Sensory disabilities

A sensory disability (or sensory impairment) is one which affects one or more of the senses: sight, hearing, smell, touch, taste or spatial awareness. A person does not need to have full loss of a sense to have a sensory impairment, and some minor impairments are very common. For example, many people need to wear glasses to help them see.

It is important to speak to your GP if you think you might have a sensory disability. This can ensure that you receive any treatment you need to stop your impairment from getting any worse, or to help you access support services.

Buckinghamshire Integrated Sensory Service (BISS) provides free advice and support to adults and children with sensory impairments across Buckinghamshire.

To help you get the correct guidance and support, you can get an assessment from Buckinghamshire Integrated Sensory Service (BISS).

Dual sensory loss (also known as deafblindness) is when a person has both a sight and a hearing impairment. This does not usually mean that the person has completely lost both senses, but that both are affected to some extent. As each of these senses would usually help to make up for the loss of the other, dual sensory loss can cause significant difficulties in daily life, even if the sight and hearing impairments themselves are mild.

See Deafblindness - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

People with conditions such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often have sensory processing difficulties, meaning they have unusual reactions to sensory experiences. For example, they could be particularly sensitive to things such as noise or the feel of their clothes against their skin.

For more about autism, visit our autism page.