A few months ago, we became the proud grandparents of twins, a boy and a girl, 10 weeks early. A couple of weeks after birth, our grandson Lockie was diagnosed with a serious eye condition. Despite the skill and dedication of NHS medical staff and three operations in Aberdeen and London, Lockie lost his sight. He will face many challenges but he will lead a happy, fulfilling and independent life with the love and support of his parents, family and friends. However he will need specialist support and that is where the RNIB steps in. They have already provided emotional and practical support during a difficult time over the last few weeks and will be fully involved all through Lockie's life.

I am running the London Marathon for the RNIB because our grandson lives in Scotland.  However,  because I reached my sponsorship target with them , they have kindly agreed that I can also raise money for the NCBI who do similar work in Ireland. They are an amazing charity and I would appreciate any donation, however small, to help them continue their critical work. Thank you

NCBI (National council for the blind of Ireland) is the national sight loss agency. Currently there are 55,000 people in Ireland with blindness and or a visual impairment. Our vision is for people who are blind and vision-impaired to have the same opportunities, rights, and choices as others to fully participate in society. Our aim is to enable people who are blind, and vision impaired to overcome the barriers that impede their independence and participation in society.

Our services and supports are available to adults and children who are blind, or vision impaired in Ireland, and we work with approximately 8,000 per annum.

NCBI’s services are all designed to bolster confidence and independence by delivering orientation and mobility skills training, technology training, support in education, employment as well as sport and leisure activities.