Jesse Norman MP has welcomed the news that the Royal National College for the Blind has been awarded a major new contract by the Department of Work and Pensions. The £3 million Specialist Employability Support contract is designed to provide people who have a visual impairment with the skills, training and confidence to find permanent employment.

The new contract will be based at the RNC in Hereford but will also allow the RNC’s clients to access expertise, training and support in their home area through a national network of local centres.

A range of options will be available, from immersive residential training for those who need to develop core skills such as mobility, to short refresher sessions to improve interview skills and learn new forms of assistive technology. Vocational training courses leading to careers in specific industries including IT, sport and leisure and the arts will be on offer, while other training will be a gateway to Work Choice or Work Programme.

Commenting, Jesse said “I am absolutely delighted at this news. It has taken many, many months of work for us to make the case to Government for the importance of the RNC and of its specialist skills, and at last it has all paid off.

“Massive congratulations to the Principal. Sheila Tallon, and her team. The RNC is an extraordinary institution, and it is wise and right and good that the expertise and passion of its staff have been recognised in this way.”