Guest blog: say hello to Emma

Last week we caught up with Emma. Emma has a visual impairment and has been a guest (and reporter) on our inclusive radio show, The Sunny Sessions.

Emma, tell us a little bit about yourself

I am 34 and from Bristol. I work for Sense. I also volunteer at the sight loss council in Bristol and do lots of campaigning for people with disabilities. I love gaming on my Xbox, karaoke Reading and Lego! I have been married 6 years to my wife Natalie, we have been together 12 years in December 2022.

When did you first get involved with Sense?

I was 20 so it’s been 14 years, 15 next March! I started volunteering, a year later my boss offered me a paid job! I was so happy!

For people who might not know much about visual impairments, can you tell us a bit about what it means?

So visual Impairment means you can’t see very well, some people might not be able to see at all which means they will say they are blind.

I am Blind in one eye and have some sight in the other, so I am Visually Impaired as I do have some sight.

What are some of the things that people with a visual impairment might need extra support with?

We may need someone to help us get around, these people might be called a guide or sighted guide. Some people might use a white cane, which come in different sizes. Some people might have a guide dog to help them. Some may have all three! I use a white cane. I also have red stripes on mine as also I am hard of hearing.

If someone has a visual impairment, what support is out there for them?

There are support groups and social groups, there are also befriending services. In Bristol I have a big group of friends and we try to get together once a month and do karaoke and we are all in a group on our phones to keep in contact.

Is there anything that the general public could do to support someone with a visual impairment?

Help make things more accessible for us, in real life and on social media, if you want to ask questions, please do, it helps raise awareness!

Top 3 gadgets that you find useful

• My kindle. as I love reading and I can’t see book font anymore, so I can read loads now!

• My phone. it helps to make things so much more accessible, for example, if font is too small, I have an app that can read it to me!

• My magnifier. It is amazing and so strong! It has a light on it so I can read small font at the size I need.

Thank you for reading and I hope this helps you get to know me a little! I cant wait to do more with Sunnybank and Sunny Sessions radio!