SPECSAVERS MILNGAVIE has completed a £150,000 investment programme to enhance its clinical services and improve access to care for the local community.

The upgrade involves a new upstairs layout and the addition of a fully equipped test room, increasing testing capacity by 36 appointments per week.

This change has significantly reduced waiting times for eye tests, cutting the queue from five days to just two.

The store has also doubled its audiology provision and now has a full-time hearcare specialist in store, making hearing services more accessible than ever.

Opened in 2008 by Charles and Caroline Kinsey, who are still directors today, the store has built a strong reputation for clinical excellence in the community.

Working alongside their daughter and fellow Ophthalmic director Sarah Vallance says the investment marks a new chapter in that commitment:

‘This upgrade allows us to provide faster access to care and better support for our customers, particularly those with more complex needs. We have been looking at making this move since 2020, so we’re excited that we’ve finally managed to get everything in order.’

Milngavie Specsavers already offers advanced optical technology, including OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography) scanning, and is now among the best-equipped opticians in the region.

The investment includes a new testing room to increase testing capacity.

The store has a very low turnover rate, with several members of the team who have been there since the store’s opening. The team now includes 21 colleagues, compared with the original 6 team members in 2008.

The Douglas Street store carries out 8484 eye tests per year and currently has four (soon to be five) fully qualified Independent Prescribing (IP) optometrists on staff.

This means the team can clinically assess patients, establish diagnoses, manage conditions, and prescribe medication where necessary - all in-store. With more patients now able to be treated locally, referrals to hospitals can often be avoided, easing the burden on overstretched NHS services.

Sarah adds: ‘We’re proud to have one of the largest IP-qualified teams in the region, and this expansion helps us make even better use of that expertise. Our goal is always to offer accessible, expert care to the Milngavie community, and this investment helps us do just that.’

To book an optical or audiology appointment, visit specsavers.co.uk/stores/Milngavie or call 0141 955 1090.