Meet your local Audiologist.
Thank you for visiting High Peak Hearing. My name is Daniel and I’m here to help you on your journey to better hearing. I just wanted to take this opportunity to tell you more about myself and the path I took to starting the business here in New Mills.
From a young age I have been interested in technology and how it can assist with our daily lives. At school I was drawn towards the sciences, so when it came to deciding what subject I wanted to study at university, Audiology stood out. It ticked all the boxes in terms of matching my interest in science; learning about the anatomy and physiology of the human ear and understanding how technology, such as hearing aids, can process sound to make speech easier to hear. But the most important skill the degree taught me was communication; to listen, to treat the person as a whole and how best to rehabilitate people with hearing loss.
I graduated in 2008 from a four year degree course in Audiology from De Montfort University and began my career in the NHS. My first position was as a Clinical Audiologist at Leeds General Infirmary. Initially I specialised in adult rehabilitation of hearing loss and later had training in vestibular diagnostics. After further education I became a supervisor for BSc students on their clinical placements.
After Leeds, I moved to London in 2011 to broaden my horizons and worked for a number of years at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. I also worked at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust - I’m very proud to this day that I worked for two of the largest and most renowned Audiology centres in the UK. I also met my wife, Joy, in London so it worked out very well.
After London (and a career break) Joy and I travelled the world for 6 months and returned to the UK in 2016 relishing a new challenge. I was keen to start a hearing care business but I knew I needed more experience in the private sector as all I knew up to then was the NHS. I applied for a job with an independent hearing care company in the South West of England. This enabled me to fit the very latest hearing aid technology and was very liberating and rewarding from that point of view. I also received training in microsuction and ear care at Aston University so I could perform wax removal.
We then moved ‘up north’ a year later as Joy was offered a new job in Manchester. We both grew up near the countryside so when we were house hunting, we stumbled across New Mills - and what a fantastic little town it is! As luck would have it, Signia (one of the ‘big 6’ global hearing aid manufacturers) was looking for an Audiologist at the time to join their support team and I got the job. I travelled the UK and Ireland supporting audiologists with training and technical support and learnt a lot about how manufacturers operate. A year or so later, I then moved into a sales position where I supported our NHS customers and helped to improve their services. I was humbled to receive an internal sales award in 2021 despite the challenges the NHS had with the pandemic. I was promoted to National Training Manager and regularly presented at universities, conferences and our own launch events. I got to do a lot of interesting audiology projects too with R&D in Germany, testing and refining new technology ready to be launched in the UK market.
“The most important skill is communication; to listen, to treat the person as a whole and how best to rehabilitate people with hearing loss”
In 2023, I decided now was the time to start my own hearing care business, with all the experience I’d gained over the last 15 years working in different sides of the audiology industry. I’m very passionate about helping people become the best version of themselves and making sure hearing loss does not become a barrier to that.
I’m really excited to become a bigger part of this fantastic community here in New Mills and High Peak. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions before booking an appointment. I look forward to meeting you soon.
Daniel Thirsk
BSc (Hons) Audiology, RHAD, RCCP