“Healthcall Optical Services Ltd is delighted to have the opportunity to work with WRVS to raise the awareness of the importance of eye care for housebound individuals. This service can change lives and yet only a minority of housebound individuals is aware it exists.” Jayne Rawlinson, Managing Director.
Six million older people in the UK are needlessly risking their sight by not having regular eye tests and, in many cases, they are eligible for tests at no cost.
WRVS is trialling a partnership with HealthCall Optical to enable older people with mobility issues to access free eye tests. The partnership has potential to generate much-needed income for WRVS. The six-month trial, soon to start, will work with 20 WRVS services in Dorset, Hampshire, Somerset and Wiltshire. It aims to benefit current customers of these services primarily, although some volunteers and previous volunteers may also find themselves eligible to free eye care and if so, are encouraged to take advantage of the promotion.
HealthCall Optical Services is the UK’s largest provider of home sight tests and a provider of home hearing tests, and has contracts with the NHS to deliver its services. Each year Healthcall’s optometrists see over 100,000 people around the UK who are unable to leave their homes without assistance, enabling them to enjoy greater dignity and independence and a better quality of life.
NHS eligibility criteria for free eye tests
If an individual is unable to leave home without help, and also fits one of the following criteria, they qualify for a free NHS sight test in the home and may also be entitled to help with the cost of glasses:
- sixty years of age or over
- diagnosed with diabetes or glaucoma
- considered to be at risk of glaucoma (as diagnosed by an ophthalmologist)
- forty years of age or over and the parent, brother, sister, son or daughter of a person diagnosed with glaucoma
- registered blind or partially sighted
- eligible for an NHS Complex Lens Voucher (your optician will advise on your entitlement)
- claiming benefit (Income Support, Income based Jobseeker’s Allowance, Pension Credit Guarantee or receiving tax credits and meeting qualifying conditions)
- on a low income and named on a valid HC2 (full help) or HC3 (partial help certificate).