Press release issued: 15 April 2010.
'Microscopic' labelling and obstacles in supermarket aisles are among the hazards that blind and partially sighted Scots report about their experiences when shopping.
The findings are being released by the Royal National Institute of Blind People as part of a major 'Go! Shop' event it has organised in Edinburgh today to kickstart improvements that would make shopping, travel and banking more accessible.
A wide range of leading retailers including Jenners, Sainsburys, John Lewis, Morrison's and Asda, as well as transport providers First Group and Stagecoach and representatives from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Fife councils, will take part in the one-day event.
In a survey of 50 people with sight loss, all said they had difficulty reading labelling and packaging information on products - meaning vital information can be missed such as expiry dates, cooking instructions, and content details that might be essential for people managing conditions like diabetes. Ninety-eight per cent of those surveyed had also experienced difficulty in reading signs, 78 per cent in encountering obstacles inside shops, and 40 per cent in navigating online shopping websites.
Last month, RNIB accompanied three people with sight loss to visit shops in Edinburgh and record their experiences travelling and shopping in the city. One also recorded his attempts to shop online.
Mark Smith (27), one of the three volunteers, has had retinitis pigmentosa from birth, a condition that affects the light-sensitive cells at the back of the eye. "I find large shops quite daunting despite having a guide-dog," he said. "I find smaller local shops quieter and the staff very helpful, although a bit more expensive. Bigger shops tend to have more obstacles - shopping trolleys lying around, staff stacking shelves, signs warning about wet floors. I often end up having to ask other customers for help."
Fazilet Hadi, RNIB's group director for inclusive society, said this programme of work was aimed at improving things for people like Mark. "We have held Go Shop events in Manchester and Lincoln, and now in Edinburgh," she said. "For people with sight loss, it has provided renewed hope that service-providers do listen and are prepared to make changes to the way they work, to make their goods and services accessible.
"For businesses, it has been an opportunity to learn about the challenges people face in their everyday activities. Several have commented on how the events have transformed the way they think about the needs of blind and partially sighted consumers, which was precisely the kind of response we were hoping for. We need to work together towards more practical solutions for people living with disabilities.
"And this doesn't necessarily have to mean elaborate or expensive changes. 84 per cent of people, for example, said their shopping experience would be improved if the shop assistant would just read out the bill total to them, and nearly all would like staff to repeat the amount of money given to them and to count out the change."
Edinburgh's Lord Provost George Grubb will open today's event.