A WOMAN who hadn't had her eyes tested for ten years is now electing to have corrective surgery for a squint after a visit to the Vision Van that was parked up at Wharf Green this week.

Jae-Marie Woolford, 30 from Swindon was born with a slight squint in her left eye and she says it has blighted her life.

After a car accident eight years ago that resulted in glass fragments under her eyelid and eye socket, she had avoided eye tests, despite fearing her sight was worsening.

“I knew my squint had got worse because I’ve started to notice it more," said Jae-Marie. "This was confirmed during my eye test and I’ve now been referred to my GP. I might even be able to get corrective squint surgery, which I wasn’t sure I could have. I’ll definitely keep coming for regular eye tests after today. I wish I’d been coming more often. It’s really worth having a check up - it’s not just about your sight, an eye test can pick up so many different health problems.”

Vision Express was in Swindon to offer residents free eye tests to mark National Eye Health Week which runs until Sunday.

Figures show 17,730 members of the local population are living with a sight-threatening eye condition such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), cataracts, glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy.

James Ling, 52, who also stopped by was also advised to see his GP, with a defect detected in his vision. He said: “I had an eye test just over two and half years ago, so I was due an eye test and thought I may as well have a free one.

"I’m glad I came because I can now get my visual field defect looked into and hopefully get it sorted. To anyone putting off getting an eye test, I would say you never know what might be wrong with your vision, your eyes are too valuable to leave them unchecked.”

The latest research reveals that over two million people in the UK are living with sight loss and that for over half of these, a simple sight test and new glasses could make all the difference yet 37 percent of people put off having an eye test due to concern about the cost and more than half of adults only visit an optician once every five years.

Public Health England joined forces with Vision Express for the initiative, with representatives on hand at the Vision Van to talk to residents about the link between smoking and sight impairment. Figures show that one fifth of Swindon residents are smokers and are putting their vision in jeopardy.

Cherry Jones, Director of Public Health at Swindon Borough Council, said: “We were delighted to be part of this event, which proved really popular. It was interesting to see how surprised some people were to discover the strong link between smoking and developing age-related macular degeneration, so it was a good opportunity to again highlight the risks of smoking and raise awareness of the wide range of free support available to help smokers quit. With Stoptober starting next weekend, our health ambassadors also shared information and advice about how to get involved."

Those who missed the ‘Vision Van’ can still benefit from a free eye test by downloading an online voucher before the end of September from the Vision Express website: http://www.visionexpress.com/national-eye-health-week-2016/. The voucher can be redeemed until the end of October 2016