In August 2018 Auditory Verbal UK became an official international affiliate member of the First Voice network.

First Voice is a membership organisation in Australia for listening and spoken language early intervention services for children who are deaf. Auditory Verbal UK has become the second international member, joining The Hearing House in New Zealand. First Voice plays a leadership role within the early childhood hearing loss sector, advocating for world-class early intervention services for children who are deaf.

Joining First Voice as an affiliate member will greatly benefit our advocacy work within the hearing loss sector nationally and internationally. It also gives us the opportunity to collaborate on research initiatives providing a stronger outcome base, as well as joining their clinical advisory committee.

In relation to AVUK joining the network, First Voice has said:

It’s with great delight we welcome Auditory Verbal UK to our network of First Voice member centres. AVUK has grown to be the leading provider of Auditory Verbal therapy in the UK and has won numerous sector awards and continues to collaborate with organisations working in the field in the UK and worldwide.

As an International Affiliate, AVUK will join First Voice in advocating for world-class early intervention services, giving young people and their families the opportunity to achieve their full potential.

The key principles of First Voice, which we also advocate, are:

1. early identification
2. access to assistive technologies
3. family support and education
4. transition to mainstream education
5. evidence-based therapies
6. universal access to diagnosis, assessment and treatment, particularly in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, rural and multi-cultural communities.

We’re grateful to First Voice for their support and international vision for championing the right for all deaf people having the opportunity to listen and speak.

If you would like to find out more about the network, you can do so on their website.