Help for people with hearing or speech impairments
If you are deaf or have a hearing loss or impaired speech and need help to communicate over the phone, a confidential service, called Relay UK, can help with this. The service will connect you to a relay assistant.
- If you cannot hear, the relay assistant can type what the caller is saying so that you can read their responses.
- If you cannot speak the assistant will read your typed responses to the caller.
To access the service download the free Relay UK app onto your smartphone, tablet or computer and link it to your phone number.
Find out more about the Relay UK service for people with hearing or speech impairments.
You can contact NHS 111 using the Relay UK app by dialling 18001.
You can also contact NHS 111 by dialling 18001 111 on a textphone.
You can make an emergency 999 call with Relay UK, by dialling 18000 instead of the normal 18001 through the Relay UK app or from a textphone. Find out more about calling 999 through Relay UK.
You can also contact the emergency services by text using emergencySMS. You must register your phone before you can send a text message to 999 using the emergencySMS service. Text the word ‘register’ to 999. Find out more about emergencySMS and how to use it on the Relay UK website.