Do you have pairs of old spectacles hiding in your drawers and cupboards? Why not let us put them to good use.

UK- based lions clubs, led by the Chichester club, have been involved in spectacle recycling for more than 50 years. Lions Clubs throughout the UK collect unwanted and damaged spectacles. These are then sent to Chichester Lions Club which processes tens of thousands of recycled spectacles each year. All donations are examined by a team of Lions and other volunteers in the recycling workshop. Sorted pairs of glasses may then be sent for grading and distribution by Medico France in Le Havre.

Glasses are also sent directly to contacts running eye clinics in Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, Ghana, Nigeria, and Nepal. In addition, volunteers from the ‘Unite for Sight’ charity are supplied with spectacles to take with them on missions to countries across the world.

Don’t worry is your old spectacles are in poor condition; Scrap metal salvaged from broken and unsuitable spectacles raises funds that support the sorting operation and enable Chichester Lions Club to give financial support to eye-related projects in the UK and overseas.

Since the project began over £675k has been generated from recycled materials with over £486k donated to sight related charitable causes.