The team at Specsavers Newport is celebrating the people and career journeys behind 100 years of the dispensing optics profession, highlighting the many careers in optics.
From Saturday jobs and first roles after leaving school, to returning to work after starting a family, members of the Specsavers Newport team have built careers in optics in their own individual ways.
Training as a dispensing optician with Specsavers offers the opportunity to gain a degree-level qualification while working in a store. Trainees can earn a salary while they study, with training typically taking three years alongside full-time work.
For Jason Williams, becoming a dispensing optician at 17 was the beginning of a career that has taken him through working with contact lenses, low vision and practice management.
He is now a partner in three Specsavers stores alongside Craig MacKenzie and Haylie Pritchard, employing more than 100 people.
Craig also started his career as a dispensing optician before training as an optometrist. He is now an independent prescribing optometrist and previously served as chair of Optometry Wales.
Haylie first joined Specsavers in Cwmbran after leaving school and has since trained and qualified as a dispensing optician and contact lens optician. She moved to Specsavers Newport 13 years ago, initially working as a contact lens optician before progressing into store management and becoming a partner.
For others, a career in optics has grown from an opportunity that came along at the right time. Serena Smith joined the Newport team for a Saturday job while still at school and went on to qualify as a dispensing optician and contact lens optician. She is now a contact lens manager.
Ash Baker joined as an optical assistant before discovering an interest in dispensing and contact lenses. He now combines his work in the store with lecturing at Cardiff University.
Sam Smith started out as an optical assistant after leaving school, going on to qualify as a dispensing optician and contact lens optician. He is now developing his skills further through training in low vision.
Morgan Williams joined the store part-time while at college before moving into a full-time role and training as a dispensing optician. He is now an assistant manager and is nearing the end of the Specsavers accreditation programme for future partners.
The team also includes colleagues who have built their careers around family life. Asita Flint began working part-time as an optical assistant while raising her family before taking on a trainee dispensing optician role. She is now sitting her final dispensing optician exams.
Mollie Marshall has similarly returned to full-time work after starting a family and began her trainee dispensing optician course this September, building on her previous experience as an optical assistant.
Donna Fowler, store manager at Specsavers Newport Gwent, says:
‘It’s fantastic to be celebrating 100 years of dispensing optics and to see how that story continues through our own team here in Newport.
‘Everyone has their own journey, but what they have in common is the opportunity to learn, develop and discover where a career in optics can take them. It’s something we’re proud to celebrate.’
As the profession marks its centenary, the Newport team encourages others to discover the opportunities available within dispensing optics and consider where a career in the profession could take them.
Specsavers Newport is open seven days a week. For more information, to book an appointment or browse the online store, visit the website.
Additionally, to make eye health accessible to all, Specsavers offers a Home Visits service for those unable to leave their homes unaccompanied due to disability or illness.
