Preston achieved city status in 2002, becoming the 50th English city to mark Queen Elizabeth II’s golden jubilee. Since then it has grown considerably and now boasts a fine selection of opticians and optical services.
‘Preston is a vibrant city with a wide range of people from different cultural and social backgrounds,’ says Sean Buckley, optometrist at Specsavers in Preston. ‘It is also home to the University of Central Lancashire with more than 20,000 students. The town is currently benefitting from investment such as the recent opening of second phase of the Market redevelopment scheme.’
The store, in which the 70-strong workforce ‘reflect the diversity of the town’, opened in 1989 and has ‘grown massively to what is now one of the largest practices in the group’. ‘We were very proud of the fact that this was the 800th Specsavers store in the UK and Ireland’, and Buckley says the whole group enjoyed celebrating this milestone with an official opening attended by Dame Mary Perkins and local legend Freddie Flintoff on December 1.
The practice has 10 testing rooms equipped with automated refractor heads, audiology services and will be getting OCT this year. ‘We provide a plethora of enhanced optical services which include both private and NHS Mecs appointments, pre and post-operative cataract assessment and IOP refinement,’ adds Buckley.
Lynsey Arguello, business manager at Broadhurst Optometrists in Preston, says that ‘Preston is a great place to have a business’. Her practice caters to a ‘very diverse customer base’ and benefits from a ‘loyal clientele and returning trade from families and young people’.
Broadhursts has been in town for 35 years, with Arguello working there for the past 18. It moved to new, larger premises in 2012 as the business was growing and now has three testing rooms, optomap and colorimetry services. Arguello says it offers many services, but specialises in keratoconus and complex lens fitting for the hospital.
The practice also delivers bespoke Tom Davies frames to its patients, with the ability to customise frames to suit an individual’s taste. Despite this, Broadhurst’s ‘best-selling brand is Oliver Peoples and Etnia Barcelona,’ says Arguello. ‘Our eyewear range includes many independent brands exclusive to us in the area. Preston clients are very fashion forward – possibly influenced by the vibrant student population – and ranges such as Kirk & Kirk and Face a Face are especially popular.’
Who’s in town
Total: 10
Independents: 6
Multiples: 4
Average costs
The price of an eye exam in Preston ranges from £15 to £48, at an average cost of £27.
Population
Population: 141,801
Community eye care
According to the Locsu Atlas Map of Optical Variation, North and West Lancashire Local Optical Committee has a contract with Greater Preston CCG in Cataract Post-op, and Cataract Referral and Low Vision services.
Health and affluence
- The average house price in Preston is £187,013 (Zoopla), compared with a UK average of £223,257 (Land Registry, 2017).
- Preston has an average salary of £22,648, compared with a UK average of £27,271 (Payscale, 2018)
- There are an estimated 5,330 people living with severe sight loss in Lancashire (RNIB).
- By 2030, it is predicted that 53,860 people in Lancashire will be living with sight loss – and increase of 34.9%.
- In Lancashire, 53,150 people are at risk of or living with sight loss due to the early stages of AMD.
Fact file
Preston North End football club was the first team in England to win the top-division league campaign without losing a single game, which they did in 1889. Only Arsenal’s ‘invincibles’ have completed the feat since.
The phrase ‘teetotal’ comes from Preston. Its first recorded use was at a Preston Temperance Society meeting in 1833 and referred to the abstention from alcohol.
Preston was the first UK town to be lit by gas. In 1816 a chain of gas pipes was used to light-up Preston. Some of the pipes were made from old musket barrels.
It is also the birthplace of the UK’s motorway network. Now part of the M6, the Preston Bypass was built in 1958 and was the first road constructed to motorway standards.
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