Jenna's story

When 17 year-old Jenna was diagnosed with tunnel vision and night blindness, she hoped that her school would support her to adjust to her sight loss.

Although they promised to make small changes to help her, for example producing handouts in a large font size and seating her at the front of the class, these didn’t happen. Jenna also had to stop taking part in sports classes, as she was unable to keep up with the others.

Jenna’s grandmother told her about Actionnaires, which she had read about in her local paper. When Jenna went along to the club, she found that Actionnaires was completely different from school - she could actually do sport in this environment!

Each week, Jenna took part in a different sport and a swimming session. Learning new skills helped to increase her confidence, as did meeting new people. Determined to give something back to Actionnaires, Jenna decided to organise a sponsored swim to raise funds for her local club. She swam 800 metres and raised £180 through sponsorship!

Jenna also got on well with Club Coordinators Mike, Avril and Wendy, saying "They treated me like a normal person, whereas my teachers made me feel like I was different."

When Jenna told Mike about how she had left her Hairdressing course at her local college because no adaptations were made for her sight loss, he told her about the Royal College, a specialist college for visually impaired people, where she could take the Royal National Diploma.

Encouraged to apply by the Club Coordinators, Jenna was awarded a place at the college and starts in a few weeks! Her step-dad says, ‘Going to the college is a wonderful opportunity for Jenna - and it’s thanks to Actionnaires that she’s able to go.’