am and 10.30am. During this time, the website may experience technical issues. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Deaf, blind and partially sighted services


Are you deaf, blind or have poor eyesight or hearing? Find information and services to help you lead an independent life.

If you live in the county, visit our Locate - care and support in County Durham website to find social care and support services and information.

Specialist support

Our sensory support team will provide general advice, information and training to help you stay independent and safe. Services and support choices include:

  • help at home
  • adaptations to your home
  • personal alarms / sensors (Telecare)
  • employment support
  • leisure activities

With your agreement, you might be referred to a relevant organisation for help.

Add your details to our register

We keep a register of blind, partially sighted, deaf and hard of hearing individuals in the county. You can add your details to the register as follows:

Registering as blind or partially sighted

Ask your ophthalmologist to complete a Certificate of Visual Impairment Form and send to our adult sensory support team. There are two categories of registration:

  • severely sight impaired / blind
  • sight impaired / partially sighted

Registering your hearing loss

We are required to establish and maintain a register of people with hearing impairment; however, registration is entirely voluntary. There are a number of categories of deaf and hard of hearing registration dependent on your degree of hearing loss.

If you want to register you can:

  • register online to say you have hearing loss - you will be asked for your level of hearing loss - this is made easier if your GP has already referred you to an audiologist and they have recorded your level of hearing loss on an audiogram
  • contact us
  • speak to your hearing aid provider

Contacting us by British Sign Language (BSL)

You can Contact us by British Sign Language using our video relay service.