Research and development in the field of sight loss and provision for visual impairment among black and minority ethnic groups in Britain is poorly developed. There are real and inexcusable inequalities in access to services for people from minority ethnic communities, and a distinct lack of knowledge about the issues involved among both sight-loss service-providing bodies who are relatively uninformed about ethnic and cultural diversity, and among black and minority ethnic communities in respect of sight loss and provision to meet the needs of visually impaired people. The article, based on systematic review of published and ‘grey’ literature and action research, describes some key issues which might be taken into account to ensure that the gulf between these two silos of information and experience may be bridged, and insists that so-called ‘colour-blind practice’ is not acceptable.
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