Little tots give a big thank you to local Freemasons
Young deaf children will be helped to learn, listen and talk thanks to a donation by members of Portsmouth Temperance Lodge that meets in Cosham.
The £500 donation, one of many the Lodge has made to the Elizabeth Foundation in recent years, will assist in continuing the services and support of young deaf children and their families across Hampshire and the UK.
The Elizabeth Foundation offers Ofsted 'Outstanding' education services based at their Centre in Cosham, Portsmouth for families from the South of England, alongside their online and residential services for families across the UK and Ireland. They also work in partnership with Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust to provide audiology services for local children.
The Foundation has developed a unique Multi-Sensory Oral Approach to support the development of listening and spoken language skills in deaf children. This approach encourages the development of speech, language and listening by using all the child’s senses, in a natural, fun, child-centred environment. By encouraging these skills during the crucial pre-school years, they aim to prepare deaf children for future successes at school and in work.
Joanne Bent, Fundraising Administrator from the Elizabeth Foundation, said:
“It was wonderful to be given the opportunity to show the Freemasons, Brother Maurice Dymott and Brother Roger Castle the work we do first-hand as they observed our baby class engrossed in a fun and engaging music activity and our preschool children using their newly learnt vocabulary while discussing the topic of minibeasts.”
Brother Dymott the Charity lead for Portsmouth Temperance Lodge, said:
“Our Lodge members are very pleased to be able to help. The visit to the Elizabeth Foundation was most interesting and to hear that it was the only Centre in the country to carry out this important work. The tour round the Foundation’s purpose-built facility was fascinating and to witness the wonderful work achieved with deaf children and their families was truly uplifting.”