27 June 2025

FODO member update – 27 June

This week:

• Enhanced eye care services reduce pressure on GPs and hospitals
• Public trust in primary eye care remains high
• Children's vision - amblyopia and UV risks
• Regulation update
• OCCS continues to manage complaints effectively
• Vital changes at Companies House
• Optometry Wales Awards 25 - Deadline 30 June
• Ophthalmic Bulletin - June 2025
• FODO to increase support for self-directed CPD
• Driving and occupational vision standards - guidance refresh
• At a glance
• Health policy updates

Enhanced eye care services reduce pressure on GPs and hospitals

Primary Eye Care Services (PES) says it delivered more than 800,000 care pathways across 3,000 primary eye care sites in the last year. It adds that this "prevented more than 515,000 avoidable hospital appointments and saved 250,000 GP appointments in the last 12 months alone". 
 
In a blog for the NHS Confederation, PES CEO Dharmesh Patel said primary eye care was "a vital, yet underused, frontline of healthcare". He said he hopes that in the next 10 years the NHS will invest more in these services and therefore benefit from "better patient experience, improved health outcomes and sustained efficiencies for the NHS and wider economy". 

Public trust in primary eye care remains high

GOC council papers (pages 259-426) show the results of the latest public perception research, commissioned in March 2025.
 
The results show that confidence in a high standard of care from an optician/optometrist practice remains high (93%) compared to a pharmacy (86%), a dental practice/surgery (80%) and a GP practice/surgery (78%). The research also reveals that 80% of respondents had undergone a sight test or eye examination in the last two years, with only 3% stating they had never had either exam.

Clarity news will share more information on the survey soon. 

Children's vision - amblyopia and UV risks

Children remain at risk of amblyopia due to local authorities' decisions not to fund primary school vision checks despite public health recommendations. Read more @Clarity.
 
Also in this week's news, the College of Optometrists reports on new research showing more than half of parents (55%) do not ensure their children wear sunglasses with UV protection when spending time outside in the sun. The College encourages parents to take their children for regular sight tests and prevent risks associated with UV exposure. 

Regulation update

The GOC Council has approved a response to the business regulation consultation.
 
The Council plans to proceed with many of its original proposals following a consultation. The plan includes calling for regulatory change so it can regulate all optical businesses, charities and university eye clinics, with specified restricted functions. It will also suggest that each registered business has a head of optical practice and participates in a mediation service for consumer disputes.
 
Additionally, the GOC has decided not to seek powers to impose fines based on turnover due to complexities in the sector. However, it has agreed to explore obtaining powers to impose unlimited fines.
 
The GOC took consultation feedback on board regarding practice visits, acknowledging that it would not proceed with this at present. However, it would "revisit this issue in the coming years if deemed necessary".
 
You can review the business regulation paper on pages 12-149 of the Council pack. FODO has already reviewed this on behalf of members and will review any follow-up actions in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, we remind members that most planned changes will require legislative reform that is likely to take several years.
 
In other health regulation news:

• The BMA has called for the creation of a new medical register. It also reports that doctors are calling on leaders of the General Medical Council (GMC) to resign, referring to the healthcare regulator as a "bloated" institution. BMA council chair Prof Banfield told a conference he was concerned about the GMC regulating physician associates, bottlenecks in doctor training, uncertain career prospects and unfair pay. He confirmed the BMA intends to support members in challenging the government on pay and regulation.
• The PSA has published new guidance to help healthcare professional regulators make use of new powers they will gain as part of the four UK governments' legislative reform programme.

OCCS continues to manage complaints effectively

The GOC Council has reviewed the OCCS annual report, revealing a decrease of 4.3% in the volume of complaints received by the OCCS in 2024-25 (1,679 received compared to 1,755 received in 2023-24). The report also shows that complaints about domiciliary care have reduced significantly compared to the previous year.
 
In addition, the GOC has complimented OCCS operator Nockolds Resolution for its work over the last year. It also "praised their proactivity in sharing their insights to GOC registrants through CPD sessions and other awareness-raising activities". 

