What Verity taught us about hearing differently

For Deaf Awareness Week 2025, Natalie Joyce welcomes Verity Burgess, Head of Finance at RiskSTOP Group, to the People at the Heart podcast to share her experience of deafness and what true inclusion looks like in practice.

Verity has been part of RiskSTOP since the very beginning, but in this episode, she offers a different kind of insight. She talks openly about her hearing loss, how she navigates communication at work, and the technology that’s helped her reconnect with the world in unexpected ways.

From her cochlear implant to tools like Bluetooth and Teams, Verity highlights how far accessibility has come – but also how much it still relies on awareness and support from the people around us.

Inclusion doesn't always require major changes

“Being deaf isn’t like putting on a pair of glasses,” she explains. “You can’t emulate normal hearing with a device. There’s background noise, different pitches, the way people speak – all of that affects how we hear.”

The conversation is a reminder that meaningful inclusion doesn’t always require major changes. Sometimes, it’s about simply being more mindful by facing someone when you speak, reducing overlapping voices in meetings, or avoiding bright backlighting that makes lip reading harder.

Her reflections are thoughtful and honest. “Just ask someone how they want to communicate,” Verity says. “That alone makes people feel included – it shows you want to connect.”

Whether you’re part of RiskSTOP, thinking of joining, or simply interested in what a more inclusive working culture looks like, this episode is well worth your time. It challenges assumptions, offers practical takeaways, and reminds us that better communication benefits everyone.

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Or if you’d prefer to listen on the go, the audio podcast is below, along with the transcript.

Transcript:

Natalie Joyce  00:11

I'm Natalie Joyce, and I'm responsible for sustainability and social responsibility at RiskSTOP Group. Hi everyone, and welcome to another episode of our People at the Heart podcast, where we like to chat about all kinds of things, both serious and light hearted, connected with our team and our work here at RiskSTOP Group. Now, Deaf Awareness Week is from the 5th to the 11th of May in 2025. And the purpose of this week is to promote positivity, understanding, inclusivity for deaf and hard-of-hearing people. Now, this year's theme is "Beyond Silence", which encourages a greater understanding of the diverse ways in which deaf and hard of hearing people communicate, from British Sign Language to lip reading, written communication and assistive technology. Now my guest today, Verity Burgess, who is RiskSTOP Group's Head of Finance has joined me to share her story. Hi, Verity. Thank you for joining me.

Verity Burgess  01:05

Thank you for having me.

Natalie Joyce  01:07

Fun fact, Verity was RiskSTOP's first ever employee, and almost 25 years later, she's still with us.

Verity Burgess  01:14

I certainly am.

Natalie Joyce  01:16

So Verity, talk to me about what being deaf means to you and just share a bit about your journey.

Verity Burgess  01:22

It's weird because I've never thought of myself as deaf. I've always said I'm hard of hearing. Someone says something, I say, sorry, I don't hear that well. But no, I am deaf because I can't hear a thing, take my cochlear implant out [and] I can't hear a thing. So yes, I'm deaf. Never thought I'm part of the deaf community, because I don't immerse myself in that. Outside of my family, I don't really know anyone who's deaf, so it's a bit of a weird one. But background is my dad went for national service, and he went for his medical and they said, "You've got hearing loss." He didn't know, [it] came out of the blue. We don't know anyone else in our family, his family, with it, so it was really a bit strange. So obviously he ended up getting hearing aids and stuff like that. So shock that both my sister and I inherited this hearing loss. So it's a genetic thing. No idea where it's come from. The gene must be really strong though, because both my sister and I have it and our children have it. So, you know, it's a bit of a weird one. We've sent our DNA off to Antwerp in the vein hope that they'll find out what's gone on. But we've heard nothing, and that's been a fair few years now. But it's one of those hearing losses that is a gradual decline, so you don't really notice it until you're in your mid teens. So, I did have hearing aids, but God, there was such a taboo about it. And you know, they were massive then, and they didn't really help. So, I didn't want to wear them, so I didn't. And then I really started struggling, late teens, early 20s, and I was lucky enough to have some small private hearing aids, so I wore them up into a point that they were no good and I had to go bigger, and then got to the point that they were no good either. So the only way forward was a cochlear implant. And that was a bit of a no no no for me, too. And it wasn't until I bumped into someone with a cochlear implant at a horse show, and they could hear more than I could, and I thought it's got to be the way to go. So I was pregnant with Ruby when I started the journey. I got implanted in the June of 2009 and switched on in July 2009 and the rest is history. It's life changing. It's just put my life back, because before that, I couldn't really have conversation, couldn't use the telephone, couldn't hear music. Now I've got it all back.

