March got off to a great start for us here at Feltham Eyecare Centre, as we celebrated 20 years since we first opened our doors on the 5^th! In honour of this special anniversary, we thought we’d look back at our story so far, starting with our humble beginnings when we took over what used to be Sightcare Opticians.

2001: As soon as we opened our doors to welcome in our first patients, we were so excited about the prospect of what we could do for the local community! Our first step was naturally to update our equipment, bringing the practice into the 21st century and introducing longer, more personalised 40-minute eye examinations.

We also took the opportunity as a newly established practice to join SightCare, a support organisation for independent opticians.

2002: We had our first practice refit and started making up spectacles onsite – a huge advantage in terms of being able to provide a more efficient and convenient service for our patients.

2003: We were the first opticians in Feltham, West London, to introduce digital retinal photography, allowing us to get a much better view of our patients’ retinas and make confirm findings; helping to save the sight of many on several occasions.

This was the year that we also introduced the Eyeplan – a monthly direct debit scheme to help spread the cost of eyecare and eyewear for our patients.

2006: Our testing room equipment got an upgrade, with a digital test chart now installed for a smoother eye exam experience.

2008: Once the regeneration of Wilton Parade was complete, we underwent our biggest practice refurbishment. We absolutely loved our fresh new look, and so did our patients!

We also introduced Visioffice, the revolutionary system from Essilor that allows our dispensing opticians to digitally measure spectacle lenses for even more accurate and personalised pairs of glasses.

2010: We introduced the Zeiss OCT scan, allowing us to carry out 3D retinal scans in HD to better detect early signs of serious conditions that can be difficult to detect in a normal eye exam, such as macular degeneration – the leading cause of sight loss in the UK.

We invested in a corneal topographer too, which can digitally measure the cornea for specialised contact lens fittings. This enabled us to start fitting orthokeratology lenses – special contact lenses that can help correct myopia (short-sightedness) while you sleep – a great alternative to laser eye surgery for adults, and that has also been proven to slow down the progression of myopia in children.

2012: We became a partner optician and introduced Erin’s World Frames in practice. These are specialised frames for children with Down syndrome.

2013: Giving back is important to everyone in the Feltham Eyecare Centre team, and this year was no different. We held a charity fundraiser for Kidney Research UK on World Kidney Day and were overwhelmed by the number of donations received!

2016: It was time to upgrade our equipment again, this time with an updated digital retinal camera and a Fields machine. Our patients were thoroughly impressed with our new pre-examination tests!

Our owner and leading optometrist, Mr Kasmani, also gained his School Vision Diploma, which meant he could now help with the visual management of patients with reading or learning difficulties and signs of dyslexia through school vision assessments.

2017: We were selected as one of the 3 Best Opticians in the Borough of Hounslow.

We also updated our Visioffice system to offer more bespoke spectacle lenses like Varilux X4D – one of the most advanced varifocal glasses lenses to date.

Being a passionate advocate of myopia prevention and management in children, as someone who is highly myopic himself, Mr Kasmani also continued to further his advanced training in myopia management an completed the introduction to Myopia Management Course by the Brien Holden Vision Institute.

2018: We moved from the High Street to our brand-new customised practice in Bedfont Lane, Feltham, with the full support of all our patients.

2019: This was an exciting year for us, as we were finalists in the marketing category of the SightCare awards – a prestigious achievement within the optical industry for us! This truly reflected our commitment to communicating clearly with our patients, from our move to Bedfont Lane, to our services and beyond.

2020: With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, we made further changes to cope with the ever-changing situation. We introduced social distancing measures, donned full PPE, and enhanced our existing disinfection and sanitisation processes.

We also updated our equipment with an automated phoropter, allowing us to check your prescription from a safe distance without having to use trial frames.

This is the year that we also introduced new Dry Eye assessment technology – AOS software, so that we can assess your eyes in practice, or remotely from the comfort of your own home.

Despite the setbacks the pandemic presented us with, we were able to continue upskilling our staff, with our team taking part in the Eyewear Styling Academy Course. We are now all certified in eyewear styling, enhancing our patients’ experience when it comes to choosing new frames.

2021: We continue, as ever, update our equipment and embrace the latest technology to help provide our patients with highest standard of care. Most recently, we now have a new Optopol Revo 80 3D OCT to scan the retina, which is faster and provides even more details about the health of your eyes. It is also capable of measuring the length the eye, to help with

myopia management. We have also updated our Topographer, which can now assess tear film – an important indicator of Dry Eye syndrome.

Our principal optometrist, Mr Kasmani, has recently passed the assessment to fit the first CE approved spectacle lens for myopia management, Hoya MiYOSMART, making Feltham Eyecare Centre one of the first practices in the country to be approved to prescribe this lens.

We can’t believe 20 years have passed – how time flies when you’re having fun! We’d like to thank all our amazing patients for their continued support, loyalty, and custom over the years, along with all our family members, suppliers and everyone else who has been there for us – you are our lifeline!

It’s onwards and upwards as ever for us – here’s to many more years where we aim to provide you with the highest standard of service; we can’t wait to share the journey with you!