Testimonials

LEANN & MIKE

My husband and I have been attending Practice Makes Perfect for the past five weeks, led by the wonderful Maureen Doyle, who has been doing incredible, inclusive work in the community for over 30 years.

This group is becoming truly life-changing for us. For me, it’s been a refresher course, but for my husband, Mike, it’s his first experience learning British Sign Language (BSL). We’re amazed at how much we’ve both learned in such a short time, thanks to Maureen’s patient and engaging teaching style.

As someone with a vocal disability, communication in noisy environments like pubs, restaurants, or live events is a real struggle and very uncomfortable. Background noise causes my voice to weaken and often disappear completely. Trying to force my voice risks total voice loss for weeks or even months, so socialising has been something we’ve sadly avoided.

Now, thanks to Practice Makes Perfect and Maureen’s brilliant guidance, Mike and I can confidently communicate using BSL wherever we are. It’s starting to make a huge difference to our lives and given us the confidence to enjoy social situations again.

Maureen creates such a warm, welcoming, and supportive atmosphere that every Friday afternoon session feels like a highlight of the week. We can’t thank her and the group enough for the positive impact they’ve had on our lives.

AUDREY

As someone whose hearing has deteriorated since the age of 5 to the point of now being considered severely/profoundly deaf, I have always been fascinated by and interested in learning, sign language. I couldn’t find a suitable class near to home until I came across the advert for Practice Makes Perfect on Facebook for classes in Southport. I contacted Maureen and started learning in March 2024.

The class is really welcoming and teaching fantastic. Maureen and Carol are excellent teachers. My skills have definitely progressed and Carol’s teaching has now taken the improvement group to a higher level. The lessons are fun and informative not just learning signs but also deaf awareness and culture.

I have met the most lovely people through our mutual interest of learning to sign and encouraging others to learn and embrace this beautiful language.