PRESS RELEASE
27 July 2023

The College of Optometrists and BCLA announce collaboration on conference
Expanded Optometry Tomorrow 2024 offers a bumper weekend of lectures and hands-on workshops for eye care professionals.

The College of Optometrists and the BCLA have announced a new conference collaboration. Optometry Tomorrow 2024, brings together The College of Optometrists’ flagship conference and BCLA Focus, providing GOC-registered eye care professionals with a choice of around 120 CPD sessions across two days.

The event, to be held from 28-29 April 2024 at the Telford International Centre, will have  programmes from the two organisations running alongside each other - giving delegates the opportunity to attend lectures from both.

Luke Stevens-Burt, Chief Executive of the BCLA, said: “With an expected attendance of more than 700 eye care professionals, and a dedicated exhibition featuring around 30 companies, this is sure to be one of the key dates in the optometry calendar next year.

“We are looking forward to working closely alongside The College of Optometrists to deliver a two-day conference packed with the very latest learnings that can have a real-world impact in everyday practice.

“There will be an opportunity to apply for BCLA Fellowships for which submissions are opening soon and will be presented at the event in April.”

Ian Humphreys, Chief Executive of The College of Optometrists said: “We are thrilled to mark the 20th anniversary of Optometry Tomorrow by integrating BCLA Focus into our annual conference, further strengthening our programme and giving delegates even greater access to CPD, research and good practice.

“This innovative approach will allow us to bring our clinical conference to a broader audience and provide an even wider programme for our members. We are looking forward to the opportunities this exciting collaboration provides.”

2024 is the final year of the current CPD cycle and delegates will be able to collect an average of 15 CPD points over the weekend, ticking off all four CPD domains and gaining contact lens optician and therapeutics specialty points. 

Early bird bookings are due to open in September 2023, and a dedicated website will be launched soon. 

Bausch + Lomb, CooperVision, Docet, Essilor, Optos, Thea, Topcon and Scope  and are all signed up as event sponsors with plenty more opportunities for sponsoring and exhibiting available. 

Notes to editors
• For further information, please contact Ann-Marie Stevens, PR Manager at the College of Optometrists: [email protected]  
• For further information, or to arrange further interviews, please call Daniel Owens from Orange Juice Communications on 07909 916668 or email [email protected]

About the event
Optometry Tomorrow 2024 is the first CPD conference and exhibition event to be run collaboratively by The College of Optometrists and BCLA, and will take place at Telford International Centre on 28 and 29 April 2024. The itinerary provides around 120 lectures, presentations, and covers all four optometry CPD domains, as well as specialised contact lens and therapeutic requirements.  There will also be a major optical exhibition. Bookings open in September.

About The College of Optometrists
The College is the UK’s professional and examining body for optometrists. We qualify the profession and deliver the guidance, development and training to ensure optometrists provide the best possible care. We recognise excellence through the College’s affixes, by building the evidence base for optometry, and by raising awareness of the profession with the public, commissioners and health care professionals.

About the BCLA
As a membership organisation, the BCLA (British Contact Lens Association)  provides a wide range of benefits to help members at all stages of their educational and professional career access a range of high-quality resources. We provide members with a continual stream of relevant information as well as the opportunity to communicate with others involved with contact lenses, whatever their role. The BCLA is proud to deliver a wide range of free and discounted events throughout the year – both for members and non-members. We continually strive to make our events accessible to everyone, no matter where they are in the world. From online courses in dry eye and myopia management and specialist webinars featuring global experts to live-streamed conferences and scientific meetings, we deliver the very latest learning at a time and location to members/delegates.