Changes to services for the blind in Angus attacked

An Angus woman has said she feels she has been left in limbo over the council’s changes to its services for the blind.
Wilma Robertson, 76, of Forfar, has been registered blind for three years and needs help with daily tasks such as going to the shops or getting on public transport.

She had been receiving assistance from the Forfarshire Society for the Blind, which was absorbed by Angus Council in 2009, but continued its work under the council’s banner.

However, Wilma said that over the past year the workers taken on to the council from that service have moved on and no replacement staff have been employed by the authority — something which has left the Angus resident without a vital crutch in her daily business.

The council has confirmed the departure of the two trained staff who worked for the society, but could not confirm if they will be replaced.

“I became blind three years ago and there were two workers with the Forfarshire Society for the Blind who used to help me,” said Wilma, who lost her husband last year to pneumonia.

“They were taken over by the social work of Angus Council and were employed by them. However, at some time in the last year both of them have left and it doesn’t seem that anyone is replacing them.

“I called up to the council but I got put through to someone who said they are getting some sort of training, but they couldn’t tell me much more.

“You would think that they would have had something in place before the workers left.”

Angus Council said it has changed its approach to services in the community and has opted for a more “holistic” method that is aimed at addressing all the needs of a person receiving care.

Wilma said that the new approach is not as effective as its previous method.

She added: “When the workers are dealing with nothing other than blind people they know what they need, but if you are dealing with a mixture of disabilities it’s harder to know what some people specifically need.”

A spokeswoman for Angus Council said that following a request in 2009 by Forfarshire Society for the Bind, statutory services for visually impaired people in Angus were transferred to Angus Council, with the society maintaining its charitable role locally.

Following the transfer, there was recognition for the need to educate more staff in sight loss, through the provision of visual awareness training.

In a bid to tackle this need, the council provided additional training for both its occupational therapy staff, and also for individuals who work within First Contact, which is the initial response team for adults.