Visions - a history of the Royal School for the Blind, Liverpool, as told by three
young people, two boys and a girl, and two older gentlemen. This takes the form of
talking heads against a background of an optician's illuminated eye chart.
Just walking through the front door to an unfamiliar place, you could feel the
buzz and you could feel the happiness of everybody.
A young person's hand running along a wood panelled wall, walking on past a tiled pillar.
I remember walking down the corridor just being able to have that
new feeling of 'it's a new place, it's a new beginning'.
In the original school for the blind, the children, or young adults, whoever were there,
they were only allowed to do whatever it is that was provided for them.
A sepia photograph of a group of pupils in a shoe making workshop.
For example, like basket making, rope making or whatever it is.
A young person handling and smelling rope.
It would have been hard for them.
But if that was the only thing that I could do I'd probably do it.
In them days you still probably would have been felt grateful.
Honestly I'd have just turned round and refused to go and do basket making.
I'd just end up sitting in the house and not doing anything.
Two older gentleman sitting side by side
I went to the Wavertree School for the Blind in the 50s. In those days yes you went into
law, physiotherapy, and then a trade, piano tuning, shorthand typing, secretary work.
I suppose in a way I'd feel very isolated because it's just that one thing.
A young person playing a cello.
They're not given an opportunity to expand more on what they love.
It was different because you were away from home. I mean when I was at junior
school I had, some of it was really quite unhappy because I wanted to be at home with my mum.
It's better than it was, because it's Mondays to Fridays and then home
for a full weekend and then I'm back again but I love it here so it's good.
Off I go down to London, get the train down to Euston, have to get the
underground down to Charing Cross, get a train out from Charing Cross to
Eltham Well Hall station on the southeast edge London, get a bus to the
college, get to the college, round the duck pond into the place and waiting for
interview. So I go in for interview and this person from the far corner speaks up.
She said "Can I ask Mr MacFarlane, as a blind person, how much of a burden are
you going to be to other students?"
No! In a sense, blind and visually impaired people won't be a burden.
And yes we do need to be better than others because, if we're not,
employers are just gonna go for the ones that are the safer option and not take a risk
and go with a visually impaired person or maybe even a blind one.
So the only bit of bullying I've really came across, I'd say would probably be
when I was in year one, year two.Because I couldn't say he wouldn't just come up
to me and start punching me, he'd like come up and sneak up behind me and
do it and things like that.
And they just wanted to be mean because the young boy was different.
It almost sounds like the bullies didn't get that.
I don't think it would happen now but then you still get people saying comments.
Because I had a comment a couple of months ago to me and yeah, so I think
you still got lots of people out there with comments like that.
Hearing Frank and Joe, they've made me more determined.
A young person holding a microphone and wearing headphones.
So Joe, you've got an MBE. How did it come around, you getting an MBE?
How to know friends and influence people I suppose! No, I was lucky, it was the biggest shock I ever got.
I became involved with long cane mobility.
A wooden frame holding long grey canes with balls on the tips.
This was before the RNIB had got any mobility centre.
There was no long cane, or a hoover cane as we called it in those days.
A pair of fluorescent yellow trainers walks down a corridor with a long gray cane.
It was actually a planned lesson, which was perhaps the most important thing we were doing.
To help instruct with long cane was one of
the most important, vital facets of education for blind people.
So the feeling of having a cane with you makes you probably more, well I'd say it makes a blind person
more safe, well feel more safer.
You just learnt your way around and you
learn to get around, so you didn't sit down around doing nothing.
So different lifestyles certainly, but there were lots of advantages, going to a special school.
You are always will ing to do it because you you had this empathy with the kids.
One of the older gentleman walks down the corridor.
A young person's hand reaches out to hold on to the arm of another young person.
I just remember walking down the corridor. you could feel the buzz you could feel the happiness...
I can be the way I want to be
and plan my future here.
And I just remember being so happy that I'd had the opportunity to become a new person.
in memory of Joe Lambton MBE. 1928 to 2017.