A Vision for Vision Impairment (V I) Education: New Campaign Urges Government to Improve Education for Blind and Partially Sighted Students

Date posted: 3rd October 2024

Our Education Team calls on the government to take action and implement five essential building blocks to ensure blind and partially sighted students (BPS) have improved access to their education.

Tara Chattaway, Head of Education at Thomas Pocklington Trust states:

“We are calling on the new government to follow our five building blocks and to meet with blind and partially sighted students and Thomas Pocklington Trust to work towards ensuring that we have an inclusive education system in which every individual can thrive.”

Our report, A Vision for Vision Impairment (VI) Education, emphasises the need for urgent change to ensure BPS students receive the support they require to thrive in their education. The report outlines the challenges faced by BPS students and provides a roadmap, with five essential building blocks for the government to implement, to create a more inclusive education system.

Key messages of the campaign:

• Addressing the Crisis in the SEND System: The current crisis within the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) system has been acknowledged by the new government to be in crisis. This has been a focal point in the recent House of Commons SEND debate, and subject to much media attention. Our campaign highlights the urgent need to address these issues, in the context of V I education services and support, which are under significant pressure as evidenced by the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) Freedom of Information report.
• Urgent Need for Action: There is an urgent need to address the barriers faced by blind and partially sighted students within the education system. Our campaign, A Vision for V I Education, sets out five key building blocks that we believe can transform the educational experience for these students, enabling them to thrive both in education and in adulthood.
• Student-Centred Solutions: The report and calls to action are based on the experiences of the blind and partially sighted students we support. The solutions we propose are summarised as five building blocks for government:
• 1. Ensuring the Curriculum Framework for Children and Young People with Vision Impairment is adopted into policy.
  2. Securing proper funding for V I services to provide support in Further Education (FE) settings.
  3. Reviewing assistive and mainstream technology, and delivering a strategy for improvement to ensure all children and young people get access to this vital skills development.
  4. Ensuring the government properly considers the experiences of blind and partially sighted students as part of their policy development work, including the review of the national curriculum and work towards the Children’s Wellbeing Bill.
  5. Making the Disabled Students Commitment mandatory for Higher Education (HE) providers and the wider HE sector.

Sarah’s experience demonstrates some of the barriers facing blind and partially sighted students in higher education settings and the need for urgent action:

“My sight severely deteriorated when I was at sixth form, I was registered severely sight impaired and I got access to a QTVI (Qualified Teacher of Children and Young People with Vision Impairment) and that was really helpful. Now that I’m at uni I haven’t got a QTVI anymore and I think that’s one thing for me that would have been really helpful as somebody who gets my V I and education.”

You can read Sarah’s full story in the report alongside the accounts of more blind and partially sighted students who deserve the opportunity to reach their full potential and access education without barriers.

For further information visit the campaign’s webpage: Vision for VI Education: Building Blocks for Change – Thomas Pocklington Trust