Vital changes at Companies House

Companies House is making changes as part of a broader reform package under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. The changes from 1 April 2027 will include:

• Businesses must file accounts digitally using software; web and paper filing options for accounts will no longer be available from this date
• Small and micro-entity companies are required to provide profit and loss accounts.

Companies House will also update on other changes in the next few months, including updates to audit exemptions and accounting reference periods.

Read more about making the switch to software filing and changes to the law. You can also sign up for regular email newsletters. 

Optometry Wales Awards 25 - Deadline 30 June

You have until Monday to nominate somebody for the Optometry Wales Awards 2025. So, if you would like to forward a colleague, team, or even yourself, don't delay! Complete the application form today.

• Optometrist of the Year
• Dispensing/Contact Lens Optician of the Year
• Optical Assistant of the Year
• Student of the Year
• Multiple Practice of the Year
• Independent Practice of the Year
• Technology Practice of the Year
• Sustainability Green Award
• Rising Star
• Health Board Support
• Mentor of the Year
• Collaborative Working

Please contact Leah Baxter at [email protected] if you have any questions about the process or need support with your nomination. 

Ophthalmic Bulletin - June 2025

The latest update from Primary Care Support England covers a sight test interval check (including a video walk-through of the system, early retest codes, etc), top tips on the use of PVNs, guidance on using HC3 for GOS claims and a user management best practice guide. Read the bulletin. 

FODO to increase support for self-directed CPD

The latest GOC review of the 2022-24 CPD cycle shows that self-directed CPD accounted for just 4% of CPD.
 
A FODO spokesperson said: "Too many GOC registrants are missing out on the opportunity to take advantage of self-directed CPD. At FODO, we believe that self-directed CPD, already the norm with many regulators, can empower all GOC registrants to design more tailored CPD. That is why we have worked with Optom Academy to create a webinar that will support people in undertaking more self-directed CPD. We are also working with other educational leads to empower GOC registrants to explore a broader range of self-directed CPD. If you would like to get involved, please email [email protected]." 

Driving and occupational vision standards - guidance refresh

FODO has refreshed its guidance on driving and occupational vision standards. Access the latest guidance. 

At a glance

• CQC-regulated providers should review the Oliver McGowan code of practice: transforming care for people with a learning disability and autistic people
• AOP announces that Bausch + Lomb will sponsor its hospital and speciality conference, taking place in London on 8-9 November. Read more.
• Royal College of Ophthalmologists considers the role of AI in ophthalmology
• College of Optometrists has welcomed the Welsh Health Secretary's new funding to reduce waiting times for hospital eye care. Read more.
• ABDO has launched an updated CPD 'child safeguarding level two' course this month, now accredited by Ofqual. Read more.
• ECOO publishes a paper on the 'contents of an eye examination'. Read more.

Health policy updates

• The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has revealed its top team structure to staff, reports the NHS Confederation. There will be 13 director generals, 5 national priority programme leads, and 7 regional directors, who will hold the same status as director generals. Read more.

• A Wes Streeting speech on tackling health inequalities notes the 10-year plan will be published soon, setting out "how this mission-driven government will tackle illness, keep disease at bay, and reduce the health inequalities that shame our society". Meanwhile, the HSJ has seen a leaked version of the 10-year plan. It described it as a "mess" and warned that the draft plan failed to address the "fundamentally changing [...] nature of NHS financial flows to stream more money into the community and away from hospitals".

• DHSC puts its faith in an NHS App, hoping it will break down barriers to healthcare and help reduce inequalities. DHSC and NHS England have said the updated app gives "everyone choice based on patient satisfaction, waiting times and healthcare outcomes". Wes Streeting said: "The NHS feels increasingly slow and outdated to the generation that organises their lives at the touch of a button. If you get annoyed at Deliveroo not getting your dinner to you in less than an hour, how will you feel being told to wait a year for a knee operation? A failure to modernise risks this generation walking away from the NHS, first for their healthcare, and then with their taxes [....] The ambition of our 10-Year Health Plan is nothing less than to provide NHS patients with the same ease and convenience that's afforded to private patients." Read more.

• The following consultation closes on 21 July: Competency framework for designated prescribing practitioners (DPPs), including optometrists. FODO is reviewing the consultation with sector partners. If you are interested and would like to take part, email [email protected].