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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

Glasses, a few questions for the totally confused.

21 replies

ditavonteesed · 01/10/2012 17:45

Sorry if this isnt the right topic.
Dd has just been prescribed some glasses, we went to a lovely little local optician and have ordered glasses from there. they are lovely glasses adn dd happy about it for now. They only seemed to have a couple of frames to choose from, most of the kids I see have character ones, where do they come from and how do you get them? We get one pair, what happens if/when they get broken or lost (which I forsee happening). dd is 9, what tips can you give us for looking after them at school? Is there anything else we should be thinking about. I am hoping that dd will find her reading and writing a bit easier, I guess time will tell on that one. It is only a very mild prescription but the optician said they would really help as she seemed to struggle.

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imperialstateknickers · 01/10/2012 17:50

The only trouble with the lovely little local optician is that they have a far narrower choice of frames. We ended up going to Specsavers as the choice was far wider (and also cheaper, the way the voucher system works if you want something funky you often have to pay extra).
Not sure about 'character' frames, my dds both preferred something more grown-up - they were also 9 when specs first prescribed.

Original poster

ditavonteesed · 01/10/2012 17:52

I had a look on the specsavers web site and all the kids frames seemed to be £64, the optician said the voucher was £20 and you could top up to any of the other ones which were all only £5 - £10 more. so do you have to pay for all the glasses at specsavers?

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Frontpaw · 01/10/2012 17:53

www.lensway.co.uk/glasses/kids-glasses/cKidsFrames-p1.html

Look online. Now that you have the prescription, you will be able to order them. I'd get a spare if I were you (I have several pairs - some sturdy for sport, frameless, light...).

They are relatively easy to break, so make sure you have a hard case. Lenses are scratched easy to try to instil a habit of not laying the, down glass first and cleaning them by holding the bridge and wiping gently with a good cloth (or running under the tap then shaking dry).

Ask the teacher to keep an eye out to make sure they are being worn when necessary.

Furball · 01/10/2012 18:08

I go to an independent for my Ds' glasses - he's worn them since he was 3 - he's now 11.

They have quite a large selection of NHS glasses, they are free, I just used to pay £10 for the lens to be thinned. Now he has react-a-lites and they are already thinned, but obviously they come with a charge instead.

You can chose other glasses and take the value of the voucher off, but the lens will always be free. - we have done this a few times if ds doesn't like any of the NHS choices

They should not charge you for the NHS choices. and I didn't know the voucher had a £ value.

They have once been lost and were replaced no quibbles foc. (I can't even remember if they charged me the thinning fee)

If they are broken - you take them in and they are fixed really quickly.

Next year, keep the present glasses as emergency spares

Hope that helps

Original poster

ditavonteesed · 01/10/2012 18:09

definatly need to teach her to clean them, good point about the teacher. That is a good sight, very reasonable, do you just order the prescription and size (ie I will measure the frames dd gets and put those measurements in)? I thought it would be better to go to the independent optician as I have some idea in my mind that they would be more thorough, think that is just from when I was little.

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Original poster

ditavonteesed · 01/10/2012 18:10

ah yes of course, thats what dh does, keeps his last pair as spares. I didnt know for definate they had a value, it was just that all the ones that said free had a £20 price tag.

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Furball · 01/10/2012 18:13

To be honest I would have especially this first pair, properly measured and fitted. If they are uncomfy as the haven't been adjusted properly they can hurt after a days use.

There is a difference in lens quality, I as a wearer cannot tell the difference, so does it matter? I wear cheap lens, my ds does not.

Furball · 01/10/2012 18:16

There should be no £20 price tag - the NHS choices are free full stop. - but do buy thinner lens, (if your dd's prescription allows) so they are lighter on the nose.

I would go elsewhere to be honest

whyme2 · 01/10/2012 18:27

I am firmly in favour of my little high street independent optician. DS was prescribed glasses earlier this year and the opticians have been fab. They took time to explain the problem and also took ages making sure he choose the right glasses for him and fitted them to him. They also gave him a little lecture in how to clean them and put them away. Due to his eye problem ds was referred to the nhs clinic but I have little faith in them as all they did was a 5 minute look and a few quick "can you read this" type things.

They had about 10 'free' frames and another twenty or so of varying prices that you could use the voucher and top up the rest yourself.
If ds breaks or twists them they fix them usually in 24 to 48 hours, Ds has had his last pair fixed five times in six months . He has just received a new pair after a recent eye test and we have the old pair as a spare now.

