The Verses That Make Us: A Personal Journey Through Change
VICTA Changemakers Blindness Awareness Month By Ellie Wallwork In mid September, I stood on a stage with a band arrayed behind me, four pages of braille paper clutched in my hand. I'm an actor but I felt the most acute stage fright of my life, voice caught in my throat and knees shaking as if I had run a marathon. I didn't think the words would come - until I started to speak. I hadn't thought of myself as a poet. I used to tap words out on a keyboard when I [...]
The pros and cons of having a guide dog or cane
VICTA Changemakers Blindness Awareness Month Ruqaiya qualified with Guide Dog Bertie in April 2023. She chats about some of the pros and cons of owning a Guide Dog, the things she hadn't thought about and the positive things Bertie brings to her life as a university student. Find out more by watching Ruqaiya's video below. Don't forget to give @VICTAUK a like and subscribe on YouTube to stay up-to-date with our latest videos. By Ruqaiya Asim You can also find me Instagram, TikTok and YouTube @ruqaiya.art
Things I learnt training for the London Marathon
VICTA Changemakers Blindness Awareness Month On the 21st of April, along with my guide runner, I set out to compete the 2024 TCS London Marathon. I had raised the money for charity (VICTA), done the training and now, it was time for the real thing. Weirdly I don’t remember much about the day itself. I remember the noise though. The cheering and shouting of thousands of families. There were kids banging tambourines in no apparent rhythm and timpani drummers playing in perfect synchronisation. There were out of tune recorder players and brass bands [...]
Celebrating World Laughter Day with blind comedian Jamie MacDonald
In 1995, a doctor called Madan Kataria from India made it his mission to help people de-stress through 'laughter clubs'. These quickly spread around the globe and resulted in the creation of World Laughter Day in 1998. It is now observed on the first Sunday of May. To celebrate the day, I spoke to Jamie MacDonald - a blind, Glaswegian comedian who lives with his wife in Sheffield. The 43-year-old began losing his sight at 16 due to a degenerative eye condition called Retinitis Pigmentosa. He has since gone on to complete degrees, try [...]
Be inspired. Park runs and marathons as a blind runner
Running or jogging is considered one of the best cardio exercises out there. Just 5-10 minutes a day can help to build strong bones and muscles, while lifting your mood and energy levels. For many, outdoor running can also decrease feelings of loneliness, isolation and depression. However, when you have a vision impairment, it's not as simple as just popping out for a quick morning jog on your own. So how can we enjoy the benefits of outdoor running while keeping safe? One answer to that question is guide running. The activity, which uses a ramble tag, enables [...]
Interview – Accessing STEM subjects as a VI student
For British Science Week, Charlotte Bateman spoke to a blind 16-year-old student (AJ) at the Royal National College for the Blind (RNC), Herefordshire - about making STEM subjects more accessible to VI pupils. While she is currently studying A-Levels in English Literature, Psychology and German, AJ excelled at science during her GCSE education. Below she shares her tips for getting the most out of your lessons, and what to do if you are struggling with the syllabus. What was your experience of science at school? AJ: My experience was pretty mixed. A lot of the issues [...]
Be inspired. VI art student Millie-Jayne’s digital art
Image description: A high contrast digital image. The background image is an abstract photo that has been flooded with colour - bright pink and dark grey, a person is just visible in the centre of the image. In the top-right corner a white flower is overlaid over the other image with transparency allowing the background colours to show through. In the bottom-left there is a blue image overlaid of a tulip with bright yellow accents. Braille dots have been overlaid over the image reading: 'Better to be blind and see with your heart than have two [...]
Tactile Times online advent calendar
Tactile Times are getting into the Christmas spirit already and have launched a fully-accessible, online advent calender. If you fancy a change from printed advent calendars this one is fully-accessible with all major screen readers using a computer or a phone and you can access it with a Braillenote Touch. You might even hear a few familiar voices along the way! You can visit it to open the first few door right now: games.tactiletimes.org/advent The will have a new door unlocking each day, and a bumper day on the 24th. It is a great opportunity to [...]
New opportunity – Raise awareness with The Macular Society
The Macular Society is reaching out to find students passionate about raising awareness about the macular condition and how it also occurs in young people. They are looking for university students and/or prospective students who have a macular condition (mainly has central vision loss, such as Stargardts) and are willing/comfortable to share a little bit about their eye condition and their experiences. They'd like to share with other young people your experiences of being a student or preparing to be a university student, for example, applying for the DSA grant, getting orientated and living in [...]
Be inspired. Tune in to Lee’s first radio show!
As part of our #BlindnessAwarenessMonth celebrations, we chatted to Lee Roake about his fantastic achievement, launching his first radio show! Lee is a 17 year old with a rare genetic condition called WAGR Syndrome. Due to his vision impairment, Lee has been involved in VICTA activities from a young age, now taking part in our activities for 14 to 17 years. Lee has just started his very own radio show on Surrey Hills Radio and tells us how his volunteering led to this dream opportunity! Did you miss Lee's [...]
