Someone of pension age who has acquired sight loss in adult life and is eligible for certification as sight impaired, faces significantly greater additional cost, compared to people of working age with the same degree of impairment. This difference is accounted for by three areas with higher costs for pensioners – household services, transport and food – but that this is partly offset by somewhat lower costs in other areas, particularly technology. Discussion and conclusions This research builds on the findings of the previous study showing that people who are vision impaired face a range of additional household costs. It also shows how these costs can vary greatly according to severity of impairment and life stage. In particular, having a severe sight impairment more than doubles the additional minimum costs identified for someone of working age who is sight impaired but with some usable sight. Being of pension age and sight impaired adds around 50 per cent more costs than being working age and sight impaired. Behind differences lie both practical considerations and psychological factors that influence what sight impaired people require in order to participate fully in society. These factors interact to influence, in particular: how much help people need in the home; how they can stay safe; the help and support that they require outside the home including in getting around and in participating socially; and how they use technology. The amount of help available from friends and relations, the strength of local services and access to these, and interactions between sight loss and other impairments are also all important in determining additional costs. An issue for pension age people who become sight
implications of these two new cases and then draw comparisons with the case used in the previous study of a working age person who is sight impaired. Costs have been adjusted to 2014 prices to enable comparison between the two studies. The slight variations between figures reported in this and the previous study are due to changes in the housing tenure model in the Main MIS case study, with consequent implications for furnishing requirements, and adjustments to fuel costs. Throughout this report, the term ‘main MIS’ is used to refer to the original MIS budgets for people who are not vision impaired. Chapter 3 The additional needs of people who are vision impaired This chapter looks at the additional and different needs that groups identified for two categories of people who are vison impaired. It reports the additional and different goods and services that groups included in the budgets for a single working age person who lives alone and is severely sight impaired with little or no useable sight, and for a single person of pension age living on their own who is sight impaired with some useable sight and has acquired sight loss in adult life. Each of these cases is compared to the equivalent main MIS budgets for people who are fully sighted. It also explains the rationales behind these changes to the budgets. This chapter looks at the needs of each of the above case studies in their own right. It is also possible to compare the effect of severity of impairment and the effect of impairment at different
The duration of the iPhone was set at one year because of heavy ‘wear and tear’ resulting from the extensive use demanded by someone severely sight impaired, which could slow the performance down over time and decrease the sensitivity of the touch screen The working age groups also changed the mobile phone contract from the basic £10 a month package included in the Main MIS to allow enough data for someone who is severely sight impaired to be able to use their phone without restriction when out and about. As in main MIS, the sight impaired pension age groups did not identify a need for a smartphone. However, they stressed the importance of simplicity and clarity, and changed the specification of the non-smart phone in the main MIS budget to include a model that was easy to use for someone who is sight impaired. They said that the phone needed to have large buttons and a big clear screen, as well as an ‘in case of emergency’ button which provides a direct dial to pre-programmed numbers. People thought that this was a need for someone of pension age living alone who has become sight impaired as they might be more vulnerable to falling and could find it difficult to see the screen or buttons to dial in an emergency. Landline phone and internet connection The main MIS budget for a single working age person does not include a landline, as groups have said that a mobile is sufficient to meet people’s needs. However, the severely sight impaired working age groups all agreed that for someone with little or no sight a landline is a necessity for security and safety purposes. They described the landline as essential ‘back up’ to the mobile if there were problems with battery or
assistance with paperwork, which each account for 11 per cent of the additional weekly costs, and the additional budget for DIY and maintenance, which accounts for four per cent of the additional costs. The additional costs of transport and travel (£27.50) account for around a quarter (24 per cent) of the additional weekly budget for a single working age person who is severely sight impaired. Seventeen per cent of the additional weekly budget results from the additional cost of social activities (£19.28), including weekly activities, hobbies and holidays, and 16 per cent is accounted for by the additional cost of technology and electrical items (£18.11). The changes made to the food budgets (£9.23) account for a further eight per cent of the additional costs faced by a working age person who is severely sight impaired. Six per cent of the additional costs result from changes to the clothing, personal goods and health care services in the budget (£6.91). This includes the addition of extra prescriptions, a rucksack and cane, and changes to the glasses and shoes included in the main MIS budget. Three per cent of the additional weekly budget results from changes made to the household fittings and furniture and selected household goods (£3.96). Changes to household bills (73 pence) account for less than one per cent of the additional weekly budget. Figure 1 (described of additional costs for a single working age person who is severely sight impaired
various types of specialist lighting in each room, plus some bright LED torches and a portable folding lamp increases the budget by £2.07 per week. The changes to the flooring add £1.17 a week, and changing the sofabed and armchairs to make them easier to clean adds 70 pence a week. The weekly additional cost of the various changes and additions made to the cooking equipment and dining equipment and kitchenware is 61 pence. Other items add only a very small amount to the overall budget, because they are expected to last a long time, and so cost relatively little each week. This includes replacing the vacuum cleaner with a cordless carpet sweeper (8 pence per week), adding an intercom for security purposes (7 pence) and including a solid shower screen and grab rail for safety in the bathroom (3 pence). Table 8 The additional cost of household fittings, furnishings and selected household goods for a pension age person who is sight impaired £ per week (April 2014 prices) Single pension age person without impairment Single pension age person who is impaired Cost of additional and/or different Lighting (incl. torches and portable lights) 0.24 2.32 2.07 Flooring 1.92 3.09 1.17 Living room furniture 1.22 1.92 0.70 Kitchen, dining equipment 1.37 1.98 0.61 Vacuum cleaner 0.11 0.19 0.08
week) for someone who is severely sight impaired. This is because groups felt that someone with little or no sight would be more dependent on paying for help which generally involved a minimum charge, even for small jobs. A working age person who is sight impaired, rather than severely sight impaired, would need some, but less extensive, additional help because there may be a greater range of jobs that they could undertake themselves. Transport The main difference in the additional working age transport costs relates to a greater use of taxis for someone who is severely sight impaired, which results in an additional cost of £20.70 per week compared to the budget for the sight impaired case in the previous study. It was felt that someone with little or no sight would need to take taxis more often to participate in more leisure activities and maintain social networks of friends that may be more geographically spread if someone who is long term severely sight impaired has attended a specialist VI school or college. Secondly, while the sight impaired working age groups in the previous study agreed to one extra taxi per week, most travel was expected to be by bus. As noted in the previous chapter, groups in the current study outlined how a taxi can be preferable to a bus for someone severely sight impaired for practical and confidence reasons– carrying things when using a cane or Guide Dog, at night time or in busy periods. Social activities and hobbies The budget for social activities and hobbies was increased more significantly for a working age person who is severely sight impaired. Groups in the previous study felt that the main MIS £20 per week budget was ‘doable’ for someone who is sight impaired, however an extra £10