Letters: Optometry apprenticeships: College responds to OPG letter

The letter (from the Ophthalmic Practitioners Group – Optician, In Focus 06/12/19) rightly acknowledges that the College was not the originator of an optometry degree apprenticeship. It is also the case that we cannot prevent it from being developed and being put forward for approval, nor can any other single body. While the employer-led degree apprenticeship scheme in England is a government-led initiative that is enshrined in legislation, we can and will continue to pursue the imperative that an optometrist degree apprenticeship proposal upholds high professional, academic and regulatory standards. Only by becoming involved in the trailblazer group, and reflecting member views, will we be in a strong position to do this.