Scotland

We have an updated sector-wide guidance on Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) vetting requirements for optical practice staff in Scotland, following recent legislative changes under the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020.

This guidance has been produced collaboratively across the sector, with input from ABDO, AOP, College of Optometrists and FODO, and is being issued by Optometry Scotland to support practices in navigating the updated requirements.

This document reflects the collective interpretation of the relevant PVG legislation and guidance by ABDO, AOP, the College of Optometrists, FODO, and Optometry Scotland. It has been shared with Scottish Government for information but should not be considered formal SG or Disclosure Scotland policy. Practices should continue to exercise their own judgement and consult Disclosure Scotland directly where needed. The draft guidance will remain subject to review should further feedback be received from Scottish Government or Disclosure Scotland.

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16/09/24

ABDO representatives met with the Scottish Government in August to discuss policy and plans for the future of dispensing within the optometry portfolio.

ABDO’s chief executive Alistair Bridge was joined by Max Halford, ABDO clinical lead, Brenda Rennie, ABDO vice president, and Graeme Stevenson, Scotland regional lead, in the meeting with chief optometric advisor Dr Janet Pooley and Mike Stewart, who is head of community eyecare at the Scottish Government. The meeting took place at St Andrews House in Edinburgh in a friendly and positive atmosphere.

Initially, Alistair outlined ABDO’s strategic plan for the next few years, which aligned with many of the plans of the Scottish Government. We spoke about a number of important items within our future plans. First on the agenda was the plans for a national low vision scheme. The Scottish Government confirmed that plans arising from the 2017 eyecare review are in place and ready to go when funding allows. Dispensing opticians (DOs) would be eligible to be part of the roll out, which would be organised to ensure that each area has an appropriate number of practitioners to provide the service. A modified version of the College of Optometrists low vision certificate will need to be completed by all optometrists and DOs. This will be a very interesting project for all DOs and will be an opportunity for DOs to put into practice the skills they have learned from their studies.

The subject of DO registration in Scotland has been a thorny one for some years now. The Government have always said it would like to have DOs registered; however, suitable legislation has not been found to facilitate this, hence it has not come to fruition. The Government are looking at innovative methods to enable this to happen and are currently working on a number of projects that may help facilitate this. Registration would be fantastic for DOs’ career options and may even facilitate an opening to receive a CPD grant.

Among the other topics discussed were the ABDO apprenticeship, special schools project, Scottish Government support for DOCET (Directorate of Continuing Education and Training) funding for DOs, acute eyecare and future opportunities, and comparisons were made with other nations where extended services qualified contact lens opticians (ESCLOs) are able to contribute to patient care, and it was agreed to keep this ‘on the table’.

Overall, we had a very positive meeting and all parties left with thoughts for the future and agreed to make such meetings a regular occurrence.

We also met with Eilidh Thomson, the incoming chair of Optometry Scotland, who is also very supportive of DOs and indeed the aims of ABDO.

PPV guidance