Freedom of Information Act (2000)

This document complies with the requirements of the Information Commissioner’s Model Publication Scheme for Chakshu London Opticians in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and fulfils the obligations on opticians’ practices under the Act.

INTRODUCTION

This is a complete guide to the information routinely made available to the public by Chakshu London Opticians.  It is a description of the information about our NHS services that we make publicly available. It will be reviewed at regular intervals.

HOW IS THIS INFORMATION AVAILABLE? 

The information within each Class is available to be printed from this website. Alternatively you can request a hard copy by writing to the following address: 97 Parkway, Camden Town, London, NW1 7PP.

COST OF INFORMATION

For the most part, we will only charge for hard copies, or copies onto media. Charges are as follows and will be reviewed regularly.

  • Accessed from our website - free of charge
  • Request by email - free of charge
  • Single hard copies - postage charge of £2

As the Freedom of Information Act applies to the provision of information, a request for multiple hard copies does not fall within the provisions of the Act and will attract a charge for retrieval, photocopying and postage.  We will inform you of the cost of these charges that will have to be paid in advance.

THIS GUIDE INFORMATION

We will publish any changes we make to this guide or relevant information.  We will also publish any proposed changes or additions to publications already available.

YOUR RIGHTS TO INFORMATION
  • The Freedom of Information Act 2000 is designed to promote openness and accountability amongst all organisations that receive public money.
  • Like all NHS contractors, since 1 January  2005 there has been a FOI obligation on optical practices to respond to requests about the NHS related information that they hold, and a right of access to that information has been established in law.
  • These rights are subject to exemptions (see below) that have to be taken into consideration before releasing information.
  • In addition to accessing the information identified in this guide, you are entitled to request information about our NHS services under the NHS Openness Code 1995.
  • Under the Data Protection Act 1998, you are also entitled to access your clinical records or any other personal information held about you and you can contact any practice where your records are held to do this.
FEEDBACK

If you have any comments about the operation of the Publication Scheme, or how we have dealt with your request for information from the scheme, please write to: 97 Parkway, Camden Town, London, NW1 7PP. Alternatively, please email us at info@chakshu.co.uk.


CLASSES OF INFORMATION

All NHS information at Chakshu London Opticians is held, retained and/or destroyed within NHS guidelines.  Our commitment to publish information excludes any information that can be legitimately withheld under the exemptions set out in the NHS Openness Code or Freedom of Information Act 2000, the main reasons being the protection of commercial interests and personal information under the Data Protection Act 1998.  This scheme has been written in accordance with those exemptions. The information on this Scheme is grouped into the following categories:

1. Who we are and what we do
  • Chakshu London Opticians was opened in February 2019. It is our priority to provide clinical excellence, having invested in state-of-the-art equipment to aid us in doing so.  
  • Chakshu London has one practice located at 97 Parkway, Camden Town, London, NW1 7PP. You can contact us by post at this address, by phone at 0203 981 2907 or by email to info@chakshu.co.uk. If you require details about your optometrist, you can contact the practice.
  • The three directors of Chak Shu London Limited (Company registration number: 09932958) are all qualified optometrists who are registered with the General Optical Council (GOC), details of all UK registered opticians can be obtained from the GOC register.
  • You can contact the General Optical Council via their website at or telephone 020 7580 3898.
2. Our Services

Chakshu London Opticians provides NHS-funded sight tests for those who are eligible.  Patients may also be entitled to NHS vouchers that can be used against the purchase of spectacles or contact lenses as required. To find out if you are eligible for this assistance please click here. Alternatively, you can call the practice on 0203 981 2907 for further assistance.  

Appointments for sight tests can be booked over the phone, on-line by using our contact page or by dropping into the practice.

Opening times and contact information are available on our website www.chakshu.co.uk or on Google.

3. Financial and funding information: what we spend and how we spend it

For every sight test performed on behalf of the NHS the practice receives a set fee, which is fixed nationally, this fee will cover the cost of a standard eye examination as determined by the GOC and NHS guidelines.

The fees paid by the NHS for each service are available from the practice on request. They include a contribution towards optometrists’ and staff salaries, equipment costs and other practice overheads. Information in this class will be published only where it is unlikely adversely to affect the commercial position of the firm or practice

You can read more about the NHS voucher values here. Please note, these are regularly reviewed by the NHS and are subject to change.

4. Decision Making

Any decisions made about the provision of NHS-funded services will be reflected in the services we provide and in the contract held with NHS England.

5. Our policies and procedures
Complaints

If you have a complaint or concern about any of our products or services, please do discuss any problems with one of the three directors of the company. They are all present on a daily basis in the practice.

We hope to resolve any issues you may encounter in this this way to ensure we find a satisfactory outcome.

If the matter cannot be resolved in this way or you are unsatisfied with the response you receive please send a formal complaint in writing to info@chakshu.co.uk or post to: 97 Parkway, Camden Town, London, NW1 7PP. We will do our best to reach a satisfactory resolution to your complaint.

Privacy

Read here about our Privacy Policy. 

LISTS AND REGISTERS

We don’t keep lists and registers. Our patient records are confidential.

REGULAR PUBLICATIONS AND INFORMATION FOR THE PUBLIC

Information about optical and ocular conditions, sight tests, spectacles, and contact lenses, can be found on the following websites; Association of Optometrists or NHS.

Should you need any further clarification on specific optical or ocular conditions please contact us and we will endeavor to help.

Some of this information is also available in patient leaflets.  These are freely available from our practice To request a leaflet by post or email, please write to: 97 Parkway, Camden Town, London, NW1 7PP or email us at info@chakhsu.co.uk.

USEFUL RESOURCES

Websites: Publications:

©️ Chak Shu London Limited. March 2019

Material available through this publication scheme is copyright unless otherwise indicated.  Unless expressly indicated to the contrary, it may be reproduced free of charge in any format or medium, provided it is done so accurately in a manner that will not mislead.  Where items are re-published or copied to others, you must identify the source and acknowledge copyright status. This permit does not extend to third party material, accessed through the scheme.