Nursery World - Low take-up for nursery sight tests

Thousands of pre-school children are not receiving vital screening for eye defects and diseases, according to a survey by Glasgow Caledonian University's Department of Vision Sciences. The survey, prepared for the Scottish Parliament's Cross Party Group on Visual Impairment, revealed that 80 per cent of Scotland's 5,500 nursery school-aged children are not getting their eyes tested by health authorities. Yet of those who have been tested, between 11 and 15 per cent are estimated to have eye defects which, if not corrected, could impede their educational and social development.

The survey, prepared for the Scottish Parliament's Cross Party Group on Visual Impairment, revealed that 80 per cent of Scotland's 5,500 nursery school-aged children are not getting their eyes tested by health authorities. Yet of those who have been tested, between 11 and 15 per cent are estimated to have eye defects which, if not corrected, could impede their educational and social development.

In a postcode lottery of provision, the survey found children living in disadvantaged areas were least likely to be tested. In Glasgow alone, children were being tested in Bearsden and Milngavie, while those in the Easterhouse were not. Ayrshire was the only area in Scotland where all children were being screened by the age of five.

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