Are you blind or partially sighted and interested in advocating for others?
Join our community of blind and partially sighted advocates and help support visually impaired people in your area to live the lives they want to lead.
What does a Sight Loss Council member do?
As a Sight Loss Council member your duties may include putting forward local issues affecting your community at Sight Loss Council meetings (ie pavement parking, guide dog refusals etc) or taking part in accessibility testing sessions, forums, seminars and contributing to public consultations. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, our meetings will be held virtually for now.
If you’re interested in gaining advocacy experience, you are a great communicator and confident with technology (or willing to learn), then don’t miss this opportunity to be an advocate from your own home!
What do the Sight Loss Councils do?
Sight Loss Councils are currently expanding their reach across England to give people who are blind or partially sighted the opportunity to influence positive change and improve services at a national and local level.
Each Sight Loss Council aims to make a difference by representing the voice of blind and partially sighted people in the key areas of health, employment, education, transport, technology, and sport. If you have a particular interest in any of these areas, please let us know.
Examples of Sight Loss Councils’ work include:
- Holding a large employment-opportunities event in Merseyside
- working with Stage-Coach on new audio-visual announcements on their buses in Gloucestershire
- providing accessibility feedback on a healthcare app in Birmingham
- running accessibility workshops with the Apple store in Liverpool.
Where do we work?
We currently have Sight Loss Councils in Bristol, Gloucestershire, Birmingham, Black Country, Merseyside, Greater Manchester and we are launching a brand new SLC in Tyne & Wear.
Why volunteer with us?
We will provide you with core training and ongoing opportunities to learn and develop in your role.
Skills you may learn include advocating for yourself and others, improving your confidence in public speaking, organising events and much more. We’ll focus on your strengths and interests and help you build upon them. These are all skills that will really help boost your CV if or when applying for jobs!
How do I join?
To find out more about becoming a Sight Loss Council member, download the volunteer role description and email volunteering@pocklington-trust.org.uk to let us you are interested in joining.
Find out more about the Tyne & Wear Sight Loss Council here: www.sightlosscouncils.org.uk/tyne-and-wear
Access the Sight Loss Council’s resources including useful information, best practice guides, case studies and videos www.sightlosscouncils.org.uk/resources
