Bagpipes and breaking down sight barriers

SIGHT Loss Councils in Dumfries and Galloway recently launched a groundbreaking new training initiative at the Celtic Connections festival. For the first time, visually impaired members delivered ‘Visual Impairment Inclusion and Sighted Guiding’ training to festival staff helping to transform accessibility at this year’s event. The ‘train the trainer’ programme places lived experience at the heart of visual impairment training, ensuring accessibility is shaped by real people’s needs and driving meaningful change across Scotland’s cultural sector. Morag Faichney, 50, from Dumfries, lives with myopia and multiple detached retinas. She said: “I’m incredibly proud of the train the trainer programme and the impact it is already having on accessibility in venues. “This was the first time something like this had been delivered by visually impaired people like myself, and that makes it incredibly significant. “Putting lived experience at the centre of the training gives staff real understanding and confidence, so they know what to expect when welcoming visitors with visual impairment. “Concerts, gigs and shows should be for everyone. Accessibility should never be a question, it should be a priority. “Everyone should be able to enjoy concerts and shows on a level playing field and we hope this is the start of a real shift where accessibility is a requirement and never an afterthought.”