Freedom of Information
ASDA Opticians: Freedom of Information Scheme (England)
Welcome to the Publication Scheme for ASDA Opticians, part of ASDA Stores Ltd as required by the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
Introduction
This publication scheme is a complete guide to the information routinely made available to the public by ASDA Opticians. It is applicable only to the information about the NHS services which Asda Opticians provides. It will be reviewed at regular intervals and we will monitor its effectiveness.
How much does it cost?
The publications are free unless otherwise indicated. Where information is provided at cost, the charges will be calculated as set out in Class 7.
How is the information made available?
The information can be printed from this web site and is available in hard copy from:
Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
Email: optical1@asda.co.uk
Your Rights to Information
- The Freedom of Information Act 2000 is designed to promote openness and accountability amongst all organisations that receive public money.
- It obliges opticians practices to respond to requests about the information they hold in relation to NHS services they provide, and it creates a right of access to that information. These rights are subject to some exemptions that have to be taken into consideration before releasing information.
- Best practice guidance on how to comply with a Freedom of Information Act request is set out in the Freedom of Information Code of Practice.
- Under the Data Protection Act 2018, you are also entitled to access your clinical records or any other personal information held about you and you can either contact your local store or visit Asda.com/privacy to do this. Click here to find your local ASDA Opticians.
Feedback
If you have any comments about the operation of this publication scheme, or how we have dealt with your request for information, please write to:
Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
Classes of information
All NHS information at ASDA Opticians is held, retained and destroyed within NHS guidelines. Our commitment to publish information excludes any information that can be legitimately withheld under the exemptions set out in the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or the Freedom of Information Code of Practice. Information can be subject to exemptions, the most relevant being the protection of (1) commercial interests and (2) personal information under the Data Protection Act 2018.
The information will not generally include:
- Information which were are not allowed to disclose by law or is properly considered to be protected from disclosure.
- Information in draft form.
- Information that is no longer readily available as it is contained in files that have been placed in archive storage, or is difficult to access for similar reasons.
The information in this scheme is grouped into the following categories:
1. Who we are
ASDA Stores Limited has over 630 stores across the country, offering customers fantastic products at every day low prices.
ASDA opened its first opticians in 2000 as part of its commitment to providing a professional, community-based eye care service at great value prices. We have opticians in over 150 of our stores.
Details of the dispensing opticians, contact lens opticians and optometrists employed in our opticians can be obtained by contacting the opticians directly. Additionally, details of all dispensing opticians, contact lens opticians and optometrists registered in the UK are available from the General Optical Council at www.optical.org or by telephone at 0207 5803898.
ASDA Opticians is part of ASDA Stores Limited, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds LS11 5AD. Asda Stores Limited’s company registration number is 00464777.
2. Our services
All ASDA Opticians provide free NHS eye tests for those who are eligible. You may also be entitled to vouchers that can be used against the purchase of glasses or contact lenses if you require them. To find out if you are eligible for assistance please contact any ASDA Opticians for details.
Appointments for eye tests can be booked over the phone, or by visiting an ASDA Opticians.
Opening times can vary between locations, so please call to confirm. You can also find out your local ASDA Opticians’ location and opening times online here.
3. Financial and funding information
For every eye test performed on behalf of the NHS we receive a set NHS fee. This covers expenses such as optometrist and staff salaries, equipment costs and other store overheads.
If you are not eligible for the NHS eye test, please contact your local store/practice for details of our current charges.
A hard copy of the Asda Stores Limited accounts can be requested from:
Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
4. Regular publications and information for the public
A complete set of information about optical and ocular conditions, eye tests, glasses, and contact lenses, can be found from the following sources:
The College of Optometrists, 42 Craven Street London WC2N 5NG
Eyecare Information Service, PO Box 131, Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, LN8 5TS
www.eyecare-information-service.org.uk
Some of this information is also available in patient leaflets. These are freely available from all our practices. To request a set of leaflets by post, please contact:
Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
Email: optical1@asda.co.uk
5. Complaints
If you have a complaint about any of our products or services, we recommend that you first discuss any problems with the Optical Manager at the store concerned.
If the matter cannot be resolved in this way or you are unsatisfied with the response you receive please contact Asda Customer Relations on 0800 952 0101.
A copy of our Optical Complaints policy can be obtained from any ASDA Opticians. Click here to find your local ASDA Opticians. A hard copy of the policy is also available on request from:
Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
Email: optical1@asda.co.uk
6. Our policies and procedures
A hard copy of our policies on Data Protection and Health and Safety are available on request from:
Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
Email: optical1@asda.co.uk
7. This publication scheme
We will publish any changes we make to this publication scheme, the criteria on which our information management policies are made and a referral point for all enquires regarding information management generally in practice. We will also publish any proposed changes or additions to publications already available.
