$75m hearing, vision loss centre to drive innovation

Not-for-profit organisation NextSense has launched a $75 million facility custom-built for people with hearing and vision loss.

This new centre for innovation is an important investment in removing barriers for people who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind or have low vision, NextSense Chief Executive Chris Rehn said.

The centre will be the focal point for the organisation’s national operations and will house allied health, disability and cochlear implant services for children and adults, a school and preschool, and a major research and professional education program.

Located in the Macquarie University precinct and Macquarie Park Innovation District, the centre will bring the organisation closer to its key partners already on campus, such as Macquarie University Hearing, Cochlear and Hearing Australia.

“It is a nationally significant piece of social infrastructure that will cement the leading role Australia already plays on the world stage in hearing and vision service delivery and research. We welcome the Australian Government’s significant financial support of $12.5 million to this project — it will change lives and create new opportunities for the way education and services are delivered to all people with sensory disability,” Rehn said.

A key feature of the centre is its building design, which puts people with hearing and vision loss first, with equipment and spaces tailored specifically for them, including the highest-possible acoustic standards, wayfinding braille signage, and walls and furniture with high-contrast elements to allow better depth perception.

“We’ve come such a long way from our beginnings in 1860 when Thomas Pattison established us as Australia’s first Deaf school,” Rehn said.

“Since then, we have achieved many firsts, from championing compulsory education in the 1900s for children who were deaf and blind, and pioneering teacher training in the 1930s, to creating the first digital version of the Auslan Dictionary, building Australia’s largest cochlear implant program, and launching the world’s first online braille training program.

The new centre will explore ways to advance education for all children with hearing and vision loss, regardless of their location. And it will help NextSense scale up to meet the growing need for in-person and remote hearing and vision services right across Australia.

“By 2050, more than 6 million Australians will have hearing loss and more than 1 million will be blind or have low vision, and this will continue to grow,” Rehn said.

“We know that despite being the largest group affected by hearing loss, adult awareness of its huge health and social impacts is low. If we improve this awareness and access to adult hearing care, we can go a long way to keeping our aging population healthy and connected, reducing the risk of social isolation, falls, mental ill health and cognitive decline.

“We also know acting early when children have hearing or vision loss is critical in setting them up for life and giving them a level playing field. Advancing knowledge around best practice early intervention services and making sure families can access them is vital. With this new centre, we’re now in a better position to be there for those who need us and shape the way services are delivered across the sector.

“We plan to use our centre for innovation to better connect our rich expertise as a leading service provider with what we learn from others — we need collective thinking if we’re going to drive change,” Rehn said.

Images: Supplied.