I have heard some not so good reviews of the Specsavers in our town and wouldn't recommend them.

ClaimedByMe · 01/10/2012 18:49

We used a little independent optician to begin with but gave up and went to ASDA,much better service much more choice of free character frames and great after service, ds is prone to destroying his glasses, they always repair/replace his glasses when needed.

Original poster

ditavonteesed · 01/10/2012 18:58

I think they will be good, they were very attentive, I get my glasses from there. They didnt say anything about the £20 I just noticed it and the other the man said they would be £5 and I notced they were labelled at £25. DD is really excited which has to be a good thing.

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cheekyginger · 01/10/2012 21:32

The choice of childrens frames will vary from optician to optician. Best thing to do is to shop around. But bear in mind for repairs you want somewhere that you can get to easily.

I would strongly advise not to buy glasses on line. Ordering frames on line is fine but there are certain measuremnts that should be taken before glasses are prescribed that cant be done online, and if they dont fit well they will not be comfortable.

The NHS voucher does have a £ value but it actually depends on the prescription. The voucher is designed to cover a basic pair of NHS frames and standard lenses. You have to pay extra for the bob the builder type glasses and thinner lenses.

If you have been told it is a "very mild prescription" do NOT ask for thinner lenses, it would be a waste of money.

Karoleann · 01/10/2012 22:14

It's not actually legal for suppliers to sell spectacles to under 16's over the net.
(opticians act 1989), if you're not looking through the correct part of a spectacle lens it won't allow you to see properly.
Up to -2.50/3.00 it's not worth getting lenses thinned.
If they do break, you can get a repair voucher filled.
I fit contacts to lots of 9 year olds, so if her prescription does get a little higher they're a good option for sports etc.

Goldenjubilee10 · 01/10/2012 22:50

We have started going to vision express as you get two pairs so always have a spare. I paid £20 this time for ds3 (6) to have bendy frames as most of our repairs are bent frames and so far so good. I normally get them the free ones.

Original poster

ditavonteesed · 02/10/2012 07:35

thanks everyone, they said she needs to have another test in 6 months to check how she is going and if they are making a difference so will see how they have been with repairs and things (you never know we might not need them).

Karoleann thanks for the info, cant imagine a 9 year old being able to manage contacts am quite impressed (I tried once and I cpuldnt manage it)

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Tee2072 · 02/10/2012 07:41

I have been wearing glasses since I was 6. I think at your child's age, going to a local opticians is better as you will get more specialized service, even if less choice.

Now that I've been wearing them for 37 years, I go any old place!

Shesparkles · 02/10/2012 07:54

My dd has been wearing glasses since the age of 5 (now 15) and we've done the rounds of the independents, specs avers, Asda etc.
From experience, the independents had v little choice for children, mostly very generic. Specsavers had a good selection, but would always find some way of adding extra charges for lens thinning/anti scratch/ UV filters.
I've found Asda to be the best all round, good selection of frames, and lens thinning etc is all inclusive.
For the future, remember that you are entitled to walk out of the door with the prescription in your hand, although a lot of opticians aren't very keen to just hand over the prescription as they want your business, legally they MUST give you a copy.

Shesparkles · 02/10/2012 07:56

I meant to say, no WAY would I be buying a child's glasses online, a mm out in the pupillary distance can make a BIG difference. Too risky IMO

Afsana1 · 02/10/2012 23:30

Dd has been wearing glasses since 4 (7 now) we have tried everywhere and asda is the best! ALL they children glasses are free and they have a lot of designs which are kid friendly

EionMcLove · 02/10/2012 23:43

I took ds to an independent and their frame choice was v poor. It took some doing to get them to hand over the prescription and voucher. I still haven't sussed out how the voucher works but his frames are very on trend and were free at specsavers. They are scratch resistant and don't need thinning and I didn't get the antireflective coating (£30) as he doesn't drive at night or at all. Vision express seemed to have a mad system whereby their frames were priced outrageously high and you had to ask for the price with the voucher i.e. £155 frames were actually £60 plus you got a free second pair. Ds is 8 and wouldn't be seen dead in character frames as they are 'for babies'. This from the boy who watches in the night garden

nipersvest · 02/10/2012 23:48

i'd recommend specsavers. we've used them for dd for years. most of the frames are free on the nhs, and if you did want a second pair, they are half price. we got dd some prescription sunglasses this year as she gets headaches a lot in the car. character frames wise, dd has had garfield, scooby doo, barbie and spongebob frames, she's now in the teen range and got fcuk ones this time round.

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