As part of the Conference Programme, we have various field trips to offer. Please see more information below:
Please note that travel expenses to and from site visits are NOT covered in your delegate fee.
ChildVision, Gracepark Road, Drumcondra, Dublin 9
Date and Time: Friday 30th June 2017 at 9.30am-11.30am
Maximum participants: 30
ChildVision is recognised through Europe as a leading centre of excellence in the care and habilitation of blind and multi-disabled children and young people. From its main campus in Dublin and satellite centre in Cork, it acts as a resource for children who have a visual impairments and multiple disabilities throughout Ireland.
For the last sixty years, the campus has pioneered new ways of learning for the blind and visually impaired. ChildVision has adapted in the last decade to provide specialist care and therapeutic input to the young VI community, most of whom have significant complex additional needs. While there is still a provision for the education of children with a visual impairment, the focus has shifted to intensive specialist early intervention, residential programmes, a wide range of learning through therapeutic work intervention and life skills training for young MDVI students.
ChildVision provides the National Assessment Service for all children diagnosed with a visual impairment in Ireland. Our clinical team work with primary care teams and specialist teachers around the country to ensure the best care and supports are offered to each child in their local environment.
Braille, large print and Daisy files, produced by ChildVision further support these children to remain in their home and locality and attend their local schools.
The campus is open to the public and with its coffee shops, garden centre, equine and animal petting farm. It provides a rich, varied and safe setting for our O&M teachers to carry out their sessions.
The staff at ChildVision are active in many areas of R&D and host many peer to peer training days throughout the year. Some members of staff are involved in third level research projects and are invited to present their own findings at international conferences.
The most important work at ChildVision is using our specialist knowledge to continue to strive to reach inside the complex world of a child who is Multi Disabled Visually Impaired and come up with new and creative ways of therapeutic intervention which will stimulate and progress the child who cannot follow an adapted curriculum. A recent example of this is the tremendous results achieved by our OT team with their specially designed Equine Occupational Therapy.
The early intervention clinic, preschool, therapy (including equine), braille production and assistive technology hub will form part of the site visit.
For Google Maps directions, please click here.
Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, Model Farm Road, Cork
Date and Time: Friday 30th June 2017 at 11.00am-1.00pm
Maximum participants: 30
The Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind would be delighted if you would join us in Cork on Friday June 30th for a tour of our world class facility. During the two hour tour you will get an overview of our history and the varied services we deliver for people who are blind and visually impaired and families of children with autism.
You will also enjoy a guided tour of the facility including our kennel blocks where you will get the chance to talk with staff and greet some of our amazing dogs in training.
Here is a short video to give you a glimpse of who we are - https://tinyurl.com/lfbutto
For more information on Irish Guide Dogs please visit www.guidedogs.ie
Suggested Transport Option: 08:00 Train from Heston Station. Arrive in Cork Train Station at 10:35. 20 minute taxi ride to Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, Model Farm Road, Cork.
For Google Maps directions, please click here.
Queen’s University, Belfast
Date and Time: Friday 30th June 2017 at 11.30-1.00pm
Maximum participants: 25
Queens University Physical Education Centre would be delighted to welcome you to their facility. Matthew Rogers and Alannah Savage will provide a talk and presentation on the equipment in the Movement Lab used for the research into movement patterns of VI children and sighted children currently into its second year.
Then walk a short but pleasant journey through Belfast’s Botanical Gardens where tropical houses are free to enter. Then continue into the Ulster Museum designed by famous architect Francis Pym. There participants can enjoy the museum's free collections, buy lunch in the museum café, go to the Connor Café across the road, named
after local artist William Connor (1881), or enjoy one of many local cafes including Dean’s at Queens.
Suggested Transport Option: 8am bus from Busaras. Arrive in Belfast at 10:30am. 20 minute walk from Europa Bus Centre to Queens University, Belfast.
For Google Maps directions, please click here.
National Council for the Blind, Whitworth Road, Drumcondra, Dublin 9
Date and Time: Friday 30th June 2017 at 9.30-11.30pm
Maximum participants: 30
NCBI (National Council for the Blind of Ireland) is Ireland’s national charity working for the rising number of people affected by sight loss. Our practical and emotional advice and supports help 8,000 people and their families face their futures with confidence every year. Every day in our centres across the country, we provide practical and emotional support, rehabilitation services and hands-on training to help people who are blind or vision impaired to live independently and confidently.
When visiting our head office in Drumcondra you will have an opportunity to visit our Rehabilitation Training Centre, which provides rehabilitative training to people with sight loss. Since its establishment in the mid-1990s, the centre has grown and now offers a varied programme to suit individual needs. You can also view our resource centre, which offers a wide selection of practical solutions to people with sight loss to make daily life easier, and our technology demonstration area.
Staff from each of these areas will meet the group to provide insight into living with sight loss in Ireland. You will also have an opportunity to find out more about mobility in Ireland, the challenges faced and how NCBI is working to overcome them on the ground and through policy changes nationally.
For Google Maps directions, please click here.
