Essex Sight Loss Council: Meet the Members

Amy Askew

Amy Askew is the Engagement Manager for the East of England, supporting the Essex and Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Sight Loss Councils, currently covering Sam Leftwich’s maternity leave.

Amy is registered sight impaired due to being born with congenital cataracts, a condition that is hereditary in her family. As a result, many members of Amy’s family live with varying degrees of sight loss, and some also have glaucoma.

With over 15 years of experience as an English teacher in the UK and internationally, Amy has supported young people with diverse educational needs to reach their potential. She has long aspired to work more closely with blind and partially sighted people and regards her role at Thomas Pocklington Trust and the Sight Loss Councils as a privilege.

Amy is committed to making positive changes in the lives of blind and partially sighted people and is passionate about creating a future where all children, including those in her family, can thrive with equal opportunities and independence.

Lee Mercer

Lee is a volunteer from the south of Essex, hailing from near Southend-on-Sea. He works for a specialist disability job board and training company called Evenbreak. Lee has lived with type 1 diabetes for several years and lost his sight in 2018 due to Diabetic Retinopathy.

Lee enjoys a good story and likes nothing more than sitting down with an audio book or an audio described movie. He also loves going on long walks with his sighted guide, exploring the country parks, woodlands, and other outdoor areas of Essex.

Lee also volunteers at his local scout group, for the RNIB social media team, and with the sensory training team at Essex Cares Ltd where he shares talks about his lived experience.

Lee says:

“I always try to do as much as I can to increase the understanding of sight loss, and disability generally. I want to make people more accepting and confident when interacting with disabled friends, family, and colleagues. Joining Essex Sight Loss Council gives me the opportunity to speak to more people and improve the relationship between local companies and their visually impaired customers.”

Mohammed Mohsanali

Mohammed lives in Essex with his family and has been severely sight impaired since the age of 4 due to retinal detachments. In his spare time, Mohammed enjoys outside listening to the sounds of nature and walking.

Mohammed is a big advocate for ensuring equality for blind and partially sighted people in his community. He is a campaigner for sight loss charities such as RNIB and even Transport for All. Mohammed was successful in winning a campaign for allocating tactile paving at a crossing point in Newham.

Mohammed says “I am looking forward to joining Essex Sight Loss Council because I want to be instrumental in helping improve the lives of blind and partially sighted people.”

Harry Meade

Harry was registered blind in 1999 due to Retinitis Pigmentosa. He now lives in Colchester with his wife, following a move from London.  He enjoys tandem bike riding, travel, current affairs and listening to audio books.

Harry has now retired following a varied career in tourism – both here and in Europe. He spent the last part of his working life with Action for Blind People and RNIB.

Harry says: “I am delighted to be joining the Essex Sight Loss Council having volunteered for the South-West London SLC for some time. I want to help make where I live a better place for visually impaired people to live, work, and enjoy life to the full.”

Alexander Ramzan

Sam Fox

Joy Drury

Joy was born and raised in Yorkshire before moving to Colchester, where she now lives with her husband and their two dogs.

She was diagnosed with insulin‑dependent diabetes at eight years old and later developed diabetic retinopathy, which led to her sight loss.

After leaving school, Joy trained as a chef, but as her eyesight deteriorated she was forced to choose an alternative career path. She went on to work for the former Inland Revenue, later HMRC, completing over 30 years of service across several departments.

Joy is a guide dog owner, and having her dog has given her the confidence and independence to live life to the full after leaving work. She also volunteers with Guide Dogs as a speaker, raising awareness of both the charity and the realities of living with sight loss. She regularly supports Guide Dogs campaigns, using her lived experience to help educate others. She keeps busy at home too, as she has both her retired guide dog and her current working guide dog. Joy enjoys spending time outdoors.

Joy said: “I am looking forward to volunteering with Essex Sight Loss Council – meeting others, sharing experiences, and campaigning for change for blind and partially sighted people.”

Cathy Tatum

Cathy has been registered sight impaired since the age of five. She has glaucoma and has undergone cataract and cornea surgery. She has reduced near and distance vision and cannot see in bright light or in the dark.

Cathy lives in north Essex with her husband, their grown up son and daughter, and their tabby cat, Betsy. Cathy worked as a primary school teacher and special educational needs coordinator (SENCO) before training as a Qualified Teacher for Vision Impairment (QTVI). She is now joint lead of a local authority vision impairment team supporting babies, children and young people with vision impairments.

In her spare time, Cathy loves to crochet, read books on her Kindle and listen to audiobooks. Cathy said: “I joined the Sight Loss Council to help ensure that the needs of people with vision impairments are better understood and met within the community.”

Daniel Hymers