A charity for the blind have restocked their Resource Centre after being awarded more than over £2,000 by the Gannett Foundation, Sutton Guardian’s parent company.

The Sutton Association for the Blind (SAB), in Robin Hood Lane, used the money to pay for a variety of equipment including internet radio players, TV magnifiers, large button phones, contrast lights and talking watches.

For many of the 200 people diagnosed every year in Sutton as visually impaired or blind, the SAB provides a vital network of support, advice and training.

One SAB client, Janice O’Donnell, now a volunteer and trustee at the association, said: “Life becomes so difficult when you start losing your sight. You don’t recognise people in the streets and then they think you’re being snooty when you ignore them.

“When people are diagnosed as blind they often think their lives are over. You start to feel that you’re in a big black hole, that you’re worthless. You think ‘what can I do now?’.

“But by coming to the SAB people realise they can start afresh and have a new life.”

Thankfully for residents like Mrs O’Donnell, the area is not only well served by the Eye Unit at Sutton Hospital but also the SAB who provide vital support for many of the 2,000 people in the borough whose eyesight is deemed impaired.

The SAB, with more than 600 clients, largely caters for the elderly but also provides important facilities for those with mental illness.

One of the most common forms of visual impairment is Macular Degeneration (MD) which affects the centre of the field of vision and has two types, wet and dry.

Wet MD affects 15 per cent of sufferers and can only be tackled with costly laser treatment. Dry MD affects 85 per cent of sufferers and as yet there is no treatment at all.

Mrs O’Donnell, who suffers from wet MD, said: “The problem with my eyesight is like a bereavement - it is gone and I will never be the same but with the help and support of the SAB I have been able to look forward to the future with optimism.

To volunteer or to find out more about the SAB visit sab.gb.com or call 020 8409 7166.

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