22 August 2025

FODO member update – 22 August

This week:

• New optometry undergraduate placement scheme begins
• Greater Manchester launches primary care referral service
• Trust reverses decision to close eye clinics
• ONI calls for use of NHS vouchers for myopia management
• WH Smith staff raise €100,000 for Vision Ireland
• Call for evidence on non-NHS prescribing
• At a glance
• Health policy

New optometry undergraduate placement scheme begins

The first cohort of Clinical Learning in Practice (CLiP) optometry placements begins this month as part of a new integrated master's degree. The University of Lancashire students will spend 44 weeks in workplace training under the updated GOC Education and Training Requirements. Read more. 

Greater Manchester launches primary care referral service

Greater Manchester ICB has launched a single point of access service for all non-emergency ophthalmology referrals from primary eye care practices in the region.

The Greater Manchester Eye Care Navigation Service, run by Primary Eyecare Services, will triage all routine and urgent ophthalmology referrals, directing them to the most appropriate services in primary or secondary care. It promises to review all referrals within 24-48 hours, using local optometrists to save patients' travel time and money and ease pressure on hospital eye services. Read more. 

Trust reverses decision to close eye clinics

Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust has reversed its decision to close eye clinics in St Austell and Helston following strong community feedback and concerns about long travel distances for patients with serious eye conditions. Read more. 

ONI calls for use of NHS vouchers for myopia management

The chair of Optometry Northern Ireland (ONI) has called for a rule change in Northern Ireland to enable children to access NHS vouchers for myopia management, the BBC reports. Brian McKeown said the evidence was growing for the benefits of the treatment, which can include special lenses, soft contact lenses or eye drops to slow the progression of the condition.

He said patients in his practice had benefited from the treatment and that it was "frustrating" that people in the rest of the UK could use vouchers towards it. "We feel there should be a change," he said. 

WH Smith staff raise €100,000 for Vision Ireland

Vision Ireland has congratulated WH Smith employees at Dublin airport for raising an exceptional amount from donations from visitors travelling in and out of the country. The charity helps the blind and vision-impaired live independently. Read more. 

Call for evidence on non-NHS prescribing

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has issued a call for evidence, seeking feedback from individuals and organisations about non-NHS prescribing and supply mechanisms.

The DHSC said it wanted to ensure that current systems remained fit for purpose and enabled patients to be treated by the most appropriate healthcare professional. You can read more here about what this includes and send any views to [email protected]. 

At a glance

• The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) is taking entries for its 10th World Sight Day Photo Competition. The charity has a revamped website that features Vision Atlas, a data hub for global eye health.
• A man from the Midlands has thanked his optometrist for spotting a rare cancer during a routine sight test, the BBC reports.
• RNIB Scotland has reopened its community hub in Edinburgh, which had been partially closed for refurbishment since 2023. Read more.
• The British Optical Association Museum, home to the world's oldest collection of spectacles, as well as historic artworks and sight-testing equipment, will open its doors for the Open House Festival on 14 September.
• The Eyes on Sustainability conference at the National Space Centre in Leicester will take place on 6 October. Register here. 
• Tickets are available for the Optometry Wales Awards ceremony at Holland House Hotel in Cardiff, which will be followed by dinner and dancing.

Health policy

• The HSJ has named the likely leadership appointments for the new 'clustered' NHS integrated care boards, which it says will shrink in number from 42 to 27. Most of the ICBs in the North West, North East, and Yorkshire regions will remain separate, but there is significant clustering activity elsewhere.
• The Department of Health and Social Care reports that thousands more patients have access to out-of-hours health checks, tests and scans because 100 community centres are now open on evenings and weekends.
• The Independent Healthcare Providers Network reveals that 49% of 35 to 44-year-olds expect to use private healthcare in the coming year, and almost 70% of 18 to 24-year-olds say they would be more likely to apply for a new job if it offered private health insurance.