Natalie Joyce  03:56

Can you just explain what the implant is?

Verity Burgess  03:58

Cochlear implant is, I have an implant in my head. It has an electrode ray on it. There's 12 electrodes and all different pitches that is in my cochlear, so it goes around your cochlear. And then I've got a processor with a magnet, attached the magnet inside my head, and then the sound from the processor goes to the magnet into electrode ray, and that's how we hear now, so it bypasses all the normal hearing functions, or whatever.

Natalie Joyce  04:34

That is fascinating. So that has been life changing for you by the sound of it?

Verity Burgess  04:37

Totally, totally and I wouldn't be without it now. When we take it off and it's just me and my tinnitus, you know, so no it's a game changer.

Natalie Joyce  04:45

So what kind of communication do you use on a sort of day to day basis? What helps you beyond the implant?

Verity Burgess  04:52

I'm a lip reader. That is, I've always, you know, that's a skill I've learned as I've gone along, you know, as the hearing deteriorated. I've lip read. Subtitles on televisions. And now, obviously, with Bluetooth, I've got my phone, so that's all myphone calls, and they go straight to my cochlear implant. It cuts out any noise, any background noise, and stuff like that. And I've got my music back. So, Bluetooth's a game changer.

Natalie Joyce  05:21

And yeah, you're just self taught lip reading? That's something you learnt as a child?

Verity Burgess  05:25

Yeah, yeah. You just look at people's faces and then you just, yeah. You just learn it as you go along.

Natalie Joyce  05:31

Is there anything you wish more people would understand about being deaf?

Verity Burgess  05:36

Being deaf, it's not like you can change it, like putting on a pair of glasses, where it will instantly make you hear because it won't. You can't emulate normal hearing with a hearing device, so you've got the way people speak, background noise, the pitches and stuff like that. That all contributes to the way people hear. So it's not like putting on a pair of glasses, and people need to understand that just because you've got a hearing device doesn't mean that you'll be able to hear like a normal person.

Natalie Joyce  06:13

So when we think about being in the workplace, if we think about being in a meeting with lots of other people, if there are people talking over each other. Would you consider that background noise? Is that difficult?

Verity Burgess  06:23

Yes, it's a nightmare being in a meeting. It tires you out, because I'm constantly looking who's talking, where's it coming from, because it's only coming in one ear, because that ear doesn't do an awful lot, it's got a hearing aid, but it doesn't do an awful lot, just a bit of balance. But yeah, I'm just like, who's talking, what they're saying. You know, it is difficult.

Natalie Joyce  06:40

So I guess something that people could do is be more aware when they're in meetings with you, of the over talking and maybe looking at you as they're talking?

Verity Burgess  06:47

Yes, absolutely.

Natalie Joyce  06:49

So as I mentioned earlier this year's Deaf Awareness theme is around encouraging a greater understanding of the diverse ways deaf people communicate. So in view of this, how do you think people can be better allies to the community, but not just for this week, for all year round?

Verity Burgess  07:05

They need to understand that everybody communicates differently. Lip readers, sign language. They need to be able to look at them so they can see your face, so that you can see facial expressions, lip read, whatever. So ask them how they want to communicate, because then it makes them feel like you want to communicate with them. Oh, lighting. Lighting is a good one, because if it's too dark, you can't see facial expressions or to lip read. You don't want anything where there's light behind your head. So if we're in a meeting, I like the blinds closed for anyone who's behind them, you know, behind the windows, because you can't see their faces. Speak up. Don't mumble. Don't talk to someone like don't shout in their ear. And don't say [slowly pronounces] "Hello, my name is," don't over pronounce, because that makes it even worse. Just speak normally, you know, because we're not stupid and we don't want to be perceived as stupid.

