It’s very important for children to have their eyes tested. Your child’s vision develops​ rapidly after birth, and anything that interrupts this development can lead to visual impairment in later life, particularly if the child was to lose sight in one eye due to trauma or other eye conditions. Children rarely complain of having poor vision in one or both eyes, because they don’t know any different. Problems can easily go unnoticed, especially when it only affects one eye. The pre-school screening programme is vital for detecting amblyopia (lazy eye) and other visual problems as early as possible. If the test does reveal sight problems, early treatment will lead to better results for your child. By having the test, you can be confident your child will start school with the best possible vision. Pre-school orthoptic vision screening is the only test your child will have before they enter primary 1.