Vaccination support for blind and partially sighted people

The request was successful.

Dear NHS Manchester Clinical Commissioning Group,

I am writing to you about the Covid-19 vaccination programme being led by your Clinical Commissioning Group and how you are supporting blind and partially sighted people to access the programme.

Please could you answer the following questions under the Freedom of Information Act:

1) Are you ensuring information sent to a visually impaired person about vaccine appointments or provided to them at a vaccination centre is available in an accessible format such as large print and braille? If yes, how?

2) Are you providing clear information on the location of vaccine centres, such as public transport options and alternatives for blind and partially sighted people? If yes, how?

3) Are you making sure that vaccination venues have clear signage and good levels of lighting to enable blind and partially sighted people to access them? If yes, how?

4) Are you ensuring staff and volunteers at vaccination centres are trained to provide support to people with sight loss, such as providing verbal or sighted guiding where necessary? If yes, how?

5) Are you aware of and using the sight loss sector guidance on vaccine rollout which is available here: https://www.sightlosscouncils.org.uk/wp-... If yes, how have you used this?

Yours faithfully,

Mike Bell
Senior Public Affairs and Campaigns Manager
Thomas Pocklington Trust

Foimanchesterccg (MANCHESTER HEALTH AND CARE COMMISSIONING), NHS Manchester Clinical Commissioning Group

Dear Mike

Thank you for your email. I have now logged your request with the following reference number: 36/21.

Your request for information is now being processed in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000. It is hoped that a response will be provided to you by no later than 2 April 2021. However, please note that MCCG is currently handling a large volume of business critical work during the COVID-19 outbreak. Accordingly, requests made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 during the COVID-19 outbreak may have a longer response period than that stated. The response that you receive may also not be complete in whole or in part. This is because:

• Responding to your request may require business area resource which is currently directed towards the COVID-19 outbreak. Directing resources towards responding to your request could result in vital care of service not being delivered, and may expose individuals to COVID-19;
• Under government guidance to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, all MHCC staff who are able to are working from home until further notice. As such they may not be able to get hold of certain information which cannot be accessed remotely, and accessing it would potentially expose the individual to COVID-19

Please accept our sincere apologies for any inconvenience.

If it is identified that Manchester CCG holds the information you have requested, we would respectfully ask you not to publish this on any website or in any other publications where:

• a charge may be made to access it
• a subscription is charged to access the site.

Manchester CCG holds the copyright for any information produced and we are not prepared to authorise its re-use where a charge is made. This is in accordance with the provisions of the Re-Use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2005.

Kind regards,

Catherine

Catherine Regan
Senior Executive Assistant to:
Ian Williamson, Chief Accountable Officer & Ruth Bromley, Clinical Chair
Manchester Health and Care Commissioning
0161 213 1871 | [email address]
M: 07773072138
2nd Floor | Parkway 3 | Parkway Business Centre | Princess Road | Manchester | M14 7LU

UNFORTUNATELY, VISITOR PARKING AT PARKWAY BUSINESS CENTRE IS EXTREMELY LIMITED – UNAUTHORISED PARKING IS NOT ALLOWED. THE CARPARK IS PATROLLED DURING THE DAY, CONSEQUENTLY TO AVOID RECEIVING A TICKET, VISITOR PARKING MUST BE PRE-BOOKED BY CONTACT NHS PROPERTY SERVICE AT PARKWAY RECEPTION, 765 4000 OR MYSELF

If you require any reasonable adjustments to meet with me, contact me or to attend a meeting I am arranging, please let me know in advance and I will put arrangements in place. Thank you.

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REGAN, Catherine (MANCHESTER HEALTH AND CARE COMMISSIONING), NHS Manchester Clinical Commissioning Group

1 Attachment

Dear Mike

INFORMATION REQUESTED UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000

This email is to inform you of the progress made with your recent request for the supply of information from NHS Manchester CCG.

The information you requested is attached.

If you are dissatisfied with the way your request has been handled, please contact us at the email address above with the specifics of your concerns and we will conduct an internal review.

If you are still dissatisfied with the outcome of the internal review, you can contact the Information Commissioner at the following address:

The Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.

Yours sincerely,

Catherine

Catherine Regan
Senior Executive Assistant to:
Ian Williamson, Chief Accountable Officer & Ruth Bromley, Clinical Chair
Manchester Health and Care Commissioning
0161 213 1871 | [email address]
M: 07773072138
2nd Floor | Parkway 3 | Parkway Business Centre | Princess Road | Manchester | M14 7LU

UNFORTUNATELY, VISITOR PARKING AT PARKWAY BUSINESS CENTRE IS EXTREMELY LIMITED – UNAUTHORISED PARKING IS NOT ALLOWED. THE CARPARK IS PATROLLED DURING THE DAY, CONSEQUENTLY TO AVOID RECEIVING A TICKET, VISITOR PARKING MUST BE PRE-BOOKED BY CONTACT NHS PROPERTY SERVICE AT PARKWAY RECEPTION, 765 4000 OR MYSELF

If you require any reasonable adjustments to meet with me, contact me or to attend a meeting I am arranging, please let me know in advance and I will put arrangements in place. Thank you.

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