South West Eye Health information

** This is copied from the NHS England site for your convenience. The link to the Eye Health section on NHSE-I Southwest is https://www.england.nhs.uk/south/info-professional/eye-health/ **

This webpage is for community Opticians based in the South West Region.The South West region covers the following seven areas: –

  • Bath & North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire
  • Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire
  • Cornwall & Isles of Scilly
  • Devon
  • Dorset
  • Gloucestershire
  • Somerset

If you are from an Opticians in the South West Region and have a query, please contact a member of our team:

Contact Us

South West Region

South West House
Blackbrook Park Avenue
Taunton
Somerset
TA1 2PX

Generic Email account: england.optometrysouthwest@nhs.net

  • Michele Toy, Primary Care Commissioning Manager
  • Sarah Lillington, Senior Commissioning Officer
  • Louise Norman, Commissioning Officer
  • Lesley St Leger, Commissioning Support Assistant
  • Lucy Brown, Commissioning Support Assistant
  • Stuart Burdett, Optometric Advisor
  • Ewen MacMillan, Optometric Advisor

NHS Complaints Procedure

If you have a complaint about primary care services for GPs, dentists, opticians, or pharmacy services please contact:

New Contract Applications, Changes to Contract details / GOS hours / Premises or Directors

For details on how to apply for a NHS General Ophthalmic Contract or if you have any changes to your existing contract regarding opening times or GOS hours, change in premises or directors please contact NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) via the following email account pao-cm@nhsbsa.nhs.uk.  Please note 3 months’ notice should be given to NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) for any changes to your contract.

Further details on the contract management process in the South West region can be found on the NHS Business Services Authority website.

NHS UK: Your Profile Page

NHS UK is the primary public facing website of the NHS.  It provides comprehensive and trusted health information to help people make the most of their health and get the best out of the healthcare system. The pages include directories of local health services.  The site also shows comparative data about healthcare providers, to help people make informed choices about their healthcare.  This includes feedback on all NHS services.

If a patient accesses the website, they will be able to find a profile for each NHS contract. They will also find a Patient Feedback page where they can leave a comment and a rating on their experiences at your opticians.  It is good practice to acknowledge and respond to comments; your editing rights will include the option to set up permissions for members of your staff to respond to feedback posted to your profile.

If you have any queries, please contact the NHS UK service desk.

NHS England does expect the site to reflect the current service provision so that patients can access the most up to date information. Please ensure that any changes to your profile adhere to any regulatory requirements around proposed changes to opening hours, including Bank Holidays.

NHS Mail

If you wish to apply for an NHS.net email account, please apply using this form.

Quality in Optometry

Quality in Optometry (QiO) is a support system used by ophthalmic contractors to demonstrate contract compliance with GOS and NHS Standard Contract contracts. It breaks contracts down into their component parts in order to assist good governance by contractors, whilst providing evidence to NHS England that the contractor is compliant. QiO operates in 3-yearly cycles for compliance.

Every 3 years Contractors are required to download the checklist of questions and submit their responses on the QiO website. It is now possible for GOS contractors to store their checklists within the system so that NHS England can access these directly. It is now also possible for contractors to complete the NHS Digital Data Security and Protection Toolkit: either the full optical toolkit, or the 15 critical items required for NHS mail accounts.

To register you can access the website to Quality in Optometry by clicking here QiO Website

Useful Information

  1. Making Accurate Claims

General Ophthalmic Services and Optical Voucher Scheme Guidance can be found in the Making Accurate Claims in England 2022 Guide. This Guide has been produced by the Association of Optometrists and will help you with common questions relating to all Optical Vouchers.  The area team uses this guidance when answering questions that we receive from our contractors to ensure a consistent message is being relayed.

  1. Vouchers at a Glance

For guidance on the most up to date voucher values and GOS eyesight test minimum intervals please refer to the latest edition of Vouchers at a Glance (April 2023); copy is available by clicking here Vouchers at a Glance

Translation & Interpretation Services for NHS patients

To book a translation & interpretation service in your area please contact the following contractors who are delivering the service to your NHS patients in the area. More information can be found on our translation and interpretation pages.

 PCSE (Primary Care Support England)

PCSE has the responsibility for the delivery of NHS England primary care support services.

For Opticians PCSE provide:

  • Ophthalmic Payments – Administrating monthly payments of GOS forms, processing Continuing Education and Training (CET) payments, deducting Local Optical Committee levies.
  • Performers List – Administering entry and changes to Performers Lists on behalf of NHS England
  • Supplies – Providing NHS stationery, pre-printed forms, needles and syringes via PCSE Online.

Contact details for PCSE:

Web:                            NHS England Primary Care Support England website

PO Box:                       Primary Care Support England, PO Box 350, Darlington, DL1 9QN

Phone:                         0333 014 2884

Enquiry Form:              https://pcse.england.nhs.uk/contact-us/

PCSE Online Ophthalmic Payments

PCSE provides the ophthalmic payments service on behalf of NHS England. PCSE process a wide range of payment claims for ophthalmic services, from NHS funded sight tests through to vouchers for optical repairs.  PCSE also deduct levies, manage refunds to patients and administer training grants claims.

In a digital-age PCSE want to provide you with a more efficient way to submit, track and manage your claims. That’s why they have introduced new, electronic services for ophthalmic payments.

PCSE Online is a web-based option for submitting GOS claims, which is available to use free of charge. eGOS is an option for ophthalmic practices who use Practice Management Systems (PMS) to submit GOS claims electronically.

There is a dedicated website area for those planning on using PCSE Online and guides for using PCSE Online to make GOS claims, view statements, submit a domiciliary Pre-Visit Notifications (PVN) and more.  Click the following link for further information PCSE Ophthalmic Payments

Ophthalmic Provider Assurance

The Business Services Authority (BSA) delivers a national, regional and local service that supports and facilitates the effective and consistent management of primary care services.

BSA works on behalf of NHS England on the following tasks:

  • Annual GOS complaints
  • GOS4 pre-authorisation
  • Post-payment verification (PPV)

For more information on their services and how to contact them please visit the NHS Business Services Authority website.