Blind Veterans UK has been selected as the chosen charity for the 2014 Optician Awards which is open for entries until January 17 2014.
Formerly St Dunstan’s, Blind Veterans UK is the national charity for blind ex-service men and women. It provides practical and emotional support to blind veterans and their families, regardless of when they served or how they lost their sight.
The organisation has centres in Brighton, Llandudno and Sheffield which conduct rehabilitation programmes, art and craft classes, sports and recreation, clubs and societies, information technology, care and welfare.
Among its work is the No One Alone campaign which aims to reach out to the 68,000 ex-service personnel who could benefit from the support of Blind Veterans UK but don’t realise they are eligible. It believes opticians are well placed to help spread the message to these people, so that Blind Veterans UK can make sure that there is No One Alone.
With Christmas approaching Optician readers are reminded that there is just one month to go before the closing deadline for entries to the 2014 Optician Awards. There are now 18 categories to enter which cover a range of practice areas. There are awards for all practice types, campaigns, products and services. There are also individual awards for optometrists, dispensing opticians, contact lens opticians, assistant teams and a new award aimed at young people destined to become the leaders of the future. For a full run-down of the categories on offer and how to enter visit the Optician Awards website.
The Optician Awards trophies will be presented at a glittering black tie bash at the Hilton Park Lane on April 12, the Saturday night of the Optrafair London weekend.