Atherton has a first class guide dog training centre which is one of a small number of centres across the country. There is a dedicated guide dog breeding centre in Warwickshire from where the dogs are taken to Atherton for intensive training.
It costs £50,000 to train a guide dog and every penny is raised by volunteers with no contributions from the government. This shows just how generous people are in raising over £50m a year for guide dogs and other mobility services.
Following a demonstration of a trained guide dog I had a go. After being blind folded, I was taken round a short obstacle course by Bobby which was quite an unnerving experience. Having to place my trust in a guide dog was difficult when I am used to being in control so I can only imagine what it must be like for someone depending upon a dog to guide them through our busy high streets with all kinds of obstacles.
The Guide Dogs Association run a number of different campaigns but one in particular struck me as being vital for blind and partially sighted people and that is having Talking Buses. It is all too easy for people to miss their bus stop because of not being alerted so, just as there are on trains and London buses, we should have illuminated signs and announcements to say which stop is next. If buses are manufactured with the systems built in the costs will be minimal and of benefit to all.