A last-minute intervention is all that can save a lifeline service in Angus from closure.
Action on Hearing Loss Scotland has exhausted all funding options to keep its community-based Angus Hear to Help service going beyond the end of September.
Delia Henry, Director of Action on Hearing Loss Scotland, said it would be a devastating blow for the service’s 600 Angus users whose average age is 82.
She said: “The situation is if there is no change in position or any additional funding comes in from anywhere then we won’t have enough money to continue beyond the end of September.
“It would be a devastating blow but we’ve exhausted every option and it’s looking increasingly likely that we’ll be closing.”
Mrs Henry said one trust the service depended on has asked the charity to “take a break” from applying and they’ve found it very difficult to tap into additional funding streams.
The charity has been putting in submissions to 21 charitable trusts since April but one by one they have come back saying the service does not fit the criteria.
Angus Health and Social Care Partnership was also urged to rethink its decision not to provide financial support but is sticking to its position.
“The average age of our users is 82 and quite a lot of them have other conditions,” said Mrs Henry.
“We are very concerned about how they are going to clean, re-tube and adjust their hearing aids if the service ends.
“People who have mobility difficulties and can’t get to a drop-in are those we are most worried about.”
The service was previously saved just days before its impending closure at the end of June when it scrambled together cash from trusts and donations to keep it going for a further three months.
Mrs Henry said they will not give up until the last possible moment but things are looking a lot more bleak this time around.
She highlighted the many positive impacts which Hear to Help delivers – not only in terms of supporting mostly older people with hearing loss in their homes or easy to reach community venues – but also the significant savings for the public purse illustrated by independent cost-benefit analysis of its service.
The service has been surviving hand-to-mouth during 2017 after being launched with two years of Scottish Government ‘pump prime’ funding. The funding was then to be picked up locally.
The charity approached Angus Health and Social Care Partnership’s Integration Joint Board but was advised in late March that a request for funding could not be supported as their resources are currently fully committed.
Action on Hearing Loss Scotland would require £17,000 to secure the service for a full year.
Hear to Help volunteers are trained by NHS Tayside audiology to clean, re-tube and adjust hearing aids so that they work more effectively.
The service also provides information about a range of assistance equipment such as amplified phones, TV listeners and vibrating alarms, which can make everyday life easier for people with hearing loss.
