Our role in educating the optical sector
The College of Optometrists is the professional, scientific, and examining body for optometry in the United Kingdom. Established in 1980, we are the only official chartered professional body dedicated to advancing the profession for the benefit of the public.
We are dedicated to the progression of the traditional pillars of this industry, including optometric education, developing leadership and advancing research. We achieve this through the devising and delivery of evidence-based and content driven learning practises.
A partnership with the College offers you a premium opportunity to align your brand, product or service, with the UK’s leading authority on clinical excellence and professional standards in eye care.
We can provide you with a unique bridge to our membership of nearly 20,000 members, including high street business owners, hospital clinical leads and key decision makers. We may also be able to focus on specific audiences relevant to your strategic aims and the project objectives.
By joining our commercial family, your company will gain access to a significant and highly visible platform that helps showcase innovation and drives educational excellence and leadership within the UK’s optical community.
Together, we can deliver innovative, accessible training that boosts engagement, supports continuous learning, and upholds the highest standards of professionalism and patient care.
Why partner with The College of Optometrists?
A partnership with the College links you to the professional training standards set by the GOC, and is trusted by optometrists and NHS commissioners. Furthermore, sponsorship provides you with a rare and unique opportunity to engage directly with your key market audience, including decision-makers who influence purchasing and manage business relationships. Further benefits can include:
- brand visibility and recognition
- clinical credibility and reputation
- workforce development
- supporting research excellence
- thought leadership
- lead generation
- access to potential decision-makers
- extended reach beyond project completion
Our online learning platform and Acuity magazine
The College provides continuous professional development (CPD) opportunities for optometrists ranging from face-to-face events to online learning.
Currently, more than 38,000 users now have registered for access to our online learning, including students, qualified members, and various healthcare professionals from optometry and dispensing optician backgrounds.
99% of active users have given our CPD courses an overall rating as ‘Excellent’ or ‘Good’. Currently, our users have access to College’s online learning platform including students, pre-reg trainees, paid and qualified members, and various healthcare professionals from optometry and dispensing optician backgrounds. In the past six months, nearly 14,000 users have enrolled on the various courses.
Acuity is our award winning professional development journal, available in printed and digital formats, featuring CPD related articles.
From January 2026 to March 2026, Acuity was emailed to an average of 15,000 registered members, with 61% open rate.
As a sponsor of our education programmes, you would be given prominent recognition on our learning platforms and with Acuity.
Support education for the UK optical workforce
The College of Optometrists is the professional body for optometry in the UK, supporting nearly 20,000 members through education, professional guidance and clinical and personal development.
Our learning platforms reach optometrists, dispensing opticians and the wider optical community, across all areas of practice, helping them maintain high standards of patient care and meet continuing professional development requirements.
A partnership with the College, will help develop and support independent, high-quality education while building meaningful engagement with the UK optical community, that include influential clinical leaders and decision makers.
How you can connect with the UK's optometrists through trusted clinical information
1. Webinar sponsorship
1. Webinar sponsorship
Our webinars attract large audiences of optometrists and eye-care professionals seeking high-quality clinical education and CPD.
By sponsoring a webinar, your organisation can support professional learning while raising your profile among the UK optical workforce. Our webinars regularly attract over 1,000 optometrists, providing a valuable opportunity to engage with clinicians interested in specific areas of practice. Finally, we are more than happy to work in partnership with sponsors on specific webinar content, if appropriate.
Audience reach
- Promotion to nearly 20,000 College members and students, including those working across community practice, hospitals and academia
- Highly engaged audience seeking CPD and professional development
- Typical webinar attendance - 800–1,200 optometrists
Benefits include:
- sponsor recognition during the webinar
- logo on marketing materials
- two sponsor slides
- website recognition
- social media activities where appropriate
- collaboration on educational topic and speakers
- opt-in delegate contact details
- recorded webinar available after the event
Investment:
- £5,500 + VAT per webinar
- £20,000 + VAT for four webinars (saving of £2,000)
- [Optional] Extend your impact: We are able to convert your live session into a CPD-accredited e-learning module hosted on our platform for three years - £25,000
Get in touch
For more information on sponsoring webinar content and options available to you, please contact Nick Rose - nick.rose@college-optometrists.org.
2. Online peer review sponsorship
2. Online peer review sponsorship
Whilst these are mandatory for UK GOC registration, our peer reviews are also incredibly beneficial and well attended sessions, providing opportunities for small-group learning where optometrists discuss clinical cases with expert facilitators.
