Action for Blind People was a national sight loss charity in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, that provided help and support to blind and partially sighted people of all ages. In 2017 the organisation merged with the

Royal National Institute of Blind People RNIB (formally, the Royal National Institute of Blind People and previously the Royal National Institute for the Blind) is a British charity, founded in 1868, that serves people living with visual impairments. It is regarded as a leader in th ...

(RNIB) with which it had been in a partnership since 2009.

History

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.

RNIB Group

Action for Blind People formed a partnership with the

(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.

Organization

Action had 17 regional teams across

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

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

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

s, but in 2009, the hotels were rebranded as Vision Hotels. Action local teams are based in

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, North London,

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, Preston,

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, South London,

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, Stoke and

Wallsend Wallsend () is a town in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England, at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 43,842 and lies east of Newcastle upon Tyne. History Roman Wallsend In Roman times, this was the site of the fort of ...

Vision Hotels

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.

References

External links

Official website, archived on 7 August 2022
* *https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/feb/22/disability-living-allowance-blind-people {{Authority control Charities for disabled people based in the United Kingdom Blindness organisations in the United Kingdom