The National Deaf Children’s Society has stepped in to support deaf children and their families who had previously been receiving auditory verbal therapy through the charity Auditory Verbal UK (AVUK), which closed in May 2026. AVUK provided specialist auditory verbal therapy to support listening, speech and language development for deaf children. 

Around 63 families were actively engaged in intensive auditory verbal therapy programmes supported by AVUK, with deaf children making good progress. Suitable alternatives were not necessarily available. In some cases, families had previously turned down other options for support because they’d committed to an AVUK programme.   

To prevent families from losing the support they rely on, some specialist therapists who previously worked with AVUK have joined the National Deaf Children’s Society to continue delivering support. This is to ensure that deaf children and their families can continue to access this specialist support and that any progress made to date is not lost. This work is intended to complement, not replace, their existing services.

The National Deaf Children’s Society has said that this step is simply a practical response to an unexpected situation, ensuring families already following this pathway can continue the support they had started. The charity does not promote one approach over another and remains fully committed to informed choice, British Sign Language (BSL), deaf culture, and the wide range of communication approaches and services that support deaf children and their families.

Alongside this work, the charity’s existing services, including Helpline, online information and one-to-one support in local communities, continue to support families across the UK.

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