Cost of Information
For the most part, we will only charge for hard copies, or copies onto other media. Charges are as follows and will be reviewed regularly:
- Accessed from our website - free of charge
- Single hard copies - free of charge
- Multiple hard copies or archived copies will attract a charge for photocopying, retrieval and postage. We will inform you of the cost of these charges that will have to be paid in advance.
- E-mail will be free of charge.
Useful Resources Websites
Information commissioner's Office
Publications
Copyright
Material available through this publication scheme is protected by copyright unless otherwise indicated. It may be reproduced free of charge in any format or medium, provided it is done so accurately in a manner that will not mislead. Where items are re-published or copied to others, you must identify the source and acknowledge copyright status. This permission does not extend to third party material accessed through the scheme.
For HMSO Guidance notes see www.hmso.gov.uk/guides.htm
Customer Relations
We want you to be 100% satisfied with the professional services you receive and optical goods you purchase from ASDA Opticians. If you are not entirely satisfied, please contact the Optical Manager at your local store to discuss your concerns. Click here to locate your local ASDA Opticians’ contact details.
The Optical Manager will endeavour to resolve your concern or complaint in the first instance. If this is not possible the Optical Manager will refer you to the Superintendent Optometrist, who will investigate and aim to provide a resolution to your complaint.
You may prefer to contact ASDA Stores directly. If so, please telephone 0800 952 0101 (free phone).
We aim to resolve your complaints as soon as possible. Regardless of how you contact us, we will acknowledge your complaint within 24 hours. We may need to conduct an investigation into why our service and/or goods have fallen short of your expectations. If we cannot find a resolution within 48 hours of receiving your complaint we shall explain why. We shall also send you a letter every 10 days until a resolution is found.
If you have received services or goods on behalf of the NHS, you may want to complain to the NHS directly. You can obtain the details of who to contact from your local ASDA Opticians.
12 Month Guarantee
All optical products have a warranty against manufacturer faults developing within the 12 months from the date of purchase or collection.
ASDA Opticians: Freedom of Information Scheme (Scotland)
Welcome to the Publication Scheme for ASDA Opticians as required by the Freedom of Information Act (Scotland) 2002 (‘the Act’).
Introduction
This publication scheme is a complete guide to the information routinely made available to the public by ASDA Opticians, and describes the General Ophthalmic Services (GOS) we provide. GOS means the sight tests carried out by optometrists for people eligible to be paid for by NHS Scotland. Details of eligibility are available from any ASDA Opticians. Click here to find your local ASDA Opticians.
This publication scheme will be reviewed at regular intervals and we will monitor its effectiveness.
How much does it cost?
The information provided will be free of charge unless otherwise indicated. Where information is provided at a cost, the charges will be calculated as set out in paragraph 8 below.
How is the information made available?
The information is available in hard copy from the store, any colleague will be able to help, but in case of difficulty ask to speak to the Optical Manager at you Local ASDA Opticians. Information can also be printed from this website.
If you have queries about our scheme please contact our Superintendent Optometrist who has overall responsibility for it and can be contacted at: ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds LS11 5AD. Email: optical1@asda.co.uk
Your Rights to Information
- The Act is designed to promote openness and accountability amongst all organisations that receive public money.
- This scheme uses the model publication scheme prepared by Optometry Scotland and approved by the Scottish Information Commissioner. Optometry Scotland speaks for the optical profession as a whole in Scotland and is actively supported by all the peer group and professional organisations representing optometrists and dispensing opticians in Scotland and throughout the UK. In formulating the model publication scheme Optometry Scotland took into account the views of optometrists with detailed day to day knowledge of the workings of optical practices and about information that is not patient confidential. Their input was central to the development work.
- Section 23(3) of the Act states that in adopting and reviewing its publication scheme organisations must have regard to the public interest in: 1. allowing public access to information held by it and in particular to information which : 1. relates to the provision of services by it, the cost to it of providing them or the standards attained by services so provided; or 2. consists of facts, or analyses, on the basis of which decisions of importance to the public have been made by it; 2. the publication of reasons for decisions made by it.
- Since January 1st 2005 the Act obliges optometrists to respond to requests about the NHS related information that they hold, and it will create a right of access to that information subject to certain exemptions listed in the Act.
- The Act obliges optometrists to respond to requests about the NHS related information that they hold and it creates a right of access to that information subject to certain exemptions listed in the Act.
- Under the Data Protection Act 2018, you are also entitled to access your clinical records or any other personal information held about you and you can either contact your local store or visit Asda.com/privacy to do this.
Our responsibility
All colleagues who have contact with customers or patients will be made aware of their responsibilities under the Act, where members of the public can access the publication scheme and the information it may refer to.
Feedback
If you have any comments about the operation of the publication scheme, or how we have dealt with your request for information from the scheme, please write to:
The Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
Classes of Information
All NHS information at ASDA Opticians is held, retained and destroyed within NHS guidelines. Our commitment to publish information excludes any information that can be legitimately withheld under the exemptions set out in the Act. Some individual classes are subject to exemptions, the most relevant being the protection of (1) commercial interests and (2) personal information under the Data Protection Act 2018. This Scheme has been written in accordance with those exemptions. Although a document may be within a class of information, parts of it may fall under an exemption and be withheld. The classes of information will not generally include:
- Information which were are not allowed to disclose by law or is properly considered to be protected from disclosure.
