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| Merged into | Royal National Institute of Blind People |
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| Formation | 1857 |
| Dissolved | 2017 |
| Location | |
Action for Blind People was a national sight loss charity in the United Kingdom, that provided help and support to blind and partially sighted people of all ages. [1] In 2017 the organisation merged with the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) with which it had been in a partnership since 2009. [2]
Action for Blind People was founded in 1857 as the Surrey Association for the General Welfare of the Blind and later became the London Association for the Blind. The Association's main activities in the early days were teaching blind people to read and to learn practical trades. Opportunities and attitudes towards blind and partially sighted people have changed over the years, along with the nature and the scale of the Association's work. As a result, their title was changed to Action for Blind People in 1991. [3]
Action for Blind People formed a partnership with the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) in April 2009 and became part of RNIB Group.
This enabled both organisations to provide a unique combination of complementary strengths and expertise to help an ever-increasing number of people with sight loss. Working together in this way allows both organisations to share skills and deliver services in line with the UK Vision Strategy and RNIB Group Strategy.
Action had 17 regional teams across England and four Resource Centres. Action for Blind People operates a Mobile Sight Loss Information service that travels around the UK. Action for Blind People also runs four hotels, but in 2009, the hotels were rebranded as Vision Hotels. Action local teams are based in Birmingham, Bristol, Carlisle, Exeter, Leeds, Liverpool, Loughborough, Manchester, Middlesbrough, North London, Norwich, Preston, Salisbury, South London, Stafford, Stoke and Wallsend. [4]
Action for Blind People originally ran the hotels under the Action for Blind People name, but in 2009, the hotels were rebranded as Vision Hotels.
Vision Hotels are three AA 3 star hotels in South Devon, Somerset and Lake Windermere.
The Cliffden Hotel is in Teignmouth, South Devon. The Lauriston Hotel, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset Windermere Manor, Windermere, Cumbria.
The hotels were put up for sale in 2016, as the charity reportedly could not afford the upkeep of three hotels. [5]
RNIB is a British charity, founded in 1868, that serves people living with visual impairments. It is regarded as a leader in the field in supporting people in the UK who have vision loss. The organisation seeks to increase awareness of the lived experiences of people who are blind or partially sighted. Additionally, it campaigns to make services such as healthcare, education and public transport safer and more accessible to people with visual impairments.
The American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) is an American non-profit organization for people with vision loss. AFB's objectives include conducting research to advance change, promoting knowledge and understanding, and shaping policies and practices.
Visual or vision impairment is the partial or total inability of visual perception. In the absence of treatment such as corrective eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment, visual impairment may cause the individual difficulties with normal daily tasks, including reading and walking. The terms low vision and blindness are often used for levels of impairment which are difficult or impossible to correct and significantly impact daily life. In addition to the various permanent conditions, fleeting temporary vision impairment, amaurosis fugax, may occur, and may indicate serious medical problems.
The CNIB Foundation is a Canadian charitable organization and volunteer agency dedicated to assisting Canadians who are blind or living with vision loss, and to provide information about vision health for all Canadians. Founded in 1918 as the Canadian National Institute for the Blind to assist soldiers who had been blinded in the First World War, CNIB originally offered sheltered care and specialized employment to people with vision loss. It has since expanded to include other programs and services, including research, public education, rehabilitation counselling and training, advocacy and an alternative-format library for people living with a print disability. It is a member of the Braille Authority of North America.
Blind Veterans UK, formerly St Dunstan's, is a large British charity, providing free support and services to vision-impaired ex-servicemen and women and National Service personnel. Blind Veterans UK is a registered charity in England and Scotland and operates throughout the United Kingdom. It has its head office in London and centres in Llandudno and Rustington.
The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, known colloquially as Guide Dogs, is a British charitable organisation that uses guide dogs to help blind and partially blind people. The organisation also participates in political activism for the rights of those with vision impairments.
Ross Macfadyen is a Scottish media, broadcast and communications professional currently working in the charity sector.
The Royal London Society for Blind People (RLSB) was a UK charity that existed for 175 years to help blind and partially sighted young people in London and the South East through a blend of sports, education, and creative and developmental services.
