North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has spoken in the Assembly this week of the accessibility obstacles facing blind and partially sighted people in Wales and called on local authorities and the Assembly to work to remove them,.
Speaking in the Short Debate on Living with Sight Loss, Mr Isherwood said:
“Shared space or shared services remain a significant issue for people living with vision loss in Wales, where no kerbs, no safe crossing points, pavement obstacles and a reliance on eye contact turns high streets into no-go zones for blind and partially sighted people and guide dogs.
“A Flintshire constituent told me, ‘Both of my children and I have vision loss, and if we want to access the village shops and facilities, we have to cross the road unassisted by a pedestrian crossing, or walk in the road itself’. This, she said, is risky and scary. She added, ‘I’ve visited the Senedd, and the lack of marking of the steps and slopes outside the building makes it very difficult makes it very difficult for someone with vision loss to navigate safely. As the RNIB states, local authorities should work with blind and partially sighted people under their Public Sector Equality Duty to assess existing shared spaces and involve them when new schemes are put forward. Of course, the same goes for the Assembly.”