On the 20th September I will be participating in the BHF London to Brighton off-road charity bike ride.

In addition to a private donation to the BHF to participate in the event, following other friends and family who have taken part in previous years, I will be raising funds independently for BlindAid.

I have worked closely with BlindAid in the past, most memorably raising money through a community event enabling a group of their service users to have a day's Christmas shopping with others from their community. It was a mere snapshot into the incredible work the charity are able to organise.

BlindAid provide invaluable support for those diagnosed with a vast array of visual impairments living within London, who are often left totally isolated when trying to navigate daily life during which, even the simplest tasks can prove considerably more difficult without the support, training or emotional reassurance needed, often for the rest of their lives.

With a targeted focus on building connections and reducing loneliness through two principle initiatives; the Community Sight Support Service, and through attending community-based projects, BlindAid users can rely on regular calls or visits and a community support network to help them through what will often be, a challenging and intimidating new life.

Visual impairment and blindness can affect anyone, currently there are c.2,000,000 people living with sight loss in the UK, 50 per cent of which are totally blind or partially sighted with an irreversible eye-health condition. Roughly 91,250 people start to experience sight loss symptoms annually (around 250 each day), and of that figure within England and Wales, over 24,000 people receive a Certificate of Vision Impairment each year, with a total of 320,000 people currently registered as Sight Impaired/Severely Sight Impaired in the UK. The accepted average is 1 in 5 people will live with sight loss in their lifetime.

Without BlindAid, many blind and visually impaired Londoners that they support would not leave their home or have social connections with anyone.

In their own words: "We provide an integrated approach, with our two core services of the Sight Support Service and our Community Project supplemented by two additional services, Share London and Grants to fit the varying needs of Londoners living with a visual impairment. We promise to provide the support people need."