Blind artists are people who are physically unable to see normally, yet work in the visual arts. This seeming contradiction is overcome when one understands that only around 10% of all people with blindness can see absolutely nothing at all. As such most blind people can in fact perceive some level of light and form, and it is by applying this limited vision that many blind artists create intelligible art. Also, a blind person may once have been fully sighted and yet simply lost part of their vision through injury or illness. Blind artists are able to offer insight into the study of blindness and the ways in which art can be perceived by the blind, in order to better improve art education for the visually impaired.
BlindArt is a British charity that was established in 2004 to educate the public about the needs of people who are visually impaired and to promote the idea that lack of sight need not be a barrier to the creation and enjoyment of works of art. BlindArt exhibitions typically contain paintings, sculptures, installations and other works of art that have been designed to engage all the senses. BlindArt pieces are created by sighted artists, blind artists, and partially sighted artists.
British Blind Sport (BBS) is a British charity that makes sport and recreational activities accessible to people who are visually impaired. The charity enables blind and partially sighted people to experience the same sporting opportunities as sighted people. Since its establishment in 1976, BBS has become a voice for visually impaired people in the world of sport and leisure, both in the United Kingdom and on an international level. It also leads in the UK with sight classification for elite and paralympic athletes. Its headquarters are in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire.
Henshaws Society for Blind People is a specialist charity providing support, advice and training to anyone affected by sight loss and other disabilities.
Warwickshire Vision Support is a registered charity in England providing rehabilitation services for adults with visual impairments to enable them to live independently.
George Harold Marshall OBE was a British schoolteacher, head master, author, academic and campaigner, internationally recognised for his work in the fields of education and assistive technology for children with visual disabilities. Marshall started Exhall Grange, Britain's first school to cater specifically for partially sighted children in 1951, becoming the third and was its head master from 1953 until he retired in 1981, making him to date the longest-serving person to hold that position. He also founded The Partially Sighted Society.
Bradbury Fields is a charity based in Liverpool, UK, which works with blind and partially sighted people. It has been described by the BBC as "Liverpool's main charity for the blind" and is part of the 800 Group, a consortium of Merseyside health and care charities.
Blind in Business is a British charity that helps blind and partially sighted students into employment following graduation by providing a free training and employment service. The charity offers technical help and training courses for schoolchildren with a visual impairment, while also supporting graduates and potential employers with training and technical help. It was founded in 1992 by three visually impaired graduates in order to help others in the same situation. The founders – Neil Heslop, a business planning manager with Northern Telecom who had recently experienced sight loss, Simon Meredith, a blind solicitor with Slaughter and May and Richard Hanson, a partially sighted solicitor with Cameron Markby Hewitt – were surprised to discover as many as 80 percent of people with a visual impairment were unemployed at that time, with very few in work able to pursue a career. Blind in Business was established as a charitable trust with the backing of the Royal National Institute for the Blind and with several high-profile supporters serving as its trustees, including Bank of England associate director Pen Kent, Standard Chartered chairman Rodney Galpin and Conservative MP Emma Nicholson. The organisation's head offices are based in London, but Blind in Business operates on a United Kingdom wide basis.
Disability golf classification is used for deaf golf, blind golf, amputee golf, golf for mentally disabled people, paraplegic golf and other forms of golf involving people with disabilities.
Text to speech in digital television refers to digital television products that use speech synthesis to enable access to blind or partially sighted people. By combining a digital television with a speech synthesis engine, blind and partially sighted people are able to access information that is normally displayed visually in order to operate the menus and electronic program guides of the receiver.
Sight Scotland is a Scottish Charity based in Edinburgh, Scotland founded in 1793. The charity provides care, education and employment for people of all ages who are blind or partially sighted. Sight Scotland provides the following services: Royal Blind School, Forward Vision, Scottish Braille Press and Kidscene. Sight Scotland’s sister charity is Sight Scotland Veterans.
British Wireless for the Blind Fund (BWBF) is a British charity and a private company limited by guarantee. Founded by Sir Ernest Beachcroft Beckwith Towse in 1928, the organisation provides adapted radios and audio players on free loan to registered blind and partially sighted UK residents over the age of eight, where hardship circumstances can be demonstrated by receipt of a means-tested benefit.
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