As one of the Largest Conference Centres in the East Midlands it is important to us that you’re able to make your events as accessible as possible. One of the features we can provide in our amazing Main Auditorium is a hearing loop that can improve the experience for those using hearing aids. We are thrilled to also be able to provide a portable hearing loop that can be installed in any of our available rooms should it be needed.

Check out some of the other available facilities on our website here to see what we supply to make your event or meeting more than just a space.

Help those with a hearing impairment at your event

At every level of hearing loss, there are certain factors that can make it more difficult to clearly hear and understand people due to increased reverberation. These include:  

• Noisy environments
• Large rooms with high ceilings
• Hard surfaces  
• Open floor plan  

To help reduce the reverberation at your conference you could try the following:

• Use a smaller room with lower ceilings
• Have plenty of soft furnishings to absorb excess sound
• Split off into breakout rooms for discussions to reduce amount of background chatter

All the event spaces at Trent Conference Centre have carpets, including the Main Auditorium, which helps reduce some of the excess noise. Since our fantastic Auditorium space is very large, there will be more reverberation than smaller rooms making it harder for those with hearing loss. However, we have a wonderful piece of tech called a hearing loop that works with a hearing aid to help pick up sounds more clearly.  

On top of that, we make certain to have the best audio equipment on the market to ensure sound quality for speakers, music or videos played is second to none. This not only benefits those with hearing loss, but also the all-round experience for every individual attending your event.

Hearing loss and hearing aids

There are four levels of hearing loss:  

• Mild (21-40 dB)
• Moderate (41-70 dB)
• Severe (71-95 dB)  

• Profound (95 dB or greater).  

Hearing aids, either digital or analogue, can help with all levels of hearing loss but are most effective for those with a mild to moderate level. A hearing aid has three main components to it:  

• Microphone – receives the sound and converts it into a digital signal
• Amplifier – increases the strength of the digital signal
• Speaker – plays the amplified sound into the ear

How a hearing loop works

A hearing loop provides a magnetic, wireless signal that is picked up by the hearing aid. Make sure the hearing aid is on the ‘T’ (Telecoil) setting to receive the signal. The benefits for using the hearing loop for those with hearing aids include:

• Picking up speech more clearly
• Hearing from further away
• Helps cut out background noise

Best of all, your event will be even more accessible!

Is there an additional cost?

There is no additional cost to provide the hearing loop at your conference, meeting or event.

If you are interested in using the hearing loop at your event, you can add this information to your TCC Booking Enquiry Form or email us using the info on our contact page. Come and discuss the details and other ways we can reduce reverberation at your Nottingham conference with our event planners.

Until next time, Hannah – Conferencing Assistant

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