The British Contact Lens Association (BCLA) is an educational and scientific membership orgnisation.
19/12/2025
As we wind down for the year, we’d love to take a moment to look back on what has been an amazing year for the BCLA.
To our members, partners, speakers, sponsors, and supporters - thank you for being part of our journey and for your continued commitment to advancing contact lens and anterior eye practice.
This year, we were proud to host our flagship clinical conference, bringing our community together to learn, share, and innovate. We were also delighted to welcome Brad Parkes as our new CEO, marking an exciting new chapter for the Association.
With so much momentum behind us, we’re looking ahead to an exciting year ahead and can’t wait to share what’s next. Thank you for being part of the BCLA community, we look forward to continuing the journey together.
Here’s to reflecting on an incredible year and gearing up for an even brighter one ahead.
18/12/2025
Could you play a key role in a global membership organisation and help drive impact in eye care?
The BCLA is seeking a strategic and inspiring individual to join us as Chair, leading an ambitious and exciting work programme from 2026 and beyond.
This voluntary role is ideal for someone who values specialist education, leadership, and innovation in eye health, and is looking for a diverse and rewarding challenge. As Chair, you’ll work alongside some of the most influential and inspirational professionals in eye care.
We especially welcome applications from optometrists or contact lens opticians working in strategy-focused roles within industry or commercial partner organisations.
We would like to extend our sincere thanks to our current Chair, Dave Webley, for his exceptional leadership over the past three years. His dedication, guidance, and commitment have been instrumental in driving the BCLA forward.
If you- or someone in your network would like to help lead the BCLA into its next chapter, we encourage you to apply or share this opportunity.
Are you passionate about contact lenses and the anterior eye? How would you like to play a key role in a global membership organisation and help to make an impact within eye care?The BCLA has a new opportunity for a strategic individual to lead the council in delivering an ambitious and exciting wor...
08/12/2025
There is still time for register for our webinar taking place this week Wednesday:
BCLA CLEAR™ Presbyopia – Integrating Evidence-Based Insights into Clinical Practice
- Wednesday, 10 December
- 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM (GMT)
- 1 CPD Point
- Online via Zoom
- Open to ALL
Speakers: James Wolffsohn, Philip Morgan, Shehzad Naroo & Melissa Barnett, OD, FAAO, FSLS, FBCLA, ACC
Presbyopia is one of the most common and complex challenges in modern eye care. This webinar will give you the latest evidence-based strategies to elevate diagnosis, management, and patient communication.
✨ What you’ll learn:
• Accurate assessment and evaluation techniques to optimise visual outcomes
• Evidence-based fitting and management strategies using modern lens designs
• Innovations addressing the biomechanics of the aging eye
Discover how to apply findings from the BCLA CLEAR™ Presbyopia report directly to your clinical practice. Gain practical insights into fitting and aftercare across spectacle and contact lens options, including soft simultaneous, rigid translating, and monovision designs. You’ll also explore emerging solutions such as advanced scleral lenses, pharmacological options, and surgical approaches aimed at restoring natural visual function.
Whether you're refining your expertise or expanding your presbyopia toolkit, this session will help you deliver more personalised, evidence-based care to every patient.
Fellowship deadline this week - Friday 5 December 2025
It's the last call to get your applications in for BCLA Fellowship. Join a prestigious global network of over 250 leading eye care professionals by becoming a BCLA Fellow (FBCLA). A mark of excellence in contact lenses and anterior eye care.
Being awarded Fellowship status recognises your expertise, innovation, and dedication to advancing vision care. Successful applicants will be formally awarded their Fellowship at BCLA Asia in Japan on 29 May 2026.
Join Dr.Melissa Barnett and Dr.Cristina Schnider as they dive into BCLA CLEAR™ Presbyopia Management with Intraocular Lenses.
They discuss the evolving role of optometrists in supporting patients through the cataract and presbyopia journey, the importance of early conversations about IOL options, and exciting advances in presbyopia-correcting lens technologies. Together, they focus on how collaboration, communication, and innovation can enhance outcomes and strengthen the connection between optometrists, surgeons, and patients.
Call for Papers for BCLA Asia 2026 closes this Sunday!
BCLA Asia, hosted with the Japan Contact Lens Society (JCLS), takes place 29 May 2026 in Tokyo, followed by the JCLS Annual Meeting (30–31 May), featuring a vibrant international programme featuring the latest research, clinical advances, and global collaboration in contact lens and anterior eye care.
This is your opportunity to showcase world-class research, connect with peers, and help shape the future of the field. We especially encourage submissions from new researchers, clinicians, and young academics.
New Webinar: BCLA CLEAR™ Presbyopia – Integrating Evidence-Based Insights into Clinical Practice
- Wednesday, 10 December
- 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM (GMT)
- 1 CPD Point
- Online via Zoom
- Open to ALL
Speakers: James Wolffsohn, Philip Morgan, Shehzad Naroo & Melissa Barnett
Presbyopia is one of the most common and complex challenges in modern eye care. This webinar will give you the latest evidence-based strategies to elevate diagnosis, management, and patient communication.
