Almost two million people in the UK are living with sight loss that has a significant impact on their daily lives. Of those, around 180,000 rarely leave their homes alone and lead lonely, isolated lives. Guide Dogs works for a world where people with sight loss are never left out of life, for a world where being blind or partially sighted is not what defines you. A world with enough support to make the challenges of sight loss no barrier to fulfilling hopes and dreams.

I have had my guide dog Daisy for just over 7 years and she has just turned 9. I am fundraising for Guide Dogs because having Daisy has transformed my life. Daisy is brilliant at getting me to places quickly, safely and she literally lifts my disability while she is guiding me round.

With Daisy I can walk at a fast pace like I used to and she stops me bumping into things. Daisy can locate all the places I visit regularly and can recognise particular shops. She warns me of steps, stops at obstacles and won’t let me cross a road if it’s not safe. She can find lifts, stairs, exits, cash machines, tills and most importantly cafes. Having Daisy has transformed my life and saved me from serious injury. There have been many times when she has literally dragged me out of the path of danger.

This has all been made possible by the work of the Guide Dogs for the Blind charity who do such amazing work to support so many people with sight loss. I was lucky to get Daisy very quickly but many people have to wait years to get matched to a guide dog. I am a committed supporter of Guide Dogs and wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could train even more guide dogs to give more people with sight loss the chance to transform their life as I have.