Standish Lipreading Society

23/10/2026

8 members of Standish Lipreading Society, and 3 guests, really enjoyed the musical captioned version of Calendar Girls at Bolton Octagon on Wednesday, 21st October. There was an enthusiastic BSL Signer throughout the production, too. She definitely deserved her fee, as she had to sign everyone's part and songs. The production was emotionally sad, but also had many laughable moments and showed women being supportive of other women.
In the Director's notes he said "A crucial pillar of our rehearsal process was navigating the defining photo shoot (where the actresses bare all, with strategic items hiding their assets) which was made even more challenging in-the-round. " The eventual scene was a joyful celebration of the women and the audience cheered at the ingenuity needed to actually not bare all.
We all thoroughly enjoyed the performance.

21/09/2026

Today’s lesson began with a quiz. Members were asked to name the parts of the ear and point them out on a model. The parts included the ear canal, ear drum, hammer, anvil, stirrup, cochlea, semicircular canal, auditory nerve, and Eustachian tube. Over the coming weeks teacher Alison will explain what causes various kinds of hearing loss.

14/09/2026

Introducing Negan, the SLRS canine teaching assistant. Negan is a 4 year old Lurcher with Whippet and Bedlington Terrier parents. She is a service dog working with vulnerable people and she has recently joined the Monday class with teacher Alison. Negan is so well behaved we almost forget she’s there!

27/07/2026

Today’s Monday class included prose on the history of Walls ice cream and discussion on flavors. We did our homework on our way home at Fredrick’s. Alison’s choice was raspberry ripple and Richard chose mint choc chip and jammy dodger.

24/06/2026

As promised, here’s my lip speaking message from the top☝️of Scafell. See if you can read the finger spelling.

24/06/2026

We all have to face our challenges, and some are more difficult to navigate than others. The loss of our hearing creates significant obstacles, but having the ability to lipread can be the saviour for many. Richard’s challenge was not his hearing, but conquering the 978 metres (3,209 feet) of Scafell Pike, the highest mountain in England. Not only did he succeed, but he also raised £350 for Standish Lipreading Society! For those of you who understand ‘finger spelling’, Richard has left a video message for you from the summit, which we will attempt to add. If you, or someone you know, suffers from a hearing loss and would like to improve ways of communicating, please don’t delay; contact Standish Lipreading Society. We are sure you will be amazed as to how quickly you will grasp this invaluable technique.

18/06/2026

Following a successful National Lottery grant award, our members experienced a most memorable visit to Quarry Bank Mill in Styal, Cheshire. It is one of the best-preserved textile factories of the Industrial Revolution. Our thanks go to the National Lottery and our organisers Sandra & Linda!

15/05/2026

Yesterday, we participated in a Dragon’s Den-style event. Our Gill stepped up to represent SLRS with her assistant, Lynne. Thank you, Wigan Rotary, for organising the event, and to all the other local competitors for making the evening both enjoyable and entertaining. Not only did we manage to promote the benefit of lipreading, but we also walked away with a substantial cash prize from the Dragons, too!

23/04/2026

One of our members, with his daughter, will be supporting us! Please contribute if you can.

Iʼm raising money to support Standish Lipreading Society www.standishlipreading.co.uk. Support this JustGiving Crowdfunding Page.

23/03/2026

Today, we had a visit from the Mayor of Wigan Borough, Councillor Jenny Bullen and her consort, Andrew Bullen.

She introduced herself and described the interesting experiences and challenging roles she has enjoyed in her post.

Her chosen charities for the mayoral year are All Ears MHA and Curious Minds.

They both mingled with our members, discussing a range of topics.

Thank you, Mayor, for your visit