The Elizabeth Foundation, which also has a centre in Portsmouth, can no longer afford the £150,000 annual running costs of its Bradford setting.
The voluntary organisation is one of the few specialist provisions in the country to help babies and pre-school children with moderate and profound hearing loss to develop their listening skills with a multi-sensory aural approach.
The centre only asks for contributions from parents and receives no local authority funding. It has been graded outstanding by Ofsted and many children are able to go on to attend mainstream school with support.
The current financial situation has had a severe impact on the charity's ability to secure grants and donations. It is also likely that the centre, in the grounds of Bradford Royal Infirmary, will have to start paying the hospital trust commercial rent.
Nicola Bentley, whose two-year-old son Joseph has attended twice a week since he was nine months old, travels more than an hour from Cleckheaton to the centre. Joseph has seen a teacher of the deaf every three months.
'At this age, three months is a lifetime,' she said. 'He's only just started babbling and saying a few words with intensive support. If I can't take him there I've no idea how to develop his speech further. I feel like I'm back at square one.'
Margaret Southern, the centre's senior teacher of the deaf, said hearing loss in babies was picked up earlier than ever and more children under five now have cochlear implants, which means more deaf children are likely to be able to speak.
Ms Southern said, 'Parents are in shock and disbelief that this lifeline is being withdrawn through lack of funding.'
- Further information: www.elizabeth-foundation.org
