This week is the Down’s Syndrome Association’s Awareness Week.JO HENWOOD talks to Jenny Russell about what she achieves and how bifocal lenses and specially designed frames help her see better

JENNY is 23 years old. She studied performing arts at college and has left home. She shares a house with a friend she has known since she was born.

She holds down two jobs, which she combines with a course at West Cheshire College. She adores musicals and her favourites are Hairspray and Wicked. She enjoys clothes shopping with her younger sister, her favourite meal is fish and chips and she cried at the film Les Misérables. She swims regularly and has a part in the summer production of the Chester Mystery Plays.

Jenny has Down’s Syndrome.

Until now, I could have been talking about either of the women in the photograph opposite.

But Sophie McVinnie, 22, is Jenny’s support worker and without her, and the support of her close family, Jenny would not have been able to achieve a fraction of the above.

I meet Jenny and Sophie at Jenny’s home in Boughton. She shares the house with two friends and three support workers share the responsibility of ensuring that they can live as independent lives as possible.

Jenny has many health issues because she has Down’s Syndrome but it is clear that she understands me better than I understand her. She can sign but I can’t.

Despite these difficulties, I discover that Jenny went to Dee Banks School when she was younger, that she has three sisters and that she loved acting when she was a student at the National Star College in Cheltenham, an independent college for people with learning disabilities.

She can list every character from the musical Hairspray and tells me that the director of the Chester Mystery Plays ‘talks a lot’ during rehearsals.

She is full of energy and obviously enjoys everything she does. She is excited to be going out for tea that evening as it is her younger sister Alison’s 19th birthday.

Mum Joyce, dad Stewart and sister Kirsty are on hand to help me out with some of the background information about Jenny and it is clear that she is dearly loved.

Joyce, a quietly spoken Scot, is a phenomenal woman, who has constantly remained ahead of the game to ensure that her daughter has access to the best medical advice and opportunities.

The focus of this year’s awareness week is to highlight the fact that people with Down’s Syndrome often have poor vision and Jenny’s glasses are an excellent example of Joyce’s endeavours to find the best for her.

Joyce, a scientist at Unilever, obviously has a clear understanding of the medical implications of Jenny’s condition and absorbs information quickly.

She said: “Jenny has been wearing glasses since she was about 18 months old and I remember when she first got them, it was a struggle to get her to part with them when she went to bed, she loved them so much.

“About 10 years ago, I read an article by Dr Maggie Woodhouse at Cardiff University saying that many people with Down’s Syndrome would benefit from having bifocal lenses.

“It was difficult to get people to listen so I contacted Maggie directly. She referred me to a personal friend and professional colleague, Ann Duignan, an optician with a practice in Newport, Shropshire, and Jenny has been wearing bifocals since.

“She now has new frames, which we sourced from America, which are designed specifically to fit people with Down’s Syndrome.

“I had noticed that Jenny was constantly pushing her glasses up and that in photos, she was always looking over her glasses.

“The American optician who designed the frames, which fit much better, also has a daughter with Down’s Syndrome.”

To find out more about Down’s Syndrome Awareness Week visit www.downs-syndrome.org.uk.

Read this story on the Chester Chronicle website, www.chesterchronicle.co.uk, and link to a video of Jenny in performance at the National Star College.