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What a busy 12 months it’s been! From successfully lobbying the government for better access to media and information for our communities, to funding new hearing research projects, opening more RNID Near You services, and helping thousands of people check their hearing, we’re taking a chance to reflect and celebrate the impact we’ve made together this year.
None of these achievements would have been possible without the incredible contributions of our supporters, partners and communities, so thank you so much for playing a part.
Read more about supporting our communities; Health; Inclusion & Employment; Technology; Research.
Supporting our communities
Contact RNID
This year, Contact RNID handled 18,000 enquiries from over 16,700 people, covering questions about adjusting to hearing aids for the first time, providing emotional support, and advising on benefits.
Mollie, a Contact RNID service user said:
“Wow I can’t thank you enough. I’m so glad I reached out. I think you’ve just changed my life thank you for your time and resources and support. I’ll be looking through all the information again properly and contacting my GP asap. “
Do you need support on your hearing journey? Contact RNID are here for you.
RNID Near You services
Meanwhile, our brilliant volunteers gave over 7,500 hours of their time to run our growing network of local RNID Near You support sessions. They helped more than 25,000 people by maintaining or cleaning hearing aids and advising on how to access audiology services. This year, we were awarded the Investing in Volunteers quality standard accreditation.
Rachael Beech, a RNID Near You service user, said:
“We have been trying to get my dad to go back to the hospital for months, but he was put off by the wait times. When I heard about this and told him, he was happier to come to his local library, as we were out nearby anyway.
Your lovely volunteers have changed his tubes, and he can hear so much more now! I’m so happy! He already seems brighter! We are very grateful for this service – thank you!”
Support your local community and volunteer with us: Explore volunteering for RNID.
Health
Throughout the year, a lot of people started their hearing health journeys with our hearing check – more than 166,000 people, to be precise! After taking the check, 74% of people have taken action to address their hearing health, by seeing a healthcare professional or having their hearing checked in person.
This didn’t just improve their hearing health – addressing their hearing helped other aspects of their wellbeing, too – as one hearing check user said:
“I’m less stressed, I’m sleeping better, I’m enjoying work more, I’m keener to socialise. I generally feel like I have more energy and want to be around people more.”
Start your own hearing health journey with our free hearing check.
Inclusion & Employment
The Media Bill!
Thanks to our amazing campaigners, a major win was achieved through our Subtitle It! Campaign, asking for the Government to regulate the provision of subtitles and signing on on-demand TV. As a result, the Government this year drafted a Media Bill to set out those regulations.
The Bill just passed its second reading in the house of commons.
Supporting inclusive workplaces
A disproportionate percentage of British people not in work are those who are deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus, and we know that’s because so few workplaces and hiring processes are deaf aware. That’s not good enough.
This year we ran 182 training sessions to help workplaces be more deaf aware – receiving over 117 five star Trustpilot reviews.
Ali, a deaf awareness seminar participant, said:
“The best training I’ve attended this year. Well facilitated, delivered and a good balance of information sharing, and interactive activities included. Powerful and insightful training which I highly recommend.”
Explore our workplace inclusion training and support services.
Technology
With the invaluable support of our Research Panel, many companies and organisations, including some of our corporate partners, have improved their products and services for people who are deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus.
This year the Research Panel gave crucial feedback on the NHS Couch to 5K app, helping it become more accessible for our communities, and we’re doing the same for Samsung’s Galaxy phones.
Samsung said:
“RNID’s feedback has provided our product planning and engineering teams with invaluable insights as to which solutions are most in need and relevant when it comes to accessibility. Being able to receive expert opinion and feedback is key to providing meaningful improvements for our customers, and this is why we truly value our partnership with the RNID.”
Explore joining our research panel.
Research
Genetic test passed for use in NHS hospitals
This year, we’ve seen some great breakthroughs in hearing research thanks to projects funded by our supporters. This includes the new genetic test for protecting newborn babies from hearing loss which has been approved for use in NHS hospitals and will save the hearing of around 200 babies a year!
2023 Hearing Therapeutics Summit
In September, we proudly hosted the 2023 Hearing Therapeutics Summit, which brought together the international hearing research community for a day of inspiring talks, networking and knowledge sharing.
BIA charity partnership!
And looking ahead to next year, we’ve just been announced as the BIA’s charity partner for 2024! The BioIndustry Association (BIA) is the voice of the innovative life sciences and biotech industry, enabling and connecting the UK ecosystem so that businesses can start, grow and deliver world-changing innovation.
We couldn’t do this without you
We are hugely grateful to everyone who has generously given their time, supported our campaigns, donated to our appeals, fundraised for an event, or shared their experiences and insights. We can’t wait to see what we can achieve together in 2024 – and beyond – to support people who are deaf, have hearing loss and tinnitus.
