The rich tapestry of optics means there are routes into work at every level. Some of the most fulfilling and diverse roles can be found in the front of a practice or behind the scenes in an ophthalmic lab making sure that patients’ lenses are as good as they can be.
Age is not a barrier either, as one of the case studies, Charlie Marshall shows. At 41, she made the move into optics at a relatively late stage in her career, but is over the moon with the decision she has made.
Corey Duncan and Ellie Lamb are entering optics at the beginning of their careers, but are equally enthused by what lies ahead of them and the opportunities that may come.
Even at this early stage of their working life, both have mapped out potential courses and training for the future and can see themselves staying in the industry for a long time, rather than using it as a stepping stone.
All three individuals have something in common that is of utmost importance within optics – a willingness to learn. Each is learning the ropes while on the job, be it informally or with accredited schemes implemented by their employers.
It goes to show that optics can be a home to anyone and should encourage people of all walks of life to make the change and move on up.
Charlie Marshall, optical assistant, Specsavers
After 18 years at store management level at supermarket Asda, Charlie Marshall decided it was time for a change and a new challenge.
‘I had heard a number of good things about working for Specsavers, such as the company’s dedication to training staff, so I decided to apply for an optical assistant role and here I am.
‘Because I have retail experience, I joined the company at Level 2 and moved up to Level 4 after six months or so,’ says Marshall.
Having plenty of retail experience stood the 41-year-old in good stead for the more informal day to day side of the practice environment, but optical training was intensive at the beginning. ‘The amount of effort the company puts in to training is unreal,’ says Marshall, who has received internal training in dispensing, contact lens fitting, pre-testing, repairs and the multiple’s till and appointment systems.
Marshall is a focused individual and already has her eyes set on career progression. ‘One of the best things about working for Specsavers is that you can really go as far as you want,’ she says. A dispensing optician role appeals most, but the idea of management is also attractive, she says. In the short term, her attention is on the company’s internal courses. Cert Level 3 is an externally accredited course for optical assistants who want to extend their dispensing role in practice. The syllabus includes topics such as taking appropriate action in ocular emergencies and dispensing high index, aspheric and progressive lenses, among others. Cert 4 builds on 3 and introduces aspects such as determining prismatic effects and decentration and using a focimeter.
Asked if she enjoys her role, Marshall is emphatic, saying: ‘It has been the best move I have ever made. The one-to-one contact you have with patients is the best thing about the job and I would absolutely recommend being an optical assistant to anyone. Specsavers is a great company to work for, so much so that I have brought three former colleagues from Asda with me.’
Ellie Lamb, apprentice, David Clulow Opticians
In 2015 David Clulow Opticians launched an apprenticeship scheme in conjunction with Oaklands College in St Albans. The 12 to 18-month optical apprenticeship is a work-based learning programme that leads to a Level 2 diploma from the Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers. It is made up of 10 units.
The first apprentice to be placed following the scheme is 19-year-old Ellie Lamb. After leaving school in June 2015 having completed her A-levels, Lamb says she was presented with a choice – university or finding full time work. ‘I was looking into studying English literature and would have probably ended up working as a teacher, which didn’t really appeal to me,’ she says.
Lamb found the scheme on the government apprenticeship website and says it looked a lot more interesting than the raft of plumbing and electrician schemes. She applied and after two interviews, was placed in the chain’s Bluewater practice in October 2015.
The first two weeks in practice were made up of training, but Lamb says this was not a shock because it was just like being back in a learning environment. ‘When I first started, learning the retail side of the role was the strangest part. Approaching patients in the practice to see if they needed help was a little out of the ordinary for me,’ she says.
Lamb says her role in the practice is varied and can depend on the hours she works. If she works an early shift, she will generally undertake pre-screening for the optometrist. She has received training to recognise raised intraocular pressures, recognising problem areas on visual fields assessments and spotting abnormalities on OCT (optical coherence tomography) scans. If placed on the later shift, she will tend to help with the dispensing process and explain the optometrist’s recommendations to the patient.
It may have only been a few months since she was placed, but Lamb already has an idea of where she wants to take her career. ‘Qualifying as a dispensing optician is the logical progression and something I would like to do,’ she says. However, Lamb was also into science and biology at school, so the idea of studying optometry appeals.
In the here and now, Lamb is very happy with her role and the choice of participating in an apprentice scheme. ‘I would definitely recommend it to others – it’s a challenging, interesting and fun role,’ she says.
The David Clulow apprenticeship scheme is a straightforward way of getting into optics and learning on the job. Applications are open to anyone over the age of 16 and not in full time work, representing an accessible way into the realm of high street optical retail.
Corey Duncan, lab technician, Caledonian Optical
Twenty-year-old Corey Duncan has been a lab technician at Scottish ophthalmic laboratory Caledonian Optical for just over a year.
His route into the job involved a course in applied sciences at college before working in a charity shop while searching for a job that would suit his technical mind.
He applied for the role after seeing the advert on the internet. ‘The job stood out because the description sounded like it could utilise my college course and it also mentioned on the job training. Developing a skill set and being challenged are important to me,’ he says.
Nerves were high during the first few days on the job, but he says this feeling quickly passed. However, Duncan admits there was a steep learning curve at the start.
‘My first role as a lab technician was to make sure the coating room was clean,’ he says. Making sure this room is clean is of the utmost importance, as contamination of the lenses during the coating process will slow the lab down.
The coating facilities at Caledonian were also very new at the time and came at a significant cost, so Duncan felt like there was a lot of responsibility on his shoulders – which he thrived on.
Duncan says he was quickly tasked with more responsibilities: ‘I was soon trained on the coatings machinery and that’s where I have spent the majority of my time working here. The job involves loading and clipping lenses on racks so they can be coated, placing them in the special oven, then passing them on to the next stage of production.’ Inspection at every stage of the coating process is crucial, and in between each step, Duncan will assess each lens for imperfections.
During his time with the company, Duncan’s interest in optics has grown considerably and he says that the idea of a formal qualification from the likes of the Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers really appeals – as does continuing his career with Caledonian Optical.
‘Occasional repetitiveness is the only downside to the job,’ he says, but this should hopefully be dampened by training on other machines in the business, something he says was raised in his most recent appraisal.
Lab technicians play a vital role in the functioning of an ophthalmic laboratory. Duncan has shown that being technically minded and having high levels of attention to detail stands you in good stead for a role within the very heart of manufacturing optics.