An international computer camp for visually impaired people concluded in the UK last week to great acclaim.

The 150 year old Royal National College for the Blind (RNC)  hosted the International Communication and Computers (ICC) camp at its specialist facilities in Hereford.

The event saw 64 young people aged 16-22 travel from 17 countries across the world to the UK’s leading further education college for people with visual impairments to learn about assistive technology and to increase their ICT skills.

The camp, which was organised by Visually Impaired Children Taking Action (VICTA), included workshops run by international experts in assistive technology and aimed to equip young people with the skills to manage real-life situations with ICT. Workshops focused on a range of topics and included study skills, job searching, animal care, supported mobility and introductions to the latest technology in music, games and coding.

The camp also gave the attendees the opportunity to take part in social activities and networking with other young people from across the world.

Lucy Proctor, Charity CEO of the RNC, said:

It was terrific seeing so many young people at the computer camp and we were delighted to host such an important event. Many young people with visual impairment experience a deterioration in their sight in their teenage years and ICT skills are crucial for their independent living in adult life.

Yuki Murata from Japan delivered one of the workshops and said:

We have travelled from Japan to be part of the camp. As well as bringing a couple of young people to participate I was also excited to be able to deliver a workshop for the attendees on computer graphics that we use on computer games and show how they are made accessible for visually impaired people. I hope that it has inspired some people that there are career opportunities out there.

Ben, a 17 year old camp attendee from Germany, said:

The camp has taught me a lot more about the equipment that is available for people with a visual impairment. It is interesting to learn about what other countries use and how people cope in different situations.

Summer, 16, from the UK added:

The ICC has been a lot more than just learning about technology. Being able to meet people from different countries and learn about the things they do is really interesting. I have made friends for life on this camp.

Photo: RNC, Radek Pavlíček