Advice & resources

Looking for guidance

Whether you're looking for guidance for yourself, or want to know more about how to support someone with sight loss or blindness, we are here to help.

Find information here about sight loss, including advice to help with the different ways sight loss can impact on your life.

You can search by topic, and if you can't find the information you need just let us know and we'll do our best to support you.

Featured guide

There are simple ways to make a cafe or restaurant more enjoyable for a customer with visual impairment. You can download our new guide, "Giving great customer service to customers with visual impairment" for some simple tips!

Explore our customer service tips

Information and Advice

How Royal Blind School pupils use BrailleNote devices for word processing and emails

How Royal Blind School pupils use BrailleNote devices for word processing and emails.

How to create sensory story resources for pupils with visual impairment

Multi-sensory stories are a great way for people with multiple disabilities and visual impairment to learn and to interact with stories.

How to create tactile graphics

This video shows how to create tactile graphics using a printer and a heat fusing machine. This video is for educators and Qualified Teachers of the Visually Impaired.

How to iron safely

Clothing care is an important life skill that may be overlooked when people with visual impairment are growing up. In this video, a pupil with visual impairment demonstrates how to use an iron safely.

How to make a cheese sandwich

In this video, we demonstrate how to teach a young person with visual impairment to make a toasted cheese sandwich safely.

How to make velcro boards for braille learners

In this video, Science Teacher Anna Christal discusses how to use velcro boards to support children's learning.

How to organise the kitchen to make cooking easier for people with visual impairment

This video demonstrates how to organise the kitchen area to enable a person with a visual impairment to easily locate items and cook a meal.

How to sew on a button

In this video, we give advice on how a person with a visual impairment can sew a button on to a piece of cloth.

How to sign 'Afternoon' with Canaan Barrie on body sign system

This video shows the Canaan Barrie sign for "Afternoon".

How to sign 'Again' with Canaan Barrie on body sign system

This video shows the Canaan Barrie sign for ‘Again’.

How to sign 'Lights Room' with the Canaan Barrie on body sign system

This video shows the Canaan Barrie sign for "Lights Room".

How to sign 'Orange' with the Canaan Barrie On Body sign system

This video shows how to sign 'Orange' with the Canaan Barrie On Body sign system.

Canaan Barrie on body sign system

The Canaan Barrie on body sign system is used to communicate with children who have multiple disabilities, as well as visual impairment. The sign system was developed at the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh.

On body signing helps develop a young person’s natural gesture and, in turn, helps them communicate better with their world around them.

Check out videos demonstrating the signs below

Information and Advice

Mobility cane or guide dog?

For blind or partially sighted people, the choice between using a cane or a guide dog is often a personal one.

NaviLens guide

How to use Navilens at Sight Scotland and Sight Scotland Veterans sites.

Staying safe: Road crossing tips for blind and partially sighted people

Negotiating pedestrian crossings is something many people take for granted – but crossing the road when you’re blind or visually impaired can feel daunting.

Support for sight loss in the workplace

If you develop sight loss when you are in work, there is support for you and your employer to help you continue in employment.

Top 10 most popular low vision aids

Sight Scotland Veterans rehabilitation officer Fiona gives insight into the top ten most popular low vision aids the charity issues to its members.

Top five tips for eye health in older people

Here are our five tops tips for eye health in older people.

Top tips for cooking with a visual impairment

There are plenty of techniques and pieces of equipment that can help blind and partially sighted people to cook safely.

Types of mobility canes for vision impairment

Mobility canes are a form of mobility aid that enable blind or visually impaired people to go about their daily business when out and about, especially in unfamiliar areas.

Why sight loss can affect sleep

Sleep is essential for our general health and wellbeing. However, vision loss can affect the body’s sleep schedule. People with visual impairment can experience more insomnia and tiredness during the day, as a result.

Winter safety tips for people with a visual impairment

Sight Scotland Veterans rehabilitation officer, Katrina, gives her tips for staying safe and maintaining independence while out and about when the winter weather sets in.

Popular on Sight Scotland

Our new names

We are proud to announce the new names of our two sister charities and share why we changed our names. We’ve continually adapted to ensure we're there for people with sight loss, and will be there in the future too.

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