More basic awareness of deafness needed, mum says

Imogen's mum Louise, right, described her daughter as "the most beautiful person ever"

The mother of TikTok star Imogen Nunn says there needs to be more "basic awareness" of deafness and communicating with those with hearing loss after the death of her daughter.

Ms Nunn, who was born deaf, died in Brighton on New Year's Day 2023 after taking a poisonous substance she ordered online.

During an inquest into the 25-year-old's death, a nurse involved in Ms Nunn's care said there was a "huge shortage" of British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters.

Ms Nunn, known as Immy, raised awareness of hearing and mental health issues on her social media accounts, gaining more than 780,000 followers.

Imogen Nunn died in Brighton on New Year's Day 2023

Louise Nunn said when she saw her daughter for the last time, she promised she would not stop pursuing what she had wanted to achieve for deaf people.

"Her biggest thing always was that no-one would ever have to go through what she did," Mrs Nunn said.

"People are just so ignorant of deafness," she added.

Mark Dimmock, co-CEO of the charity East Sussex Hearing, said: "Imogen's tragic passing highlights how society as a whole fails to take hearing loss seriously.

"East Sussex Hearing is challenging public authorities to do better and work with the charity, so that every person is able to receive equitable and full access to the services of Sussex councils, NHS trusts and emergency services."

The charity is offering organisations the opportunity to train staff in deaf awareness and BSL.

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Three days before Ms Nunn's death, she received a check-in visit at her home from care professionals after sending a text message saying she had had an increase in suicidal thoughts.

No BSL interpreter was taken to the meeting as there was not enough time to arrange one, her inquest heard.

Senior coroner Penelope Schofield underlined a backdrop of "systemic challenges" with the number of BSL interpreters across various UK industries and indicated she would be writing to the government about this.

The inquest into Ms Nunn's death originally had to be adjourned for two months because there were no BSL interpreters available to translate for two deaf witnesses.

'A living nightmare'

Mrs Nunn estimated that about three-quarters of the time there was no interpreter at appointments for her daughter, and said she was often made to choose between going ahead without an interpreter or rebooking and waiting weeks for another appointment.

"I just don't think anyone realised how important it was," she added.

She said life was "like a living nightmare" without her daughter.

"Life's just not the same," she added. "It's never going to be the same again."

She described her daughter as "the most beautiful person ever".

"You just couldn't meet someone kinder than her. She just didn't have one bad bone in her body," Mrs Nunn added.

Ms Nunn raised awareness of hearing issues on her social media accounts, which had more than 780,000 followers

NHS Sussex said it welcomed the invitation from East Sussex Hearing and would continue working with its health and care partners to learn and improve.

Brighton & Hove City Council, East Sussex County Council and West Sussex County Council also said they were committed to making sure their services were fully accessible for people with hearing difficulties.

Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne explained that the force used a variety of accessible emergency contact options that allowed for deaf, hard of hearing or speech-impaired people to communicate.

A Sussex Police spokesperson added: "We are committed to ensuring our service is accessible for all and that support is in place for anyone who may have additional needs."