Transparent masks to help Campbeltown boy who lip reads

Community volunteers are making face coverings with clear plastic sections over the mouth to help a boy who uses lip reading in his conversations.

Gregor Craig, 12, of Campbeltown, was born with a severe to profound hearing impairment.

He was worried the requirement to wear masks and other face coverings would affect his ability to communicate.

Voluntary group Kintyre Scrubs took on the challenge of making coverings that still left a person's mouth visible.

It has so far distributed 25 of its coverings.

Kintyre Scrubs is part of Kintyre Community Resilience Group which was set up to help people during the coronavirus pandemic.

It has been making face coverings since they became mandatory for visits to shops and other places indoors where social distancing is not possible.

But for Gregor the new rules were a cause for worry.

He said: "I was really concerned because I didn't know how I was going to communicate."

His mum Martine asked if Kintyre Scrubs could help.

The group tried different designs before finding one on the National Deaf Children's Society website.

It sourced acetate plastic sheets used for a primary school's projector that were surplus to requirements.

Ida Brown, one of the volunteers involved, said the group had still to find a solution to one challenge with the coverings.

She said: "After a while they get steamed up and we're not sure yet how we're going to solve that."

But Gregor's mum said she was delighted with the response. "We have got a great community spirit in Campbeltown," she said.