www.cyoungopticians.co.uk 46 High Street, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. BA4 5AS t: 01749 345259

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Volume 1 Issue 4 Designed by R. Young. Written by C. & R. Young

Our News

EYE TO EYE

Every year I am amazed at how rapidly the nights draw in as the summer disappears behind us, hope-fully leaving us with fond memories of blue skies and warm evenings.

Unfortunately this year August was rather wet, but luckily for us we missed the worst of it because we had booked a weeks holiday in Corfu. Normally our holidays consist of a week in a holiday cottage in Cornwall or France, but as the offspring are getting older I thought it would be more fun for them to be in an environment where there would be others their own age, as well as some guaranteed warmth for us all.

It was certainly warm! The hotel in Perama — a base to explore from, rather than a destination. However as it was our first visit to Corfu it was a

good place to start. We hired a car and were lucky enough to meet up with one of my ex-employees and friend Julie Barrett whose son-in law works in an hotel on the East Coast. We had a lovely lunch in Nicola’s Taverna in Agni Bay, right on the beach, followed by a walk to Gerald Durrell’s old house in Kalami for a coffee, before catching a boat back to the car. Subsequent trips out included a day in the

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The view from our hotel room

Tristan, Rosenn, Cléophée and Julie at Nicola’s Taverna.

(Edouard went to army cadet camp instead of Corfu)

Water Park Aqualand, where Rosenn lost her new glasses shooting down a flume (luckily she had a spare pair), and the next day we hired a boat to explore the coastline.

If and when we return to Corfu we would probably either hire a villa or stay in a B&B on the North East Coast. It is a lovely island, and the locals very friendly and helpful.

Since our return from Corfu we have had a bit of a white goods disaster. Our dishwasher packed up and although it was repaired under warranty it only worked twice before expiring again. So while we wait for another repair man we are rediscover-ing the delights of washing up by hand which I have to say I am rather enjoying. The whole family

has to muck in, which promotes team working skills and bonding, and when I come down in the morning I haven’t got to spend time emptying the dishwasher.

Then our microwave blew up. We only used it for defrosting, baked potatoes and porridge making, but I have found that porridge cooked on the hob is much nicer than when microwaved. The only problem is that it sticks like glue to the pan and is a nightmare to clean... without a dishwasher!

www.cyoungopticians.co.uk 46 High Street, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. BA4 5AS t: 01749 345259

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Online Appointments

You can have access to our appointment system

24 hours a day, and if we are too busy to answer

the phone, which happens sometimes, then you

can easily log on and get booked in.

Just follow the ’Book an Appointment’ link from

our website at: www.cyoungopticians.co.uk

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Children rarely complain about their sight, but often show in their behaviour that there may be a problem with their vision. This can include sitting too close to the TV, rubbing their eyes a lot, holding objects very close to the face, blinking a lot or one eye turning either in or out. All babies will have their eyes checked at birth and then at about six weeks of age by a GP or health visitor. Once your child's vision has been checked it is important to continue with regular sight tests. Your child should have a check-up at least every two years as problems can occur at any age and even if none of the symptoms described above are displayed there could still be an underlying eye condition. The NHS wants to ensure that all children have vision screening for lazy eye (amblyopia) during their first year at school. This is to detect whether a child has reduced vision in one or both eyes. This is important because many children will not realise that they have reduced vision, and parents will not normally be able to see it by just looking at the child. It is recommended that all chil-dren are offered screening between the ages of four and five by an orthoptist-led service to assess their vision.

The earlier any problems are picked up, the better the outcome. If you have any concerns about your child's eyes, or if there is a history of squint or lazy eye in the

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Children’s Eyes

You remember to take your child to all their develop-

mental checks with the health care but what about their

eyes?

Eye problems can develop at any age. Not all parents know their child has an eye problem.

1 in every 4 children has a vision problem that can interfere with learning and behaviour. If your child hasn't had a comprehensive eye exam by an optom-etrist, they are not alone.

Half of all English children have not had a compre-hensive eye exam. Of them, many need glasses and don't even know it.

And because 80% of everything children learn comes through their eyes, uncorrected vision problems im-pact their ability to learn and interact with the world around them.

Do you know that Free NHS funded sight tests are available for children under 16 years of age and those aged 16 to 18 and in full-time education.

family, it is important that you do not wait for the vision screening at school. Take your child to an ophthalmic practitioner (Optometrist) for a sight test.

Children do not have to be able to read to have their eyes examined. It is possible to see whether the child has a squint, or needs glasses, without asking them any questions, using age appropriate tests and equipment. Eye examinations do not hurt. It might be necessary to put drops into your child’s eyes so that they can be test-ed to see if they need glasses and the backs of the eyes are healthy. If this is the case for your child, it will be discussed with you in advance.

Helping children see their future

www.cyoungopticians.co.uk 46 High Street, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. BA4 5AS t: 01749 345259

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Eye Spy...

Eye Fact: New-borns don’t produce tears. They make crying sounds, but the tears don’t start flowing until they

are about 4-13 weeks old.

