The College provides the latest news, research, advice and guidance on examining children, and all the key optical topics. The College actively campaigns on improving Children’s eye health across the UK.
All children to have a full sight test before they start school, between the ages of three and four.
We are calling on national health and care service providers to:
We are asking all optometrists, dispensing opticians, contact lens opticians and other optical professionals who work with children to:
Don't know that school vision screening are not the same as full sight tests
Don’t consider children’s sight tests as very important health checks
Feel it’s only necessary to take children for sight tests if issues are flagged
The College of Optometrists, Association of British Dispensing Opticians and the OSA partner in new campaign to raise awareness of the importance of children’s eye tests and better signposting for parents to children’s eye care professionals on the High Street.
New research shows that only 30% of kids always wear sunglasses on sunny days and more than a third of parents believe a hat or cap offers the same protection as sunglasses.
ABDO, Boots Opticians, the College and Specsavers have all come together to deliver a public awareness campaign on the importance of children receiving a full sight test before they start school, around three to four years old.
Clinical files: Is a 6-year-old child too young for contact lenses?
Hyperopia can be associated with reduced vision and educational outcomes but is easily overlooked. Helen Bird discovers the importance of detecting and correcting it in children, and how to address the challenge of communicating the need to parents.
Podcast: College Clinical Advisers Denise and Daniel talk to Simon Berry, an optometrist who owns and runs his own practice which specialises in working with people with autism and learning disabilities.
The public awareness campaign highlights the importance of childhood eye tests and features the findings of research conducted with Mumsnet users, the UK’s biggest network for parents.
The College of Optometrists was invited to provide evidence at the parliamentary hearing on The Safer Phones Bill, a private member’s bill aimed at protecting children’s rights and well-being in the digital age.
Jane Veys MCOptom on acronym ambivalence
The clinical figures that count.
Eye health issues that are making the news.
Optometric management of pregnant women requires a careful balance between effective treatment and ensuring the safety of both the mother and baby, writes Becky McCall.
Optometrists need to know what to do if they suspect a patient is being mistreated, says Kellie Smith.