Deafblind man's quay walk

To mark this year’s Deafblind Awareness Week, Roger Mulholland a young deafblind man is leading a sensory walk around the quay and river in Exeter on Tuesday 23 June.

Roger who is deaf and registered blind, is a regular volunteer at Café 55 a unique café in central Exeter staffed by disabled people and run by national deafblind charity Sense.

The 28-year-old from Tiverton who received the Duke of Edinburg Gold Award in 2012 and was named ‘Deafblind Person of the Year’ in 2011 was born deafblind. He has also learning difficulties and a heart condition and communicates using a combination of sign language and visual symbols.

Roger hopes that the walk will raise awareness of how it is to live with sight and hearing impairments and help spread the word about Sense, the charity that supports him.

Walkers will have the chance to wear a blindfold and eardefenders to explore the challenges faced by people with sensory impairments on a day-to-day basis. Councillor Olwen Margaret Foggin the Mayor of Exeter will be joining the walkers.

Roger said: "I hope that the more people learn about what it means living in a deafblind world the more they will want to get involved and support Sense. I’m very grateful to the Mayor for her support and to everyone who’s helped organise the event."

Artwork from local deafblind makers will be on display at the Transit Shed on the day and volunteers will be on hand to provide information about local services for people with sensory impairments.

'Walking the Bridges with Sense' is on from 11am-2pm on 23rd June at the Transit Shed at the Quay in Exeter. The gentle walk starts at 11.15am and will take 45 minutes. The route is accessible to wheelchair users.