CALLS for more cash for the blind and visually impaired were today backed in York.

This week The Guide Dogs For The Blind Association launched a national Rethink Rehab campaign, to get more Government cash for rehabilitation services for the blind and visually impaired.

Councils can send an officer round to the homes of the poorly sighted to help them live independently - such as fixing special markers onto washing machines or cookers or helping with cleaning and shopping.

But according the association, there is a "serious crisis" in services for the blind nationwide, with thousands unable to lead full and independent lives because they have not been given the right skills to cope with visual impairment.

Now the group is lobbying MPs by sending a special jigsaw, with a piece missing to symbolise what it sees as a gap in services.

Poorly sighted people are being sent the missing piece which they are being urged to send to local politicians to reinforce the appeal.

The campaign was today backed by York MP Hugh Bayley, and the city's Blind and Partially Sighted Society.

Society chief officer Diane Roworth said: "The services they (City of York Council) provide are very good - it's just that there are not enough of them. Most people are probably not aware of what a rehabilitation officer is - or that the council employs a rehabilitation officer.

"Rehabilitation services are so beneficial in terms of helping people stay independent - they can't be underestimated."

Mr Bayley said the issue was one he "passionately supported".

"I think that Britain's rehabilitation services, not just for the blind but for all disabled people, are not good enough," he said. "I'd like to see the Government making rehabilitation a priority.

"The key thing about rehab is it needs to happen early because the later it is the more disabled people get and they stop doing things they did before. It's staggering how quickly people lose the ability to be independent."

A spokeswoman for City of York Council said it employed a full-time rehabilitation officer for the blind, whose work could range from mobility training to carrying out home assessments. She said the council also had a part-time worker specialising in working with people who were blind and deaf, and funded local voluntary organisations which supported and campaigned for the visually impaired.

"At the moment, we are not aware of any unusual pressures on the current rehabilitation services that we offer and this is not an issue that other customers or voluntary groups have raised with us," she said.

:: Fact file

There are 825 blind and partially-sighted people in York, according to the Department of Health. But The Blind and Partially Sighted Society says it has closer to 1,000 on its books

According to the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, many authorities do not even have properly qualified staff for rehabilitation training.

Updated: 10:21 Wednesday, October 05, 2005