The Anne Sullivan Centre will be facilitating free disability awareness training in hospitals and schools between April and May 2018. Our staff will be available to facilitate this training in collaboration with individuals who are deafblind/with dual sensory loss. The sessions are designed to be interactive as well as informative and aim to develop a… Continue reading Disability Awareness Training 2018
News
Passing of Jan Van Dijk
Jan van Dijk, who is regarded by many as the founder of communication and assessment for people who are deafblind, passed away after a short illness last Tuesday 23rd January at the age of 80. During his long career as a teacher, psychologist and psychiatrist, he developed a myriad of dynamic interaction and communication… Continue reading Passing of Jan Van Dijk
Irish Sign Language now legally recognised
The Recognition of Irish Sign Language (ISL) for the Deaf Community Bill 2016 was last month signed into law by President Michael D Higgins. Under the new law, public bodies will have to implement ISL action plans and provide sign language interpreters to people using public services. Parents and siblings of children who are deaf… Continue reading Irish Sign Language now legally recognised
Upcoming events in 2018
The 5th World Federation Deafblind General Assembly and the 11th Helen Keller World Conference are due to take place from 19th-27th June 2018 at the Gran Hotel Bali in Benidorm, Spain. Both events aim to provide real opportunities for people who are deafblind to have their own forum and to learn from others with personal experiences of… Continue reading Upcoming events in 2018
Runamuck Challenge for the Anne Sullivan Foundation raises over €1000 !
On Saturday 23rd September 2017 last, 16 staff members from the Anne Sullivan Centre took on the Runamuck Challenge in Coolcarrigan Estate, Coill Dubh, Co Kildare. We are pleased to report that all our team completed the challenging 5k course overcoming obstacles such as water filled ditches, 10 foot high fences, hay bales and good old fashioned Irish… Continue reading Runamuck Challenge for the Anne Sullivan Foundation raises over €1000 !
Deafblindness: An Introductory Lecture
The Anne Sullivan Centre were delighted to partner with The Centre for Deaf Studies Trinity College on Oct 18th in delivering an introductory lecture on the topic of deafblindness. Catherine McDonald, Deirdre Leech and Heather Colson Osborne from the Anne Sullivan Centre collaborated with Aila Mikkola from The Humak University of Applied Sciences, Helsinki to deliver the… Continue reading Deafblindness: An Introductory Lecture
CHARGE Syndrome Information Days
Athlone Institute of Technology was the location on Friday 13th and Saturday 14th October for our CHARGE Syndrome workshop and information days. Many thanks to Gail Deuce, a specialist teacher and expert in CHARGE Syndrome for a fantastic presentation and informative lecture. We had over 35 professionals in attendance on Friday and 11 families attended… Continue reading CHARGE Syndrome Information Days
Report from Deafblind International European Conference 2017
Deirdre Leech (Deafblind Outreach Consultant) and Heather Colson-Osborne (Team Leader at Anne Sullivan Centre) were given the opportunity to represent Ireland at the 9th Deafblind International European Conference in Aalborg, Denmark in September 2018. The theme of the conference was “Touch of Closeness: Maintaining Social Connectedness” so all of the presentations revolved around topics relating… Continue reading Report from Deafblind International European Conference 2017
Upcoming CHARGE Syndrome Workshop
“Supporting individuals with CHARGE syndrome in educational and clinical settings” The Anne Sullivan Centre is pleased to announce that it will host a professional workshop on CHARGE syndrome on Friday, October 13, 2017 from 1-4pm at Athlone Institute of Technology . This should be of interest to all classroom teachers, visiting teachers, SNAs, Social Workers,… Continue reading Upcoming CHARGE Syndrome Workshop
National Disability Inclusion Strategy launched
On July 14th 2017, Minister of State for Disability Finian Mc Grath launched a new National Disability Inclusion Strategy spanning 2017 to 2021. The Strategy will take a whole of Government approach to improving the lives of people with disabilities both in a practical sense, and also in creating the best possible opportunities for people with… Continue reading National Disability Inclusion Strategy launched