✨ What you’ll learn:
• Accurate assessment and evaluation techniques to optimise visual outcomes
• Evidence-based fitting and management strategies using modern lens designs
• Innovations addressing the biomechanics of the aging eye
Discover how to apply findings from the BCLA CLEAR™ Presbyopia report directly to your clinical practice. Gain practical insights into fitting and aftercare across spectacle and contact lens options, including soft simultaneous, rigid translating, and monovision designs. You’ll also explore emerging solutions such as advanced scleral lenses, pharmacological options, and surgical approaches aimed at restoring natural visual function.
Whether you're refining your expertise or expanding your presbyopia toolkit, this session will help you deliver more personalised, evidence-based care to every patient.
Join a prestigious global network of over 250 leading eye care professionals by becoming a BCLA Fellow (FBCLA). A mark of excellence in contact lenses and anterior eye care.
Being awarded Fellowship status recognises your expertise, innovation, and dedication to advancing vision care. Successful applicants will be formally awarded their Fellowship at BCLA Asia in Japan on 29 May 2026.
Call for Papers: NCC/BCLA Collaborative Research Symposium 2026
Are you a researcher, clinician, student, or early-career academic working in contact lenses or anterior eye care? This is your chance to present your work on a global stage!
Submissions are now open for the NCC/BCLA Symposium, taking place 8–9 March 2026 in Veldhoven, The Netherlands.
Accepted papers will be published in the Contact Lens & Anterior Eye (CLAE) journal, giving your work formal citations and international visibility.
Register for our next webinar: Don’t Drop Out: Managing Dry Eye for Contact Lens Success
📅 Wednesday 3 December
🕖 7:00 – 8:00 PM (GMT)
💠 1 CPD Point | Open to All | Online via Zoom
Dry eye is one of the most common reasons patients stop wearing contact lenses - but it doesn’t have to be.
Join Imke Jacobs for a practical, evidence-based webinar on how to manage dry eye effectively in everyday contact lens practice. Learn how proactive care can improve comfort, satisfaction, and retention for your patients.
🔹 Apply proven dry eye management techniques
🔹 Recognise and address lens-related dryness early
🔹 Build confidence in dry eye therapy
This webinar is sponsored by Alcon.
🎃 Halloween is coming... but don't let scary costumes lead to scary eye infections! 🎃
As eye care professionals, it's our role to protect our patients’ vision - especially during spooky season. Many people turn to novelty contact lenses to complete their Halloween look, but without proper fitting and guidance, these lenses can pose serious risks to eye health.
We have produced a clear and informative infographic to help raise awareness about the dangers of using non-prescription or unregulated cosmetic lenses.
Remind your patients:
- Only wear contact lenses fitted by an eye care professional
- Never share lenses
- Always follow hygiene and aftercare advice
Let’s spread the word to help ensure a safe and stylish Halloween for all!
Share the BCLA infographic in your practice and across your platforms.
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As a membership organisation, the BCLA provides a wide range of benefits to help members at all stages of their educational and professional career access a range of high quality resources. We provide members with a continual stream of relevant information as well as the opportunity to communicate with others involved with contact lenses, whatever their role.
The BCLA also runs a number of free and discounted events throughout the year for members and non members. The highly regarded Clinical Conference and Exhibition is now a biennial event which welcomes on average more than 1,200 UK and international delegates. We are pleased to introduce a new event for 2016; BCLA UK aimed to increase confidence amongst UK based eye care practitioners who want to improve their contact lens fitting skills and knowledge.
Our Vision
To be the leading resource gateway for the contact lens community.
Our Mission
To educate, interact and promote growth within the field of contact lenses and related areas.
History of the BCLA
The BCLA has come a long way since it was formed in 1977 by a collaboration and amalgamation of the four major bodies in the UK concerned with the then relatively specialised practice of contact lenses.
The main objectives of the BCLA at that time were to provide for the advancement of knowledge in the field of contact lens practice and encourage teaching and research in the field. The BCLA has remained steadfast in its commitment to meeting these objectives.
Our mission today is to educate, interact and promote growth within the field of contact lenses and related areas. It is also our vision to be the leading resource gateway for the contact lens community. Membership of the BCLA has grown from 656 in 1978 to 1,800 by the end of 2015.
The first-ever BCLA conference was held in Torquay in 1977 with around 150 delegates attending. Today, the Clinical Conference and Exhibition is a globally recognised event attracting more than 1,000 visitors and delegates from the UK and overseas. It is the BCLA's flagship event and we are very proud of its continuing success and development.
Read more information about the history of the BCLA in 'The British Contact Lens Association: The first 30 years' (2007) by Andrew Gasson and Tim Bowden.
