Vision Awareness Training for bus drivers rolled out across UK
Thomas Pocklington Trust (TPT) and its network of volunteer-led UK Sight Loss Councils (SLCs) have launched approved vision awareness training materials for bus and coach drivers, which are now being shared nationwide.
The move addresses gaps identified in RNIB’s recent ‘All Aboard?’ report (2025). It also addresses findings from TPT and SLC’s 2023 Listening Month Campaign and subsequent bus travel mystery shopping exercise.
RNIB’s latest ‘All Aboard?’ report, launched in May 2025, includes recommendations for bus operators and local authorities to improve accessibility for blind and partially sighted (BPS) passengers. These include to:
“Improve driver training to ensure they understand how best to support blind and partially sighted passengers.”
Below is an extract from the training where blind and partially sighted staff and volunteers travelling on a bus explain why bus travel is so important to them.
In response to this need and previously highlighted gaps, TPT and SLCs collaborated with the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) and the Driver Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) to develop the ‘Vision Impairment Awareness for Bus Drivers’ training materials. These materials are freely available and suitable for all bus and coach operators and CPC trainers, supporting a more inclusive and confident travel experience for everyone. They are now being actively promoted across the UK. Since its creation:
- The Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) approved the materials for their members, who make up 95 per cent of local bus services and 60 per cent of coach operators across the UK. They have included the materials in its compliance manual.
- The Driver Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) confirmed that the content meets its approval conditions for the Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) and made it available on the DVSA’s Driving for Better Business website.
Sight Loss Council volunteers recently won a Rodney Powell Award for Volunteering for their involvement in the development of the training materials.
Head of Engagement, Rachel Wilkinson, explained:
“SLC volunteers and TPT staff were at the heart of creating the ‘Vision Impairment Awareness for Bus Drivers’ training materials, drawing on their lived experience of sight loss. We worked closely with partners including CPT, DVSA, and Brighton & Hove Buses.
“Our goal was to ensure bus and coach drivers understand how to best support blind and partially sighted customers. This includes stopping at the bus stop, asking how someone would like to be supported, understanding sight loss and sighted guiding, announcing the bus number and destination, assisting passengers in finding a seat, and more.
“SLCs have also developed simple guides, including our ‘Top Ten Tips for Drivers.’ Volunteers are now actively engaging with operators across the UK to promote the training and its messages.
“It is also fantastic news that these materials can also be downloaded from the CPT compliance manual and the DVSA Driving for Better Business website.”
SLC volunteer, Steve Reed, in front of a bus with four drivers and trainers at a meet the bus event, designed to help build confidence in BPS to access buses
Publication date: 11 June 2025