World Hearing Day on March 3rd 2026.
Flare Partners with Sownd Affects to Deliver Audio-Inclusive Events for Hearing Wellness Week
Sownd Affects was formed in 2024 by Marion Marincat. The team work with businesses to help sound work better for people and set the standard for audio-inclusive spaces.
To coincide with World Hearing Day on March 3rd, Sownd Affects is holding its annual Hearing Wellness Week in London; a series of in person and virtual events dedicated to sound, that brings people together through carefully curated, comfortable audio experiences.
From unplugged music performances, quiet guided city walks showing the more tranquil pathways of the capital, to an interactive virtual food and sound pairing workshop, the events feature demonstrations of audio-inclusive design in action.
Flare are delighted to partner with these brilliant events, and are gifting 500 sets of Calmer to event-goers. We talked with Marion to find out more about the event - and what businesses can do to help people enjoy public spaces, by providing healthy, inclusive noise-aware environments.
I founded Sownd Affects in 2024 after becoming profoundly deaf at 26 and spending 20 years in hearing health. I’d already built hearing clinics across London and worked in global hearing policy, but I kept seeing the same problem: spaces that looked beautiful, but felt exhausting to be in. Restaurants where conversation was impossible. Workplaces where people were drained by 3pm. Events that excluded 30% of the population without even realising it.
Sownd Affects was created to bridge that gap - between businesses investing in acoustics and the people who desperately need environments that work for their nervous systems. We don’t just talk about “good sound.” We measure it, formalise it and certify it. Killing the atmosphere and silence isn’t the goal – enabling connection and inclusion is.
Sownd Affects sets the standard for audio-inclusive spaces. We exist to help sound work better for people - so spaces feel calmer, clearer and more welcoming, without compromising on atmosphere or experience.
We’ve curated audio-inclusive environments for over 10,000 people and built a community that’s actively demanding better sound standards. We’ve also developed the world’s first acoustic certification designed around real human experience - not just decibel compliance.
Sownd Certification now provides a clear, structured pathway - Bronze, Silver and Gold - allowing organisations to move from getting the physics right, to operational excellence, to full multi-sensory inclusion. We’ve gone from raising awareness about noise sensitivity to giving the built environment sector a commercially credible framework. That’s been the shift: from conversation to recognised standard.
It is huge. One in three people are noise sensitive - and most don’t realise that what they’re experiencing has a name. Noise sensitivity isn’t just “finding somewhere loud.” It’s how strongly your nervous system responds to sound. It can stem from neurodivergence, hearing conditions, trauma, stress, medication - or simply how you’re wired.
The impact? People leave restaurants early. They avoid networking and social events. They struggle to concentrate at work. Productivity drops by up to 66% in poorly managed acoustic environments. Prolonged periods of time in environments where noise is negatively impacting your nervous system leads to stress, anger, fatigue and a serious impact on overall physical and mental wellbeing.
Often there’s a preference to avoid altogether, with one in three customers actively avoiding venues because of excessive noise. But many people just think they’re “bad at socialising” or “low energy” and don’t even realise it’s the noise that’s causing them to feel this way - in reality, they’re just overstimulated.
The work we do is informed by the needs of these people, but the comfort is improved for everyone.
We look beyond decibels. Traditional acoustics often measure compliance, we measure experience. Through Sownd Certification, we assess reverberation time (RT60), background noise levels and acoustic capacity, essentially, whether speech clarity is preserved at realistic occupancy levels. But we don’t stop at physics. At Silver and Gold level, we look at behavioural noise protocols, staff training, zoning strategies, quiet refuge spaces and even multi-sensory load - lighting, HVAC noise, visual clutter.
We ask one simple question: Does this space feel comfortable to be in for a noise-sensitive nervous system? If not, we fix it - in ways that also drive ROI for businesses, so it’s a win win for patrons, staff and the business’ bottom line.
We work across hospitality, workplaces, education, clinics, events and public spaces.
Most recently we piloted three Hackney grassroots music venues supported by The Arts Council Funding, to upgrade the venues to become audio inclusive. The results are consistent:
• Increased dwell time and repeat visits
• Fewer service errors
• Lower stress and absenteeism
• Measurable productivity gains
• Stronger reviews and brand perception
When noise is managed properly, businesses see up to an 8% revenue gain and significant annual savings through reduced productivity loss. But beyond metrics, the biggest feedback we hear is: “It just feels better in here.” That’s the difference between compliance and true inclusion.
Sownd Certification is the world’s first acoustic certification designed around real human experience. It verifies that a space isn’t just technically compliant - it’s genuinely comfortable.
It operates across three tiers:
• Bronze - Physical acoustic thresholds verified (RT60, background noise, occupancy guidance)
• Silver – Behavioural and operational noise management
• Gold – Full multi-sensory, neuroinclusive alignment with PAS 6463
It gives organisations something powerful: proof. Proof that their space works and is sound inclusive for the 1 in 3 who are noise sensitive – but actually an enhanced experience for everyone else too.
Noise is consistently cited as a major workplace complaint. Staff report:
• Reduced concentration
• Chronic stress
• Increased errors (service errors rise by 25% over 70dB)
• More sick days linked to noise stress
We’re definitely seeing a shift. ESG, neuroinclusion and wellbeing targets are pushing companies to look beyond surface-level solutions. The smartest organisations now understand that good acoustics aren’t a luxury - they’re operational infrastructure.
