AN OPTICIAN has set her sights on helping people to see clearly in India.

Optician Dr Gillian Eyre and her husband Julian from Canadian Avenue, Hoole, are preparing to travel to India in January with charity Vision Aid Overseas (VOS).

They will be part of a six person team aiming to improve the lives of thousands of patients who desperately need spectacles to live an ordinary life.

The project will last two weeks, from January 27 to February 10, and gives Gillian and Julian the opportunity to use their skills to transform people's lives.

Dr Eyre said: 'This will be my fourth trip to India with the charity, it is so rewarding.

'It is amazing how easily we take spectacles for granted in the UK, even if you are short-sighted or long-sighted it is virtually impossible to consider your condition a disability.

'In India many people, especially youngsters, are severely disabled by poor eyesight and I am very excited about the opportunity to help these people.'

VAO is a charity dedicated to helping people who suffer from short and long sightedness but are unable to receive optical treatment, as in the developing world these services are virtually non-existent.

Dr Eyre added: 'I met a tailor once who needed reading glasses but had to stop work because he could not afford to get them.

'This has such a knock-on effect as then he could not afford to send his children to school. We try to stop the family economy breakdown in that way.'

If you would like further information about Vision Aid Overseas or want to make a donation of money or spectacles, visit the website at www.vao.org.uk or telephone the office on 01293 535016.