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I’d like to officially welcome all our new

clients from the last month or so:

Lukas Stanisauskas, Emma Macdonald, Arthur

Macdonald, Fergus Macdonald, Ilianna Kendros,

David Harris. James Brittain, Jincy Shaibu, Graham

Llewellyn, Jo Smith, Joe Lane, Jamie Lane, Keith

Yeomans, Angela Yeomans, Robin Exell, Jacquel-

ine Exell, Emil Matras, Ellen Barber, Tracy Shean,

Peter Turner, Charles Simon, Paul Herridge, Shirley

Cummings, Bryan Lintern, Maureen Western, Victo-

ria Gait, Twane Parau, Steven Buckley, Seb Sawrey

-Cookson, Griffith Williams, Angel Pattern, Laura

Conyard, Thomas Jefferys, Finley Bigden-Keene,

Oliver Bigden-Keene, Graham Davey, Rosemary

Davey, Bryan Arnold, Charlie Butler, Lauren Carter,

Tiana Davis, Peter Walshe, Shirley Robinson, Nigel

Coleman, Andrew Betteridge,

We are glad you found us

Welcome

Hi Chris should have written this a month ago at least but just to congratulate you on such a good idea re: your newsletter. I'm one of the very fortunate ones that only has to visit you annually when we do seem to catch up but its good in the meantime to keep up-to-date. Your service to our family is exemplary and we have no hesitation in recommending you. Your staff are so very conscientious and welcoming. Good luck with your planned expansion and I'm glad to hear the sunbed re-mains! Very best wishes. Jilly Jenkin Thank you for taking the time to write Jilly. CY.

Meal out for the Young Gang

Report by Juliet Thompson

On 20th August Chris treated us (his highly efficient team) to a meal at the new Italian Restaurant in town La Tavola D’Ora, in appreciation for all our hard work.

It was our first visit there and we were most im-pressed (The Mum’s among us can remember tak-ing our little ones there when it was Neptunes soft play).

Although little has changed about the exterior we had a pleasant surprise when we ventured inside, the décor being tasteful and with very much an Ital-ian feel about it.

The waiting staff although busy were pleasant and attentive, (although after the 2nd vino perhaps we were a little loud for them!). We were all pleased with our meals and I can recommend the Monkfish. I have had this dish on the 2 subsequent occasions I have visited and it has been cooked to perfection each time.

All said we had an enjoyable evening and I for one am glad they decided to open their restaurant in our town.

L to R. Tracy, Chloe, Mary, Linda and Juliet with the first

drink of the evening.

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YOUR INPUT

www.cyoungopticians.co.uk 46 High Street, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. BA4 5AS t: 01749 345259

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Eye to Eye is a monthly conversation about life

as it looks from the helm of Christopher Young Opti-

cians…..

I believe in relationships and we really value having a

strong relationship with our customers. This is our

way of being open and showing people what we’re

like.

For regular clients, many of you only come in once a

year or once every two years. So we can go a long

time without seeing you. And a lot can happen in a

year or two, hence we like to keep in touch.

For new customers, as we grow I don’t personally

meet lots of you. This unusual publication is an open

dialogue between us so that you can get to know

who we are as a company. And painful as it can be,

we like to show some of our personality. We’re not a

faceless company.

The feedback is invaluable. I am extremely interested

in what our customers have to say. I enjoy respond-

ing to the comments. And finally I enjoy writing it!

Please send your thoughts and comments on what

we are talking about to:

chris@cyoungopticians.co.uk.

Every month I try to rise to the mammoth challenge

of making an “opticians newsletter” a riveting read. If

I’ve failed, in your eyes, to do that, you can unsub-

scribe by just sending an email to:

All About Us

Tracy is normally the first friendly face you see

when you walk into the practice.

Born in Wells Tracy was educated at Wells Blue

School before starting work in Clarks Shoe Factory

in Shepton, where she stayed for 6 years working

her way up to line supervisor. She left to have her

son Liam and then worked part time in Blostins

Restaurant. After Liam had recovered from an

attack of meningitis Tracy left Blostins to work on

the Customer Services desk in Tesco in Midsomer

Norton.

When Tracy’s daughter Jade was born she moved

to Fosse Lane Tesco and transferred to the Town-

send End site when they moved there. Tracy was

with Tesco for 17.5 years but left them to join us in

February 2014.

Tracy’s husband Steve runs his own business as a

quarry lorry driver, and her son Liam is an appren-

tice electrician working for Kev Oakley in

Croscombe. He will be fully qualified in a year’s

time. Her daughter Jade is training to be a beauti-

cian at Bridgwater College and will complete her

level three training in June next year.

Tracy enjoys walking, listening to 80’s music, and

socialising with friends.

Please share this copy with your friends and family!

Tracy Hoskins

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The caption for our photograph of the Midsomerset Show

last month incorrectly named the gentleman on the left

as Bob Chaplin. It should of course have been Roger No-

ble, past chairman and member of the executive com-

mittee. Apologies for the error.

Oups !!