Haverhill opticians has its eye on winning a national award

An opticians in Haverhill has been shortlisted for a prestigious national award.

Observatory the Opticians in Camps Road has been named as a finalist in the Family Practice of the Year category of the annual Optician Awards. - it is the only East Anglian practice shortlisted across all the categories.

The awards have been running for more than 20 years and its black-tie ceremony on Saturday, April 4 at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole is acknowledged as the annual highlight of the optical industry.

The award will recognise a practice that has family values at its heart.

Judges are looking for evidence of mechanisms that encourage children, parents, grandparents and other relatives to share and engage in eye care.

Evidence of offering cradle to grave eye care to successive generations of a family is also required.

Entrants also need to demonstrate how their family-orientated approach makes business sense and cements the practice’s position in the community.

Joanna Williams, senior optometrist at the practice, said, “We are absolutely delighted to be recognised as one of the best family practices in the UK.

“We feel honoured and take a lot of satisfaction that our professionalism and dedication to providing excellent customer care is being recognised.”

Observatory the Opticians and its sister practice Wardale Williams also have practices in Ipswich, Beccles, Sudbury and Southwold in Suffolk; Halstead, Leigh-on-Sea and South Woodham Ferrers in Essex and Muswell Hill in north London.

Other awards won by the optical group in recent years include Independent Practice of the Year 2014 (Beccles practice), Independent Practice of Year 2016 (Southwold practice) and Fashion Practice 2016 (Muswell Hill).

They were also finalists for Family Practice of the Year 2018 (Sudbury practice) and Joanna Williams was a finalist in the Optometrist of the Year Category in 2017.