Staff Training Events

Access SUMMIT is able to organise and deliver a range of staff training events within your workplace including:-

Deaf Awareness Training

A full or half day session aimed at anyone who might have contact with deaf or hard of hearing people. The session can be modified to suit Academic and / or Support Staff as required.

All sessions cover basic Deaf Awareness, including the following issues:

• Good Communication Strategies
• Hearing Aids - Help or hindrance?
• British Manual Alphabet - Fingerspelling
• Putting good communication into practice
• British Sign Language - Basic Signs
• Aspects of Deaf Culture
• Psychological effects of deafness
• Who and what is available to help deaf people
• Improving your workplace - making it user friendly
• Disability Discrimination Act in Higher Education in relation to Deaf people

The sessions are delivered by North Wales Deaf Association by an experienced trainer who is Deaf herself.

Disabled Students Allowance (DSA) Workshop

An overview of the Disabled Students Allowance, aimed at staff in FE and HE institutions who have contact with students applying for or receiving DSA and those who are new to the sector and need to know more.

The session will cover:

• The paperwork and process involved when making a DSA application
• What medical / diagnostic evidence should be submitted to the student's funding body
• The scope of the DSA - limits, uses and restrictions
• Specific groups of students - part time, distance learning, etc
• The Assessment process
• Suppliers of equipment and support
• Putting support in place
• Preparing FE students for DSA applications (whether they are moving on to a university or staying at the FE college).

Using Assistive Technology

Whether you require a demonstration, basic introduction or more in-depth working knowledge of assistive software and / or hardware, we are able to deliver sessions and workshops to suit your needs.

This includes all packages commonly used by students including (but not limited to!) concept mapping software, speech recognition software, screen reading software, ergonomic and alternative input devices and communication aids.

Best Practice in Teaching Blind and Partially Sighted Students

This is a one day session aimed at Academic and Support Staff working in universities and FE colleges.

The session will:

• Challenge the misconceptions surrounding sight loss
• Consider the barriers to learning faced by blind and partially sighted students
• Investigate a variety of teaching strategies aimed at including blind and partially sighted students
• Look at ways of making learning materials accessible
• Demonstrate the usefulness of ICT and low-tech aids within the teaching and learning environment
• Provide an opportunity for delegates to audit the current learning provision for blind and partially sighted students.

The session will be delivered by John Maher, Senior Post-16 Officer from The RNIB and a student who is blind.

If you have any queries relating to a staff training event please contact:

Esther Griffiths - Tel: 0161 275 0994 or Email: esther.griffiths@access-summit.org.uk