The communication method you choose for your child is a fundamental decision that will affect the rest of his/her life — and yours, and the rest of the family’s.

The Local Education Authority is expected by the government to try to provide a good education for your child in whichever communication method you choose. In reality, this is very difficult. There are relatively few deaf children and to provide each of the main three methods — let alone the other, less usual ones — in each area to a high standard is expensive. Local Education Authorities tend to have a ‘preferred option’ which they assume most deaf children will follow.

• Remember that this choice that you have to make on behalf of your child is one of your rights and duties as a parent.
• Every parent makes important choices all the time: what injections to allow, what toys, books, television, videos to countenance, what schools to go for and so on through to teenage.
• As with all the other decisions, all you can do is weigh up the options and do your best to make things as good as possible for your child. And then, in this as on all the other occasions, there are many factors which will influence what happens.
• If you want your deaf child to learn to listen and talk and the local authorities are not supportive, it will not be easy but it is not impossible.
• The vital years are the very early ones when your child is at home. You can provide the surroundings and the stimulation he or she needs — if you want to. DELTA can help.

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