Kilwaughter Minerals praised for prioritising eye care

During their “Health and Safety Focus Week” (21 – 28 February 2022) Kilwaughter Minerals invited the charity to deliver an awareness raising session with staff, and generously donated £1000 towards RNIB’s work in supporting local people and families who have experienced sight loss.

Fiona Byrne, Head of Organisational Development at Kilwaughter Minerals Ltd said: “We’re delighted to have RNIB visit the team at Kilwaughter and help raise our understanding of the challenges faced by those with sight impairments. We’re proud to be able to support the work of another valuable organisation driving improvements in the quality of life of those in our local communities.”

“As part of our continuous improvement culture, we have added Eye Protection to our mandatory PPE and the initiative with RNIB allows us to illustrate the importance of protecting your sight while also highlighting some of the amazing work which RNIB carry out.”

Kilwaughter Minerals currently engages in a variety of initiatives and activities with the aim of promoting community development, recently partnering with Larne FC to provide a boost to its Brighter Futures community fund programme.

The company was also awarded the prestigious ‘Stakeholder of the Year’ title the Social Enterprise NI Awards in recognition of the company’s long term contribution in delivering significant social impact across the Mid & East Antrim Borough and beyond.

RNIB NI Director Robert Shilliday said: “We would like to thank Kilwaughter Minerals Ltd for their generous donation and the opportunity to highlight our support services for anyone affected by sight loss. We also commend them on implementing mandatory eye protection on their site. Fifty per cent of sight loss across the UK is avoidable. Always wear the correct safety glasses for the job you are doing to protect your eyes from flying debris and fine particles, whether this be at work or DIY at home.”

RNIB have recently launched a new free eLearning programme open to employers on ‘Understanding Sight Loss’ and how they can work towards achieving the RNIB Visibly Better Employer quality standard.

Managers, supervisors and all staff in a workplace can take this short online programme to gain a greater understanding of sight loss and working with a blind or partially sighted colleague. It consists of four individual courses which will take about one hour in total to complete.

For more information visit rnib.org.uk/eLearningForEmployers. The course includes real life stories, information on workplace responsibilities, inclusive recruitment, and advice on assistive technology.

The Understanding Sight Loss for employers and work colleagues eLearning programme was developed by RNIB, and part funded through the Northern Ireland European Social Fund programme, the NI Department for the Economy and NI Department for Communities.