I was born with relatively ‘perfect’ hearing. I loved live music gigs, social events and parties, and was a semi professional dancer. For me sound and music unlocked joy. But sound changed my life - twice. First when I lost my hearing at 26 and became profoundly deaf, which was followed by denial and coming to terms with that loss. Second, once I’d finally accepted I would no longer hear and started living my new normal as someone with cochlear implants - I realised just how noisy the world is and how badly designed most environments are for human hearing.
Hearing devices enable you to hear, but they also pick up sound and amplify it - suddenly I was of the 1 in 3, sensitive to sound, and the knock-on effect on wellbeing is profound. I have personal lived experience with the exhaustion of filtering sound, the social withdrawal that follows, the sense of exclusion when sound isn’t designed for inclusion. Sownd Affects is built on that lived experience. I don’t just understand sound clinically though. I understand what it feels like when it’s not consciously considered. And that’s what drives me.
Three immediate steps:
1. Measure speech clarity, not just volume. Reverberation time matters.
2. Audit peak noise times. Identify behavioural triggers.
3. Create one quiet refuge space. Even a small zoning adjustment can transform experience.
And honestly? Take our free Noise Assessment. Many venues don’t realise how much opportunity they’re missing or just how much their sound is impacting their business.
“We’ve had many grateful comments from patrons who can now fully participate in our Audio Inclusive music events, and an increase in attendance community members who previously avoided the venue. As someone who lives with ADHD, and therefore noise sensitive myself, I’ve personally noticed the profound improvement on the working environment, and my staff have reported a marked improvement on their wellbeing, with reduced sensory fatigue following shifts and decreased stress at the bar when trying to hear orders. Becoming audio inclusive really has been a game changer for my team and the business.”
Testimonial from Alice Passey at the intimate jazz and music venue, SJQ in Dalston, London
All businesses. Noise sensitivity isn’t confined to concerts or construction sites. Open-plan offices. Cafés. Retail. Education. Healthcare. Co-working spaces. Restaurants. Hotels. Cultural institutions.
If humans occupy it, acoustics matter. Remember - 30% of people are noise sensitive. But designing for inclusion for the 1 in 3, improves comfort for 100%.
Hearing Wellness Week runs from 2nd – 8th March, to coincide with World Hearing Day on 3rd. It was created as an extension of our mission to make sound something people can experience differently - not just tolerate. To make the conversation around audio inclusion and the importance of sound conscious behaviour an uplifting and joyful one, not heavy and ‘boring.’
It’s the only programme dedicated to sound that brings people together through carefully curated, comfortable audio experiences.
To challenge the idea that audio has to be aggressive to be appreciated - and to showcase what carefully designed sound really feels like. The programme has been designed to enable comfortable connection, and participation in social experiences that ordinarily those sensitive to noise might avoid. One of the experiences, Sonic Seasoning – is an interactive virtual food and sound pairing workshop, a fun and delicious way to change people’s perceptions of sound and leave a lasting impression of the impact it can have on us.
Everyone - but especially noise-sensitive individuals. This includes neurodivergent communities, the hard of hearing, over 55s, those living with conditions such as tinnitus and hyperacusis. It will also appeal to industry leaders open to more inclusive practices and curious to feel the difference first hand or learn about how to improve their workforce wellbeing, and anyone interested in experiencing sound differently.
A variety of events celebrating sound and audio inclusion in all its forms including curated talks, unplugged music performances, quiet guided city walks showing the more tranquil pathways of our capital and demonstrations of audio-inclusive design in action.
We’ve partnered with the UK’s largest acoustic specialists, Oscar Acoustics who have helped to upgrade some of the live music gigs for audio inclusion, Footways (specialists in mapping quieter urban routes) Noise Association UK, ADHD UK, Tinnitus UK, RNID, Hackney Council, and Flare Calmer.
We’ve partnered with the UK’s largest acoustic specialists, Oscar Acoustics who have helped to upgrade some of the live music gigs for audio inclusion, Footways (specialists in mapping quieter urban routes) Noise Association UK, ADHD UK, Tinnitus UK, RNID, Hackney Council, and Flare Audio, with their product Calmer.
Flare stood out because Calmer doesn’t block sound - it reshapes it. That philosophy aligns beautifully with what we do. We’re not anti-sound. We’re pro-clarity. When I came across Calmer and saw how it reduces harsh frequencies while preserving experience, it felt aligned with our mission of supporting the nervous system without dulling life. Flare are kindly donating 500 pairs of Calmer for event attendees.
Absolutely. Calmer provides something powerful: personal agency. Even in well-designed spaces, individuals experience sound differently. Calmer offers a discreet tool that can reduce the edge - especially in transitional or unpredictable environments. For our community - the 1 in 3 - that matters.
Partnering with Flare allows us to support people both at environmental level (through certification) and individual level (through tools like Calmer). That’s the future: Spaces designed better, and people empowered within them.
Less noise. More Sownd.
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Calmer® is a unique ear tool that reduces our stress response to noise without blocking or muffling sound. Designed to be worn comfortably in the ear for long periods of time, C...
