This month Jasper visited the House of Commons to give a speech about his hearing journey as part of the AVUK (Auditory Verbal United Kingdom) Power of Speech competition.

Jasper was one of the winners of this competition which was held nationwide, open to any previous participants of their Auditory Verbal Therapy programme, to write and submit an original story or poem. 

The AVUK competition was originally held two years ago but the award event at the House of Commons was delayed due to the pandemic. In the initial entry, Jasper submitted a poem called The Discovery. Now two years later, it was decided that the older recipients should write a speech that was more personal to their individual journeys.

Jasper’s speech shared his hearing journey and raised awareness of the importance of Auditory Verbal Therapy and why it should be fully accessible to all children with a hearing loss and who are deaf. He spoke to an audience of approximately 100 people with Members of Parliament, other dignitaries, professionals in the industry and recipient families and children attending. 

Jasper delivered his speech with confidence, clarity and composure. He conducted himself with poise and was humbled and excited to have been part of and included in such a memorable event at the House of a commons.