Vision screening of 4 to 5 year olds at school entry

Sunderland City Council did not have the information requested.

The College of Optometrists

Dear FOI officer

The British and Irish Orthoptic Society on behalf of the Clinical Council for Eye Health Commissioning are writing to make an open request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

There is a national recommendation, by the UK National Screening committee, to offer orthoptic-led vision screening to children at aged 4-5 years, mainly to ensure that amblyopia (reduced vision), is detected and treated at an age where treatment has the potential to improve vision.

Public Health England introduced service specifications for a Vision Screening Service in 2017. We are concerned that a Vision Screening service is currently not being offered to all children aged 4-5 years in England leading to inequality of eye health care provision.

We are aware that the responsibility for commissioning 0 - 5 year children’s public health services has transferred from the NHS to Local Authorities; and that in addition there are to be significant cuts to Local Authority Public Health funding which may affect these services

We would be grateful if you could answer the following questions (for the financial year 2019/2020) to determine the arrangements made by your local authority to commission vision screening for your eligible resident population and it’s quality assurance.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Olivier Denève

Secretary to the Clinical Council for Eye Health Commissioning

Questions

1. Do you currently commission vision screening in school of children aged 4-5 years old? Y / N

If YES, would you please:

2. List the key features of your commissioned screening service:

a. Settings (e.g. school).
b. Screening personnel (e.g. orthoptist, school nurse or other health professional).
c. The onward care pathway for children who fail the vision screening.
d. The quality assurance (QA) processes (audit) and identified clinical lead for the vision screening service

3. Tell us how you monitor if every child in your Local Authority has been tested (including those in private schools or those who are home-schooled).

4. Tell us whether the programme will be commissioned again in the next financial year

5. If NO- you do not currently commission a vision screening service in your area, would you please tell us :

a. why you do not commission vision screening?
b. whether a service is planned for the next financial year (2020/21)?
c. whether an existing service in your area has been recently decommissioned"?

Solicitor - Freedom of Information, Sunderland City Council

2 Attachments

Re: Your request for information concerning:

 

Vision Screening of 4 to 5 Year Olds at School Entry

 

The Council aims to provide available information promptly and in any
event within 20 working days, unless, exceptionally, there is a need to
consider whether the information is exempt from disclosure.

 

I will contact you again soon in connection with your request.

 

Please quote the reference below if you contact the Council regarding this
request.

 

Customer Request Number: FOI_1047

 

[1]cid:image001.jpg@01D4A416.518407B0[2]cid:image002.jpg@01D4A416.518407B0

 

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Gordon Brown,

Dear Oliver Deneve

 

I refer to your Freedom of Information request:

 

1. Do you currently commission vision screening in school of children aged
4-5 years old? Y / N

 

If YES, would you please:

 

2. List the key features of your commissioned screening service:

 

a. Settings (e.g. school).

b. Screening personnel (e.g. orthoptist, school nurse or other health
professional).

c. The onward care pathway for children who fail the vision screening.

d. The quality assurance (QA) processes (audit) and identified clinical
lead for the vision screening service

 

3. Tell us how you monitor if every child in your Local Authority has been
tested (including those in private schools or those who are
home-schooled).

 

4. Tell us whether the programme will be commissioned again in the next
financial year

 

5. If NO- you do not currently commission a vision screening service in
your area, would you please tell us :

 

a. why you do not commission vision screening?

b. whether a service is planned for the next financial year (2020/21)?

c. whether an existing service in your area has been recently
decommissioned"?

 

Response

 

The information you have requested is not held by Together for Children
Sunderland and so we are unable to answer your request. It is suggested
you contact the NHS at [1][email address]

I hope this is satisfactory. If, however, you are dissatisfied with our
response to your request for information, you can ask for the decision to
be reviewed in reply to this letter, however any request for review must
be submitted within 40 days of the date of this freedom of information
response. The review will be removed from the Directorate and coordinated
by the Council’s Information Governance Officer. A request for review
should be directed, by email to [2][Sunderland City Council request email],
by post or by hand addressed to; Information Governance Officer,
Governance Services, Civic Centre, PO Box 100, Sunderland SR2 7DN.

 

You are of course entitled to apply to the Information Commissioner at any
time, although the Commissioner will not usually investigate until the
public authority’s internal review procedure has been concluded.

 

Kind Regards

 

G Brown

FOI Link Officer

 

 

 

[3]Together For Children

[4]http://www.facebook.com/togetherforchild...

[6]To see the latest vacancies at Together for Children click here

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