Supporting the Royal National Institute of Blind People

Thank you to everyone who contacted me about supporting people with sight loss and the related campaign by the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB).

I am so grateful for the vital work that the RNIB does in supporting individuals and raising awareness of the barriers people with sight loss face. I agree that accessibility and inclusion should be properly reflected across public services, workplaces and communities. It is important that policymakers and public bodies ensure services are designed with their needs in mind.

This is particularly important in healthcare, where the NHS 10-Year Health Plan identifies disabled people as a priority group for neighbourhood health, as part of the broader commitment to shifting more care from hospitals into the community.

I welcome that local bodies are already commissioning enhanced eye care services from high street optical practices, alongside the NHS’s sight testing service. The publication of the ‘Best Practice for Glaucoma Services’ in May 2026 will also support more glaucoma patients to receive timely follow-up care, while investment of £20 million in digital referrals and improved integration between primary and secondary care will support quicker access to appropriate care.

I particularly welcome the work being done to ensure that disabled people receive healthcare that is equitable, effective and responsive to their needs. NHS England is rolling out a Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag, which records key information about the reasonable adjustments disabled people require. Under a new information standard, all publicly funded health and social care providers will be required to share, read and write reasonable adjustment data.

Removing barriers extends beyond healthcare. I am pleased to see support to help blind and partially sighted people enter and remain in work, including through the Pathways to Work Guarantee and the Connect to Work supported employment programme. This is in addition to investment in specialist support for children with visual impairments, including £1.8 billion over the next three years for local partnerships to develop and deliver an Experts at Hand offer, giving schools, early years settings and colleges greater access to specialist teachers.

Accessible public transport is equally important. I welcome our Government’s commitment to making public transport more inclusive so that visually impaired people can travel safely, confidently and with dignity, alongside work to develop an Accessible Travel Charter.

I will continue to follow these developments closely and support measures that improve the experiences of constituents with sight loss.