Highland Society for Blind People

About The Highland Society For Blind People

We are a Highland charity working to create a better future for blind and visually impaired children and adults, their families and carers.

Whilst The Highland Society For Blind People remains the parent company we manage and support two operating companies, Visual Impairment Services Highland and Highland BlindCraft.

Visual Impairment Services Highland

Through our company Visual Impairment Services Highland we offer a range of services to blind and visually impaired people as early in their deterioration of good vision as possible.   It is our aim to keep individuals as safe and as independent as they would wish to be through the introduction of individually tailored training programmes to ensure they are fully integrated in society.

Our Children and Families service offers information and support to parents, the introduction of development work with babies and young children, programmes in mobility and independence skills, including socializing skills, as well as access to a range of leisure and sporting activities.   We organize Family fun days when families and children can come together to share, learn and play in a pleasurable and relaxed environment.   Our lending toy library provides a facility for families and nurseries/pre school playgroups where a blind child is attending, supporting this with visual awareness training for the staff involved.

In our provision to blind and visually impaired adults we offer assessment of need, counseling and emotional support as well as a comprehensive range of information.   Our rehabilitation service provides appropriate low vision aids and training in their use, and programmes of independence training which includes mobility, daily living, communication and personal skills, as well as leisure activities and opportunities to limit isolation through social interaction.   We also support families and carers.

We offer a Resource Centre facility where a wide range of specialised aids and equipment are displayed and available for hands-on experience.

Our Technology Centre offers a range of training packages from the very basic word processing to working towards recognized qualifications to help them gain suitable employment.   This service is offered to blind and visually impaired people as well as those with other disabilities.   Access to other technology is also available, e.g closed circuit television, etc.

We offer a tape library facility.

Highland BlindCraft

(formerly BlindCraft, Inverness) has been an established company for over 140 years and our name is synonymous with the manufacture of quality beds here in the Highlands. Our factory was originally set up to give employment to blind and visually impaired people in the Highlands, and to this day is run with the same concept.

We produce a wide range of beds, mattresses, headboards and fireside chairs for both retail and commercial customers. We also supply pine bedroom, dining-room and occasional furniture. Our excellent re-upholstery department is also available to both commercial customers and the public.

Our many customers include: Hotels, Guest Houses, B&Bs, Residential and Nursing Homes, Highland Council and NHS Highland as well as a loyal and increasing following from the retail public throughout the Highlands and Islands.

The fact that we manufacture locally enables us to guarantee delivery dates and ensures that we continue to provide an excellent customer backup service. All of our own manufactured beds meet current domestic Fire Regulations whilst all of our contract beds meet the stricter, higher Fire Regulations essential for all commercial premises.

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In addition to providing employment for blind and visually impaired people as well as those with other disabilities, Highland BlindCraft, as lead agency in a partnership of local and national voluntary organisations, holds a contract from the Dept of Works & Pensions for the provision of 50 supported employment places throughout the Highlands and Islands, including the Outer Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland.

This contract, in association with Jobcentre Plus, provides for a wide range of practical and financial help for people with disabilities when seeking employment.

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