THOSE of us with relatively conventional levels of sight and hearing might view ourselves as entirely separate from the deaf and blind community. But in reality we aren't so far apart.

It's estimated that almost 9 million Britons suffer some kind of hearing impairment. Though a large proportion of those only have mild hearing loss and are aged over 60 it still means that around one in seven of us will be affected by it.

Meanwhile there are 9 million individuals in the UK with serious sight problems – and that's before considering the fact that 35m of us have deteriorating eyesight which requires us to wear glasses – well over 60 per cent of the population.

And yet there remains a gulf in awareness between those who live with sight or hearing loss and those who don't – fortunately it's a gulf which the Leeds Society for Deaf and Blind People is going a long way towards bridging.

Over the last two decades it has evolved to become a one-stop shop catering for the every need of people whose sight or hearing is impaired or who are completely blind or deaf. They also help a comparatively small number of individuals who are both deaf and blind.

They offer a variety of services, technology and support from teaching British Sign Language (BSL) to offering vital interpreting services and supplying essential equipment to their 10,000 users.

David Fowler is a BSL tutor and training co-ordinator at the society. He was born deaf and knows only too well the hurdles it represents in life.

Via interpreter Steven Conlon, manager of Leeds sign language interpreting service, he said: "Like a lot of deaf children years ago, I was sent at the age of three to a specialist boarding school and then when I was 10 I moved to another specialist deaf school.

"That had quite a psychological impact, being cut off from everything you've ever known, and that's quite a common experience. Research has proven that psychologically deaf people are more affected by the lack of access with society and their mental health can suffer.

"It's hard to understand as someone who has their hearing, but if you fell ill tomorrow you could go to the doctor very easily. However if you're deaf how do you phone the doctors?

"You might have to book an interpreter, then an interpreter might not be available or not available at the right time for you – and that's just one of many, many things in your life."

The services which the society offers makes it one of only a handful of its kind in the UK and their work is viewed as so essential that a variety of organisations contribute towards the centre's annual £2.3m running costs, these include Leeds City Council Adult Social Care department and the local primary care and hospital trusts.

And the array of people who are helped by the organisation varies enormously, from individuals with learning disabilities to senior citizens whose senses deteriorate naturally to very young people, many of whom are born with their sight or hearing impaired.

It's difficult to grasp just how much being deaf, blind or hard of hearing can hamper everyday life. It means that everything from going to the shops to visiting your GP to arranging a wedding or a funeral can prove frustratingly difficult or just impossible.

Which is why there's a dedicated team of interpreters on hand for every eventuality including offering an emergency out-of-hours service which means that if, to use another example, the relative of a deaf person is taken into hospital they can communicate with medical staff.

But an equally important element is technology. It's vital because it has revolutionised the ability to communicate.

David said: "Texting, minicom, e mails, the internet – they all break down so many barriers. Just 20 years ago the lives of deaf people were so much worse because technology didn't exist. But just the ability to send someone a simple text is a revolution and so are so many other innovations.

"There was a school in Bristol where they decided to integrate deaf children into mainstream education and one of the ideas they came up with was giving the kids swipe cards so that when the register was called they could register their presence with staff, simple things like that.

"And as a result education is changing rapidly. When I left school years ago my reading standard was that of an eight year old – now it is much, much better."

Interestingly deaf people not only see themselves as different to those of us with near normal hearing levels they also see themselves as different to those who have partial hearing."

This is because BSL enables them to develop a virtual culture entirely separate to the hearing world. This also means that they don't view themselves as being 'disabled' – they simply speak a different language.

Like all languages it goes a long way towards defining their way of life – and it's just as expressive and articulate as any other.

Unfortunately there are times when this can prove as excluding as it does beneficial because the majority of people in the hearing world don't understand, or at least don't think they could understand, BSL.

This is curious since a lot of the signs they use are similar to non-verbal communication we all use in everyday life and BSL is estimated to be used by more people than those who speak the centuries-old tongues of Gaelic or Welsh.

Which is why the society places enormous importance on teaching and raising awareness of BSL. But that's just one element of the comprehensive work which the organisation carries out.

"It's effectively a one stop centre which bridges the gap that has always existed between the hearing and non-hearing world." said David. "But there is still a lot which can be done in society as a whole.

"We're a long way behind America in this respect. Over there if you book into a hotel and you tell them you're deaf they hand you a bag containing information on where to go in the event of fire.

"And if you go the cinema they give you some 3-D like glasses which means you can see subtitles on the bottom of the screen which you can't see if you don't wear them. It's ideas like that which stop you from feeling isolated and integrate you with the rest of society.

"But speaking as someone who works here but lives in another local authority area I know how bad services for deaf, blind and hard-of-hearing people can be elsewhere and I can honestly say that the Society's services here in Leeds are second to none – and I don't just say that because I work here."

To find out more about the society visit www.leedsdeafandblind.org.uk or call Centenary House on 0113 243 8328.

A brief history...

In 1876 the Vicar of Leeds, Revd D R Atley, convened a public meeting and Leeds Incorporated Institution for the Blind and the Deaf and Dumb was formed.

Three years earlier the Mayor of Leeds, Mr H R Marsden, launched a public appeal for funds for premises on Albion Street – the total cost of building, alterations and furnishings was £10,483.

This new building incorporated workshops for blind people, a service chapel for deaf people and areas for socialising.

Later the building was compulsorily purchased by the City Council, and subsequently Dudley House was built on the site which was recently converted into the present K2 building of luxury apartments.

In 1917 the Memorandum and Articles of Association were approved and the Institution became a registered charity.

Following the purchase of the former Leeds Public Dispensary and its adaptation and furnishings at a total cost of £179,000, Centenary House was officially opened by HRH. the Duke of Edinburgh on February 13, 1976.

HRH the Princess of Wales, having heard of the services being provided at Centenary House, made a request to visit in 1987 and received some tuition in British Sign Language from staff.

To reflect cultural changes, the charity's name was changed to Leeds Society for Deaf and Blind People in 1996, and by 2004 its services had developed to incorporate a comprehensive Deafblind service, Social Work and Interpreting services for deaf people, Hearing Loss support service providing specialist equipment and advice for hard of hearing people, a Communication service for people with learning disabilities as well as a hearing loss, and running Shire View Centre for Visually Impaired People.