Visibility Scotland and TAVIP (Technology Association for Vision Impaired People) launch new digital inclusion in employment project

The total economic impact of sight loss in the UK, including costs attributable to unemployment, is estimated at £28 billion per year, a figure that exceeds the estimated annual economic burden of heart disease, cancer, and stroke combined.

The employment gap facing vision impaired people remains stark.  Just 27% are in work, compared with 76% of the general population, and this figure has changed little over time. Research points to a lack of access to essential technology and digital skills training as a major contributor, limiting opportunities in today’s modern workplace. Creating more inclusive workplace cultures is also critical to improving employment outcomes for vision impaired and blind people.

Furthermore, there are a number of systemic challenges in providing technology training, including the lack of a recognised digital skills framework for people who are blind or partially sighted, a lack of evidence of what training works, a lack of consistent outcome and impact measures, the lack of consistent referral pathways, as well as the need for additional trainers to deliver specialist training. Visibility Scotland and TAVIP’s  Digital Inclusion in Employment Project will start tackling these issues by developing a digital skills framework and a national business case for a professional training programme and delivery model.

The Digital Inclusion in Employment Project has two specific workstreams:

• Workstream one: Digital skills (led by TAVIP)
• Workstream two: Digital skills and workplace culture (led by Visibility Scotland)

Workstream one: Digital Skills

TAVIP will build on existing frameworks such as the Essential Digital Skills Framework (EDSF) and the International Certificate of Digital Literacy (ICDL), but will add an additional foundation layer focusing on assistive technology skills and accessibility.

Workstream Two: Digital Skills and Workplace Culture (led by Visibility Scotland)

Visibility Scotland will develop a standardised workplace support assessment tool to guide Rehabilitation Specialists and Rehabilitation Assistants in identifying and addressing employment-related needs. The assessment will provide practical questions, guidance and recommendations to support both blind and vision impaired employees and their employers, helping to create more inclusive, accessible and supportive workplace environments.

TAVIP and Visibility Scotland will collaborate with organisations from the Vision Partnership, Vision Collaborative Scotland, and AbilityNet to support the development of an evidence-led, sector-wide approach that lays a strong foundation for further investment and service development in this area.

The two-year project is being funded by Fight for Sight as part of their Digital Inclusion funding programme.

For further information or to get involved with the project, visit the webpage linked below:

Employment Support – Visibility Scotland

You can also get in touch by emailing info@nullvisibilityscotland.org.uk or info@nulltavip.org.uk

Sources

1. Barriers faced by people with sight loss | RNIB
2. See My Skills
3. Employment – VI Insight Hub
4. Employment for blind and partially sighted people in 2019 | RNIB