Councils urged to act on RNIB data

New research carried out by the RNIB has found nearly half of councils in England do not include any information on people with or at risk of sight loss in their assessments on local health needs and services.

The RNIB said the lack of recorded information on sight loss and available services made effective commissioning for blind and partially sighted people more difficult.

The findings have prompted the RNIB to call on local authorities not to lose sight of eye health needs of local people.

Tara Melton, RNIB eye health campaigns officer, said: ‘It is predicted that by 2050 the number of people with sight loss in the UK will double. Local authorities need to be prepared and ensure they have an accurate picture in order to plan for the future.’