A £40,000 grant from the National Lottery Community Fund has been awarded to the Macular Society to help the charity provide remote services during the pandemic.
The money will be used to meet increased demand for telephone and online support services, such as advice, counselling and befriending, to people in Northern Ireland.
Additional tech talk volunteers can now be recruited and trained to help people living with visual impairment utilise tablets, smart speakers and online shopping services.
Cathy Yelf, chief executive of the Macular Society, said: ‘People affected by macular disease are often older and many have other underlying health issues. The current social distancing guidelines mean that they may feel increasingly lonely and isolated without any face-to-face contact with anyone. Our remote support services offer a real lifeline to those people, so in a situation like this when they need us more than ever, it’s absolutely vital that we’re here for them.’