- Information in draft form.
- Information that is no longer readily available as it is contained in files that have been placed in archive storage, or is difficult to access for similar reasons.
1. Who we are
ASDA Stores Limited has over 630 stores across the country, offering customers fantastic products at every day low prices.
ASDA opened its first opticians in 2000 as its commitment to providing a professional, community based eye care service at great value prices. We have Optical departments in over 150 of our stores.
Details of the dispensing opticians, contact lens opticians and optometrists employed in our opticians can be obtained by contacting the opticians directly. Additionally, details of all dispensing opticians, contact lens opticians and optometrists registered in the UK are available from the General Optical Council at www.optical.org or by telephone at 0207 5803898.
Asda Stores Limited is registered with the General Optical Council
ASDA Opticians is part of ASDA Stores Ltd, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds LS11 5AD.
Asda Stores Limited’s company registration number is 00464777.
2. Our services
All ASDA Opticians provide free NHS eye tests for those who are eligible. You may also be entitled to vouchers that can be used against the purchase of glasses or contact lenses if you require them. To find out if you are eligible for assistance please ask for details in any of our optical departments.
Appointments for eye tests can be booked over the phone, or by dropping into an ASDA Opticians. To find the address or phone number of your local store with an ASDA Optician, please Click here.
Opening times can vary between locations, so please call to confirm or check online.
We work within the regulations as laid down by the General Optical Council, the Terms of Service for General Ophthalmic Services, and the requirements of clinical governance. Our optometrists and dispensing opticians are expected to be conversant with the peer group guidance issued by the College of Optometrists and Association of British Dispensing Opticians respectively, and to attain sufficient annual credits to comply with the voluntary scheme for Continuing Education and Training.
3. Financial and funding information
For every eye test and supplementary tests performed on behalf of the NHS, ASDA receives a set fee. This contributes to, but does not fully cover expenses such as optometrist and colleague salaries, equipment costs and other store overheads.
If you are not eligible for the NHS eye test, please contact your local store for details of our current charges. Click here to find your local ASDA Opticians.
A hard copy of the Asda Stores Limited accounts can be requested from:
The Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
4. Information on eye care for the public
A complete set of information about optical and ocular conditions, eye tests, glasses, and contact lenses, can be found from the following sources:
The College of Optometrists, 42 Craven Street, London, WC2N 5NG
Tel: 0207 8396000
Eyecare Information Service, PO Box 131, Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, LN8 5TS
www.eyecare-information-service.org.uk
Some of this information is also available in patient leaflets. These are freely available from all our practice(s). To request a set of leaflets by post, please contact:
Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
5. Complaints
If you have a complaint about any of our products or services, we recommended that you first discuss any problems with the Optical Manager at the store concerned.
If the matter cannot be resolved in this way or you are unsatisfied with the response you receive please contact Customer Relations on 0800 952 0101.
A copy of our Optical Complaints policy can be obtained from your local ASDA Opticians. Click here to find your local ASDA Opticians. A hard copy is also available on request from:
Professional Services Manager, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD,
Email: optical1@asda.co.uk
If you are still unable to resolve any complaint you have recourse to:
The Optical Consumer Complaints Service P.O. Box 4685, London SE1 6ZB
Tel: 020 7261 1017
If you think that we have failed to provide information, we again recommend that you discuss the problem with the Optical Manager at the store concerned. If you are still not satisfied, you can complain to the Scottish Information Commissioner who oversees the Act and whose contact details are:
Scottish Information Commissioner, Kinburn Castle, Doubledykes Road, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9DS
There is a formal appeal mechanism when information is withheld. Further details on this are available on the Scottish Information Commissioner’s website at www.itspublicknowledge.info.
6. Our policies and procedures
A hard copy of our policies on Data Protection and Health and Safety are available on request from:
Superintendent Optometrist, ASDA Opticians, ASDA House, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds, LS11 5AD
7. Information management policies
We will publish the criteria on which our information management policies are made and a referral point for all enquires regarding information management generally in practice.
Cost of Information
For the most part, we will only charge for providing hard copies, or copies onto other media. Charges are as follows and will be reviewed regularly:
- Accessed from our website - free of charge.
- Single hard copies - free of charge.
- Multiple hard copies, or archived copies - free of charge.
- Email will be free of charge.
Useful Resources Websites
Scottish Information Commissioner
Copyright:
Material available through this publication scheme is protected by copyright unless otherwise indicated. Unless expressly indicated to the contrary, it may be reproduced free of charge in any format or medium, provided it is done so accurately in a manner that will not mislead. Where items are re-published or copied to others, you must identify the source and acknowledge copyright status. This permission does not extend to third party material, accessed through the scheme.