CPD & AGM, wait times, wAMD at L&D, Sexual Safety Charter, CVI Webinar Update, FODO News

15 June 2026

We have 4 items for you today:

1. Herts LOC Peer Review CPD Event and Committee AGM, Monday 23rd March in Welwyn
   
   We are pleased to invite you to a Herts LOC In-Person CPD Event, “Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty (SLT) and Minimally Invasive Glaucoma Surgery (MIGS)” presented by Harikesh Kaneshayogan, Consultant Ophthalmologist specialising in cataract and glaucoma surgery at West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, on Monday 23rd March, at Tewinbury Farm, Welwyn, AL6 0JB.

   This will be a peer review, we have applied for three interactive points for OOs and DOs.  There will a light buffet and refreshments from 6pm.

   Herts LOC will be holding their Annual General Meeting at 6.30pm, which will give you a chance to meet us and find out what the committee has been doing on your behalf. The CPD event is due to start at 7pm, and will finish between 8:30 and 9pm.  

   Please register by completing the form HERE. Places are limited so we will send confirmation of your place and further details in the coming days. If you later find that you are unable to attend or if you have any queries, please email admin@hertsloc.org.uk

   We look forward to seeing many of you there!

2. ICB Confirmation of Increase in Waiting Times to 14 weeks 
   
   Please find below a statement from Herts and West Essex ICB regarding minimum waiting times which has been sent to all providers. Whilst we are, or course, disappointed, we are aware that this is happening in most areas nationally and is becoming the standard.

   We would emphasise the ability to request a clinical exception for which the provider will need to seek agreement from the ICB. Optometrists are NOT able to request exemption directly themselves, unfortunately.

   “Dear All

   In line with the national guidance the ICB are increasing the minimum waits for patients from 12 weeks to 14 weeks as of 1st January 27 (RTT measurement). To reiterate, this is for treatment, there is no limit on how early patients can been seen for a first appointment. 

   Where clinical exceptions are required, ie that patients require more urgent treatment, please contact either myself of the contract lead with details of the rationale and we will seek clinical approval for individual cases. Please do not send personal identifiable information with these requests (ie NHS number, name, address, date of birth). (Herts LOC note: This is for PROVIDERS TO DO, NOT OPTOMETRISTS)

   The ICB is proposing to retain minimum waits for 2026-27, the number of weeks is still to be decided. This will be sent to all our providers as soon as it is available.

   Your sincerely
   Anne Mansfield
   Associate Director, Contracts”

3. Email address for Hertfordshire LOC (us!)
   We have recently received emails to a very old LOC account. Please can everyone ensure that our current address:

   admin@hertsloc.org.uk

   is used to ensure we receive your emails. We do fit our LOC roles around our practice and other commitments so do bear with us, but if anyone does not receive a reply from us after a week, please verify that you are using the correct email address and do send again, in case the original went into spam or got lost!

   We are here to support you so please do not hesitate to contact us if we can help.

4. wAMD at  Luton & Dunstable
   
   We are aware that the wAMD advice on our referral contacts sheet for Luton & Dunstable (L&D) may have been superseded. We are in the process of verifying the correct wAMD pathway for L&D, our current understanding is as stated below. We will keep you updated as and when any amendments are advised.

   For confirmation, if you are in S&W Herts, referral for wAMD would normally be through the EyeV portal. This has not changed.

   However, if the patient wishes to go to L&D, Beds LOC and L&D suggest you fill in a a rapid access referral form which can be downloaded HERE, and email it to ldh-tr.AMDcoordinator@nhs.net 

   The patient should hear from the AMD co-ordinator within 2 weeks of receipt of referral with an appointment. It is good practice to explain this to the patient and ask them to contact you if they have not heard within this time. In these circumstances, please contact the AMD co-ordinator on 01582 497328 to confirm they have received the referral.

   For E&N Herts, again there is no change to the current pathway so please use your normal referral route for wAMD. However, if the patient requests L&D, the same advice above applies.

   If you have sent any wAMD referrals to L&D in the past via the general email address, ldophthalmology@nhs.net, we suggest that these are checked with L&D to ensure that they have been actioned. If in any doubt, forward the email to the Urgent Eye Clinic, ldh-tr.acute.eyeclinics@nhs.net, explaining that the referral was sent to the general email address and that you need confirmation that the referral has been actioned and the patient treated. The acute email address is also to be used for ocular emergencies, as before.

   Any queries on this process, please email us in the first instance at admin@hertsloc.org.uk . Any queries regarding wAMD referrals must go to the Urgent Eye Clinic as above.

   The referral contacts list on our website has been updated, HERE.

5. Sexual Safety Charter Update
   
   Further to our previous email regarding the NHS Sexual Safety Charter, ONFC have issued the following update:

   Many primary eye care practices will be aware of the recent communication from ICBs and/or NHSE Regional Teams in which they requested practices sign up to the NHS Sexual Safety Charter.

   After discussing this matter with NHS England, OFNC are now able to provide an update.

   The request to sign up to the charter has been made in advance of the upcoming update to the Employment Rights Act 2026 which will strengthen the legal duties on employers and will require that employers take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. OFNC have been informed that there is an expectation that the Government will subsequently seek to introduce legislation that will define what compliance looks like, placing a legal obligation on businesses, however this is not expected to come into effect before 2027 and may be subject to change.

   Currently there is no obligation on primary eye care practices to complete the ‘Sexual Safety Charter – self-assurance checklist for primary care providers’ shared by the ICBs. There is also, at this point, no obligation to sign up to the NHS Sexual Safety Charter, or to complete any additional training beyond that which is routinely conducted by the business owner.

   OFNC will continue to discuss with NHS England how any changes introduced by future legislation should be implemented, but OFNC have been very clear with NHS England there is currently no contractual mechanism available to mandate practices to sign up to this charter and that this would be an additional, unfunded requirement.

   If, as suggested, the Government introduces new legislation regarding this issue, it is our view that the existing contract compliance frameworks such as QiO should be used. Utilising this mechanism will avoid duplication for practices and ensure that the resources available and reporting processes are, as far as is possible, appropriate to the primary eye care sector. OFNC have agreed to discuss what appropriate steps post legislation may look like and to work with NHS England to ensure the burden on practices is minimised.

   However, we are aware that some practices may wish to familiarise themselves with the NHS materials and should they wish to do so, further information can be found here.

6. Cerebral Vision Impairment Webinar Update
   Further to our previous newsletter, we are advised by the organiser, Cirta Tooth, that the webinar on Wednesday 18th March will now NOT have CPD points awarded by the provider. However, she advises:

   “I have decided to hold this event as a self-directed CPD event. I can provide an email and a generic certificate which participants can upload as CPD evidence.

   I have 2 more webinars in the pipeline which will be CPD accredited and hosted by the RNIB (later this year). One will be suitable for people with very little or no knowledge of CVI. The other one is for those who already provide some Low Vision and/or CVI assessments and want to learn more.“

   Further information can be found on her website, HERE.

7. FODO News 
   Is HERE, Including GOC looking for research participants, National Apprenticeship Week and Webinar explains urgency behind employee rights changes.

 

Kind regards

Herts LOC