Natalie Joyce  08:02

You know, everything you mentioned then is actually really quite simple, isn't it? It's quite simple things that we can do to make it easier. So when we think about accessibility, have you seen an improvement over the years? Have we still got a long way to go? And I mean, in the workplace and general day to day life, in your communities?

Verity Burgess  08:18

Oh, there's definitely improvement. I mean, Bluetooth has really been a game changer. And then we've got, like, the Teams and stuff like that. Teams meetings, you can see each other's faces, that's brilliant, and stuff like that. But there are still things to do. I mean, like intercoms. I had a chat with someone on one of my CI groups just to get a bit of information for this. And I never even thought about intercoms. And then I thought, that's a point - drive thrus. I hate drive thrus, and I won't use them because it's just someone talking, and the clarity is awful. So, you know, we could have a video on the person taking the order and stuff like that. So there's still things like that that could be done.

Natalie Joyce  09:02

You mentioned some forums there. What forums do you access?

Verity Burgess  09:06

I'm on southern counties cochlear implant group, which is for everyone in the southern area. They meet up once or twice a year, maybe a bit more than that. And they're more there to help each other. People who are just on their road for implanting, giving advice, being given advice by those that have been implanted for a long time. And then there's the Advanced Bionics one, which is for people who've got the same make of CI that I have.

Natalie Joyce  09:34

So that is people with the same or similar lived experiences, just sharing their journey and giving each other advice. So that's something you'd recommend to others?

Verity Burgess  09:43

Yeah, for anyone who's going for a cochlear implant or whatever, to get more information.

Natalie Joyce  09:48

You've given some brilliant advice around some of the simple things that colleagues can do. Is there any advice you would give employers about what they can do to be more inclusive of deaf employees?  Give them access to everything they need. Be it, note takers, sign language interpreters, speech to text software, that sort of stuff. Obviously, you've got access to work, so you should be able to get everything through there. But at the moment, it can be up to 30 weeks before you even get assessed, so I'm still waiting for mine in January. But just make sure that they feel included in everything, and they've got everything they need to do their day to day jobs.  So does everyone at RiskSTOP Group know that you're deaf?

Verity Burgess  10:29

Probably not. Obviously the colleagues I work closely with do, but it's not something I broadcast, so I suspect many don't.

Natalie Joyce  10:40

So not only will this episode raise awareness, but it also your colleagues might be learning as well, a bit more about you.

Verity Burgess  10:45

Absolutely and then you know, if I ignore them, it's not because I don't want to speak to them. It's probably because I didn't hear them or didn't understand them.

Natalie Joyce  10:55

So what are some everyday situations where accessibility is still lacking?

Verity Burgess  10:59

Bizarrely enough, hospitals. My dad had a had two stays in hospital recently, and the lack of empathy and understanding was awful. People wearing masks wouldn't remove them, so you had no chance of lip reading. And some of them had foreign accents too, which was a double whammy. There was just nothing to help you. They never offered anything to try and help you understand. And it got really frustrating. So they have to follow a standard, and it appears they're not. So it was really disappointing that a medical facility couldn't provide something like that.

Natalie Joyce  11:39

Thank you for sharing that, and I agree with you, I think we would all expect a medical facility to be really aware of being inclusive for all. So thank you for sharing that. I do really appreciate it. And to close, can you tell the listeners something they can do to be more deaf aware?

Verity Burgess  11:55

Understand what being deaf means. Everyone has different levels of deafness. Everyone has different ways of communicating, and everyone has different needs, and be patient.

Natalie Joyce  12:08

So thank you, Verity for joining us as we shine a light on the importance of inclusion, communication and understanding within the deaf and hard of hearing community. Let's keep the conversation going in our workplaces, our communities and our everyday lives, and that's all for this episode of the People at the Heart podcast. Thank you everyone for listening in. I, along with one or two other presenters, will be back soon with all kinds of things to talk aboutwith different guests. So keep your eyes peeled for more episode announcements, and remember here at RiskSTOP Group, it's all about keeping people safe and secure and believing in social responsibility and sustainability. Until the next time everyone, goodbye for now.