Audience reach
- Promotion to nearly 20,000 College members and students, including those working across community practice, hospitals and academia
- Highly engaged audience seeking CPD and professional development
- Typical peer review includes 100–140 optometrists per session
Benefits include:
- sponsor slides at the beginning of the session
- website recognition
- social media activities where appropriate
- branding in event promotion
Investment:
- £5,500 + VAT per peer review
- £20,000 + VAT for four peer reviews (saving of £2,000)
Get in touch
For more information on how you can get involved in online peer reviews and other opportunities, please contact Nick Rose - nick.rose@college-optometrists.org.
3. E-learning development & sponsorship
3. E-learning development & sponsorship
By partnering with the College, we can develop structured educational modules of online training courses and materials that can be used to progress the skills, knowledge and expertise of employees in their chosen fields.
Delivered through the College learning management system, we can provide:
- educational planning and instructional design
- content development
- expert review and testing
- hosting on the College learning platform for three years
- application for CPD points from the General Optical Council
- evaluation and reporting
Audience reach
- Promotion to the whole of the UK optical industry including our College members and students (nearly 20,000)
- Reach those working across community practice, hospitals and academia
- Highly engaged audience seeking CPD and professional development
- Potential to look at specific geographical areas in the UK
- Includes newly qualified and those with specific qualifications
- Up to 1,200 attendees for a webinar, directly from the College membership
Benefits include:
- sponsor recognition on relevant documents
- website recognition
- social media activities where appropriate
- logo on marketing materials
- two sponsor slides in webinars
- collaboration on educational topic and speakers
- opt-in delegate contact details
Investment:
- £30,000 per hour of e-learning content
Get in touch
For a discussion about how you can get involved in e-learning development and sponsorship, please contact Nick Rose - nick.rose@college-optometrists.org.
4. The College of Optometrists' Podcast - EyePod
4. The College of Optometrists' Podcast - EyePod
Our thought-provoking podcast provides a unique insight into the fascinating world of vision and eye care. It offers access to new ideas and research, a chance to learn from others’ experiences, and to hear from those advocating for a greater level of eye care, whether from Government or the NHS.
Previous editions have included Marsha de Cordova, Labour MP for Battersea, Shockat Adam, Independent MP for Leicester South and Dr Sam Strong, Lecturer of Vision Science at Aston University.
EyePod attracts a large and diverse audience of optometrists and eye-care professionals. In 2025, our 14 episodes attracted over 4500 streams and downloads with the majority coming through Apple Podcasts and Spotify - providing sponsors with a valuable opportunity to engage with key target audiences.
Audience reach
- Promotion to nearly 20,000 College members and students, including those working across community practice, hospitals and academia
- Includes newly qualified and those with specific qualifications
- Highly engaged audience seeking CPD and professional development
- Potential to look at specific geographical areas in the UK
Benefits include:
- sponsor recognition during the podcast
- logo on relevant College web pages
- social media activities where appropriate
- collaboration on educational topic and speakers where appropriate
Investment
- If you are interested in discussing podcasts further, please contact Nick Rose - nick.rose@college-optometrists.org
5. Supporting your business
5. Supporting your business
As the UK’s professional body for optometry, The College is uniquely positioned to provide independent, influential support aligned with national standards.
Our expertise
Our experienced and knowledgeable staff have high-level clinical expertise, which can be used for:
- staff training
- speaker services at conferences, seminars or events
- support with product development
- contributing to research programmes
- development of professional education programmes
By working with us, we can provide a respected, independent voice to conferences or seminars, and ensure your products, training, or research programmes are compliant with UK professional standards.
Get in touch
To learn more about how the College can help develop a programme of support specific to your strategic needs and budget, please contact Nick Rose - nick.rose@college-optometrists.org.
Next steps
If you are interested in learning more about how we can work together, please contact us. Every partnership with the College is unique, and highly impactful, and we are keen to see how these individual programmes can align with your key strategic business goals.
Furthermore, we can also build a bespoke sponsorship package for you that can cover multiple funding options, such as a combined webinar and podcast on a key topic or condition.
- For more information contact: Nick Rose at Nick.Rose@college-optometrists.org
“Fabulous content in the course and delivered with great understanding of our clinical position. The use of clinical case examples helped to reinforce what we learned throughout the course.”
Member, The College of Optometrists
“The course has increased my confidence to manage patients safely and quickly in a real-life busy clinic. Excellent clear delivery of key knowledge and tips for managing real scenarios in my practice.”
Member, The College of Optometrists
*Photos are models.