Shocking Numbers of Blind People in Poverty
The Bevan Foundation’s report for RNIB Cymru has been widely covered in the Welsh media. Speaking to the Western Mail, Bevan Foundation Director Victoria Winckler said that “It is extremely difficult for disabled people, and especially visually impaired people, to find a job and visually impaired people also face higher living costs than non-disabled people.”
On ITV Wales, Ceri Jackson, Director of RNIB Cymru described how it was not unusual for visually impaired people to have very low incomes. ”We regularly come into contact with blind and partially sighted people living in abject poverty” she said. “People living without heating because they cannot afford to pay the bills, people not leaving their homes because they cannot afford transport, people whose homes are becoming unsafe to live in because they cannot afford basic repairs.”
On BBC Wales, Sarah Rochira, Older People’s Commissioner for Wales, commented that people over pension age were often badly affected by sight loss and had difficulties managing as a result. She said ”Poverty often leads to older people becoming isolated and finding themselves in vulnerable situations, which quite simply has a devastating impact on their health, wellbeing and independence.”
The report can be downloaded from our publications pages.
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