Contribution
Thank you, Mr Pritchard. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship.
I thank the hon. Member for Leicester South (Shockat Adam) for securing this important debate to raise awareness of glaucoma. I enjoyed our meeting some time ago, when we discussed this and other related issues at length. I am keen to ensure that we keep that dialogue going, and not just in this Chamber. This is a timely debate as it follows Glaucoma Awareness Week, which ran from 30 June to 6 July.
Losing one’s eyesight can be devastating, and I pay tribute to the charities that do so much to help people live with glaucoma or to research a cure, such as Glaucoma UK, the Glaucoma Foundation and the Royal National Institute of Blind People, to name just a few.
Last week, the Prime Minister set out our plan to get the NHS back on its feet and fit for the future. Underpinning our plan are three big shifts: from hospital to community, from analogue to digital and from sickness to prevention. The plan was developed through extensive engagement with the public, patients and staff, including the eye care sector. All three shifts are relevant to preventing and managing conditions such as glaucoma in all parts of the country. More tests and scans delivered in the community, and better joint working between services, will support the management of conditions, including glaucoma, closer to home.
I turn to glaucoma detection. This Government take glaucoma very seriously, as it is one of the main causes of sight loss. It is a time-sensitive condition, and early detection and treatment can help to slow down or prevent vision loss. I acknowledge the vital role played by community optometry in protecting people’s eye health across the country. That includes the hon. Member for Leicester South, who of course is an optometrist and has significant expertise in this sector. I also pay tribute to all the hon. Members who have contributed to this debate with such passion and conviction.
Sight tests play a vital role in the early detection of glaucoma. Most glaucoma patients are identified through routine sight tests. It is not possible to “feel” glaucoma; it does not cause any symptoms and the eye pressure does not always cause pain. That is why regular sight tests are so essential, so that conditions such as glaucoma can be diagnosed and treated as early as possible.
It is recommended that everyone should have a sight test every two years, and more often if it is considered clinically necessary. The NHS invests over £600 million annually in the provision of sight tests and optical vouchers, and high street opticians deliver more than 13 million NHS sight tests annually, which are free of charge for eligible patients. NHS sight tests are widely available across the country for millions of people and those who are entitled to receive them include children, individuals over the age of 60, individuals on income-related benefits and individuals diagnosed with glaucoma or considered to be at risk of glaucoma.
We understand that some people might not prioritise sight tests, compared with other healthcare, or they might not know that sight tests are recommended every two years. That is why we always look for opportunities to remind the public through social media. I was pleased that the Department supported Glaucoma Awareness Week and highlighted the importance of regular sight tests through our social media platform last week. I will also take this opportunity to urge anyone who might be watching or reading this debate, “Visit your optician if you have not had a sight test in the last two years. Please check on the NHS website to see whether you are eligible for any help in paying for a test.” NHS sight test providers in the high street also display information about NHS sight test eligibility.
Some high street optical practices are also being commissioned by integrated care boards to provide glaucoma referral refinement services. Moving more care into the community is one of the key priorities in our 10-year plan; we want to see care happening as locally as possible for patients. Where a patient has been identified as having raised eye pressure, local glaucoma referral refinement schemes provide additional tests to confirm whether a referral into secondary care is absolutely necessary. These schemes can save patients time and worry, and reduce unnecessary referrals, while freeing up space for others who need specialist attention in hospital. More than 70% of ICBs currently have some coverage of referral refinement in place.
For those patients who do need to be seen in secondary care, it is vital that they have access to timely diagnosis and any clinically necessary treatment. We have wasted no time in getting to work on cutting NHS waiting lists and ensuring that people have the best possible experience during their care. We promised change and we have delivered early, with a reduction in the list of over 230,000 pathways, including ophthalmology. The waiting list has been reduced by over 24,000 patients since July 2024; it has fallen from 606,819 to 582,385 as of February 2025. In addition, we have exceeded our pledge to deliver an additional 2 million operations, scans and appointments, having now delivered over 4 million additional appointments.