Notice: Our phone lines will close at 12:30pm on December 24th and re-open at 9am on 2nd January.

RSBC Crowns King’s Art Competition Winners

May 4, 2023

The RSBC competition, in celebration of the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III, was open to blind and partially sighted children and young people.

Vision impaired children and young people of all ages submitted paintings, drawings and models of, castles, crowns and His Majesty. All the entries are being made into a Coronation Collage which will be shared with His Majesty. A copy will also be displayed at the Life Without Limits Centre.

The RSBC secured an impressive line-up of judges for the competition including celebrated artist Henry Fraser who paints with his mouth. He has been paralysed from the shoulders down since 2009.

Sue Sharp, CEO of RSBC based at the in London at the Life Without Limits Centre said:

“We’re delighted with all the creativity around the Coronation!

“Big thanks to all our judges Henry Fraser, Catherine Shearn and Wendy Daws. Henry is an outstanding example of someone who lives his life without limits.

“We would like to say a huge congratulations to everyone who entered, and especially to our winners who will each receive a gift voucher to spend on arts and crafts.”

The winners are:

Oscar, age 5 for his handmade crown
Cody, age 5 for his image of His Majesty the King
Jacob, age 15 from West London for his castle sculpture
Tina, age 25 from South London for her abstract technicolour piece

Image of His Majesty the King – Cody

Handmade crown – Oscar

Castle sculpture – Jacob

Abstract technicolour piece – Tina

Talking about how they felt about being named a winner,

Cody said:

“Yay! That’s great!”

Oscar said:

“Wow! That’s brilliant!”

Jacob said:

“Thank you so much that’s amazing! I can’t believe it!”

Tina took to email:

“That’s great, thank you so much! I am so happy right now 😊😊😊😊”

The judges were so impressed the by the entries that they also awarded “Special Commendations” to five other entrants who will each receive a certificate:

Abdur, age 6 from Yorkshire;
Skanda, age 15 who submitted her entry from India;
Agatha, age 12, from Lancashire;
Emily, age 25 from South Yorkshire; and,
Mazharul, age 25 from London.

Commenting on the entries Henry Fraser, an accomplished artist, author and inspirational speaker said:

“I really enjoyed looking at everything. There really are some talented people in these groups.”

Catherine Shearn, art curator and member of the Association of Women in the Arts, added:

“For me, it was especially rewarding to see the potential amongst these young people, who had clearly enjoyed the challenge, and will hopefully continue their artistic journey. It was really hard to pick a winner, and I want to congratulate everyone who participated on their contribution!”

Wendy Daws, an accomplished artist and sculptor who works extensively with vision impaired people said:

“All the artists deserve recognition for their imagination and exciting contributions to the RSBC competition. They have all demonstrated that sight loss is not a boundary to creativity!”

The winners each scooped £50 to spend on art supplies.

There’s no more special time of year for children – whether they’re five or 50! – than Christmas. It’s a time when there’s magic everywhere, and it’s filled with colour and sparkle. But how can you make sure that children with vision impairment (VI) are able to enjoy the fun and laughter that’s part and […]

A group of young people stand in front of a wooden climbing frame.

No categories November 19, 2024

Boys Crew: why International Men’s Day matters

Each November 19th, the UK celebrates International Men’s Day. It’s not just about celebrating the contribution that men and boys make to our society – this special day also focuses on making a positive difference to their well-being and lives, raises awareness the support available to them, and promotes meaningful conversations about men, manhood and […]

No categories November 7, 2024

Narayan’s story

RSBC’s trustees have shared responsibility for governing our charity, and Narayan’s been a trustee since September 2024. We caught up with him to find out why he’d decided to take this step, and just what being a trustee involves.

Callum, a light skinned man with dark hair, wearing a grey long sleeved shirt with black buttons. He is standing behind a podium lecture desk, with a microphone attached to the top of the desk. Callum is standing in front of a white banner with RSBC written in large orange text, and Royal Society for Blind Children written in small text underneath, there is a thin orange line underneath this text. Underneath the orange line Dorton College is written in black medium sized text. In the bottom left hand corner there is a yellow shape similar to two halves of a flower petal.

No categories November 4, 2024

Callum’s Story

Callum’s been a trustee with RSBC since May 2021. He’s also the Chair of Governors of RSBC’s Dorton College, a specialist further education college for vision impaired young people aged 16-25. We spoke to Callum about what’s involved in being a trustee, why he does it, and what to consider if you’re thinking about becoming […]

Snapshot of a Dorton College activity. A young VI light-skinned man wearing a black t-shirt, black shorts and black & white trainers is in the centre of the picture. He is having fun kicking a football. Other Dorton College students are sat in the background behind him. On the left side of the picture is a Dorton College Staff member lady smiling and holding a football under her left arm. She is wearing a white t-shirt, a black and white pattern midi-skirt and black & White Nike Dunks. On the right stands Atrix, Dorton College's Learning Support Advisor holding a cane and looking at the young man. They are wearing an oversized bright orange RSBC t-shirt, skinny jeans and brown low Dr Martins shoes.

No categories October 25, 2024

Atrix’s story

Originally from the USA, Atrix (pictured above right) has a background in theatre. They’ve directed productions in New York and London, and taught modern dance and choreography to young children and teenagers. They moved to the UK in 2019 to take their Masters degree.

Owain from the RSBC team and a young person standing outside, exploring one of the percussive play outdoor instruments. The two people are standing either side of the instrument. The instrument is made of a series of steel grey tubes, which the young person is tapping to make sound.

No categories October 22, 2024

Owain’s Story

Fun, rewarding and never a dull moment – all ways that Owain would describe his role! But what led him to RSBC, and what does being a Senior Community Support Worker actually involve?

No categories October 13, 2024

Marking Blind Awareness Month: Making play areas more accessible

To mark Blind Awareness Month and World Sight Day this October, RSBC worked with Percussion Play and The Amber Trust to make some noise! Find out more here.

Lauren, a light-skinned young person with short reddish-brown hair and matching lipstick wears a black top and a necklace as they look into the camera with a steady gaze. The background of the image has been edited with a dark navy tint over the image, in the left hand corner there is a graphic yellow RSBC branded 'R'.

No categories October 11, 2024

Lauren’s braille journey

I’m Lauren, and I’m 17 and severely sight impaired/blind. I’ve been visually impaired for a couple of years, and previously needed large print from the age of 10.

Dad Joe with his two boys Noah and Lyle. Joe is standing with the two young boys on either side of him. Joe is medium-light skinned and buzzed-short black hair. Noah aged 9, on the left, is medium-light skinned with red glasses. Lyle aged 3, on the right, medium-light skinned with blue glasses. All three are smiling at the camera brightly.

No categories September 26, 2024

Meet Joe: An RSBC family story

Meet Joe. Joe has vision impairment, caused by congenital cataracts (cloudiness in the lens of the eye) and nystagmus (where the eyes make uncontrolled movement). And he’s Dad to two young sons, Noah, aged 9, and Lyle, 3, who have the same eye conditions.

A father holding his newborn baby baby. The man is medium-light skinned with short hair and stubbed facial hair. The baby is sleeping blissful on his chest.

No categories September 23, 2024

Eyes on the Future

As a new parent, you’ll meet many professionals in the first weeks and months after your baby’s born, and one of the most important people who’ll be supporting your family is your Health Visitor.