Member Article

HearFirst kicks off New Year in style

Training and consultancy company, HearFirst has started 2016 in style after securing a number of new contract wins and has been successfully shortlisted for a second national award.

The Lancashire-based company, which delivers a full range of equality, Deaf and disability related training courses to organisations across the UK, has received a boost after learning that it has been shortlisted in the 175th Royal Association for Deaf People (RAD) awards as ‘Best Deaf business’.

HearFirst is one of three businesses competing for the title which will be announced at the RAD 175 Birthday Honours gala awards ceremony next month. The event celebrates Deaf history, language and culture and said that all organisations shortlisted ‘demonstrated excellence, innovation and forward thinking. Competition for the awards has been high; the shortlisted organisations are the best of the best.’

Not long after learning that the company has also been shortlisted in the Subcontractor of the Year Micro category of the UK Rail Industry Awards for the awareness training it has delivered in partnership with client, Chiltern Railways, the latest awards shortlist demonstrates that this could be a very successful year for the company to support its growth aspirations.

Less than three weeks into the New Year and HearFirst has already secured a number of new clients including Bronte Parsonage Museum, East Midlands Trains, Manchester Central, Salisbury Support for Autism and the British Deaf Association to support its aim of increasing overall sales by 20%. Last year, the company worked with 18 new clients and secured repeat business from existing clients.

The company, which is based in Bacup continues to grow from strength to strength and delivers training to high profile clients including the BBC and House of Commons to name but a few. In its thirteen years of operation, HearFirst has worked with over 200 clients nationally delivering bespoke training such as disability equality & awareness, British Sign Language (BSL) and Mental Health First Aid to clients in the public, private and third sectors to help them become more accessible and ensure they comply with the Equality Act.

Julie Ryder, Director and Founder of HearFirst, said: “What a great start to 2016. We are already looking forward to delivering a range of equality, Deaf and disability training courses to all of our new clients but also looking forward to continuing to work with and deliver high quality training to our existing clients.

“To be shortlisted in not one but two national awards is credit to the quality of the training our tutors deliver for our clients but also to the range and quality of training courses we can provide to clients across a range of many sectors.

“Like many organisations, our aspirations are to grow and constantly evolve but delivering bespoke training which is fun, practical and relevant by providing course delegates with the skills to enable them to make ‘real changes for diverse people.’”

Both national award ceremonies will be held in London on Thursday, February 11. The UK Rail Industry awards will be held at Battersea Evolution while the RAD awards ceremony will be held at the Millennium Hotel in Grosvenor Square.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by HearFirst .