Last week I visited an exhibition in the House of Commons, hosted by the charity Blind Children UK, which promoted the importance of training in mobility and independent living skills, known as habilitation, for children with sight loss.
Staff from the charity who work directly with children were there to tell MPs that early intervention was crucial in enabling young people with a vision impairment to fulfil their potential as adults and more needs to be done to make sure that these habilitation services are consistent throughout the UK. Children with sight loss need to learn certain key skills as early as possible to help them get around, orientate themselves in the world and eventually live independently as adults.
Speaking to Chris and Reshma, from Blind Children UK, brought the importance of providing habilitation training to children with sight loss to my attention. Giving children mobility and independent living skills to enable them to be active and happy in childhood and then onto adulthood is crucial.
Ronnie Cowan MP 