Adrian Sanders MP this week met blind and partially sighted campaigners from across the country who are working at local level to secure a better deal for people with sight loss. The event celebrated the work of the cross-party parliamentary group on Eye Health and Visual Impairment (1), which meets to raise parliamentarians' awareness of issues affecting people with sight loss and on prevention of sight loss.
Tara Melton, RNIB's South West Region Campaigns Officer (2) said: "Local campaigners were delighted to be invited to the Westminster reception and meet with MPs to discuss their priorities for change. At the moment campaigners are working hard locally to improve NHS provision of information to people with sight loss, support for people at the time they are diagnosed with sight loss, as well as problems with the pedestrian environment, like pavement parking.”
The reception also featured opportunities for MPs to experience specialist equipment used in the workplace by people with sight loss. However, two thirds of blind and partially sighted people of working age are not in work.
Adrian said: “There are around 3,000 people in Torbay who have some degree of sight loss. It is essential that local employers are aware of the Government’s Access to Work scheme, which can pay up to 100 per cent of the costs associated with employing a disabled person.”
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