Following phenomenal outcomes in their first two years in North Wales, The Neumark Foundation are delighted to award Chloe’s and Sophie’s Special Ears Fund with additional funding of £87,000 this year. 

The funding aims to support their incredible ongoing work, continuing to brighten the lives of Deaf children across Wrexham and Flintshire, and now also expanding this support into Denbighshire, and developing a life-changing North Wales CSSEF Deaf Hub.

With the additional funding, the charity aims to provide support for nearly 300 Deaf children across the three counties.

Zeta Lloyd, CSSEF Wish Granting Champion for Flintshire and Wrexham said “The Deaf Hub, that will be funded by the grant, will improve the health and wellbeing of the whole family, as well as helping Deaf children to feel that their needs are being met, by having the opportunity to meet their Deaf peers on a regular basis.  We will be opening the Deaf Hub once a month, to begin with, and the who family, of the Deaf children we support, will be invited along. Games will be played, and conversations opened, and families will be able to relax.  Playing and having fun is a core goal at Deaf Hub. Being amongst peers helps to reduce the feeling of isolation and boosts self-esteem. The grant will enable us to continue offering the best support to schools to help them provide the best learning environments for Deaf children. We will continue to work closely with the Teachers of the Deaf and young people in Wrexham and Flintshire and now in Denbighshire as well.  Together we can identify what support a Deaf child needs, whether that is equipment to access communication, basic resources such as children’s books with Deaf representation, British Sign Language lessons, or having a Deaf role model such as Fletch@ – a Deaf popstar visit the school to teach songs in Sign Language.”  

Karen Jackson, CSSEF CEO & Founder said “It’s fantastic news that Chloe’s and Sophie’s Special Ears Fund has been supported by The Neumark Foundation to receive this incredibly significant grant, on top of previous support.  The grant will enable us to continue to build on the foundations of Wrexham and Flintshire and start foundations in Denbighshire.  These funds will enable us to change the lives of hundreds of Deaf children who will receive the vital access to communication, technology, and resources to support their emotional wellbeing and mental health. Since September 2021, Chloe’s and Sophie’s Special Ears Fund has been working in Wrexham and Flintshire.  When we arrived, there were very few activities or events for Deaf children in the area. We found that in some schools Deaf children hadn’t ever met another Deaf child like them. Through funding from The Neumark Foundation, we have been able to really work hard to build solid foundations for Deaf children, and their families, and provide them with the reassurance of continuous, long-term support, as we develop and grow into Denbighshire now as well, following a really successful first two years in North Wales. We are so thankful to the support from The Neumark Foundation.  With their incredible funding support, we have and will continue to make everlasting differences to Deaf children.”