AN OPTICIAN from York is preparing to fly to Africa to help thousands of people regain their sight.

Ruth Perrott, who runs Ruth Perrott Community Otometrist, in York Road, Acomb, is part of an 11-strong team aiming to improve the lives of patients who need glasses in order to lead an ordinary life.

She will travel to one of the world's poorest countries - Burkina Faso, in West Africa - with charity Vision Aid Overseas in December.

The volunteer team will help people with short and long sight who cannot get glasses or optical treatment.

Ruth, of Copmanthorpe, said: "People out there can't work if they can't see and, to all intents and purposes, they are blind. They can't see if they do not have any glasses.

"It is giving people a livelihood that they would not otherwise have. It is so simple to give people a pair of glasses and it is life-changing for them.

"The importance to them is such that they are prepared to walk a couple of days to come and see us."

About five million people in Burkina Faso - nearly half the population - live below the poverty line and glasses are too expensive for them to buy.

There are also very few opticians in the country.

During the two-week project, volunteers will carry out 2,000 eye tests and will hand out glasses that have been donated and recycled in the UK.

It is Ruth's third visit to the country and her fourth project with the charity. She visited Cameroon in 1990 and Burkina Faso in 2000 and 2002.

She said: "It is amazing how easily we take spectacles for granted in the UK.

"Even if you are short-sighted or long-sighted it is virtually impossible to consider your condition a disability.

"There are opticians on every high street in the country and almost nobody in the UK would ever go without.

"In Burkina Faso many people, especially youngsters, are severely disabled by poor eyesight and I am very excited about the opportunity to help these people."