Committee
The Committee
Harpreet Kular
Chair
Harpreet is an optometrist with an independent practice in Cheltenham she owns with her husband, who is also an optometrist. She was previously the franchisee of Boots Opticians in Worcester for 10 years. She is also a locum optometrist, practising in Worcestershire and Somerset. She has sat on the LOC since 2006 and previous positions have been as vice chair, before taking the Chair position in 2016.
Gurdeep Bansal
Vice Chair
A graduate of Aston University and after qualifying as an optometrist, he became self-employed and worked in both multiple and independent practices across the Staffordshire, Midlands, Worcestershire & Gloucestershire areas. Ultimately he settled as a resident optometrist in Redditch, Worcestershire in 2011. He joined the Redditch Specsavers branch in 2014, where he has been the Ophthalmic Director since 2015.
He joined the Worcestershire LOC in 2016 to help promote community optometry services in the Redditch & Bromsgrove areas. While being part of the committee he has also be active in sub-committees to help with website development, communication & CET event organisation. Most recently he has been elected to Vice-Chair of Worcestershire LOC in 2019.
James Osborne
Hon. Treasurer. Clinical Governance Lead
Jim is an Optometrist Independent Prescriber. He ran an Independent Optometry practice in Evesham for 25 years, selling in 2014 and has also worked part time as a visiting optometrist for the HM Prison Service. He currently holds the position of Hon. Speciality Doctor in Optometry with Worcestershire Acute Hospital Trust, assisting in the Glaucoma clinics and also undertakes Locum work as a Community Optometrist in private practice. Jim, a Freeman of the City of London, is a member of the Livery of the Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers, having served 6 years as a trustee of the company’s charity and 5 years on the company membership committee. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and regularly attends the Academy’s annual education conference meetings in America (currently having visited a dozen different States). He has been a registered “Ophthalmic Optician” for over 40 years and a member of Worcestershire LOC since 1998.
Stuart Burdett
Secretary
Laura Langford
Minute Secretary/ Officer
Laura is a performer currently working part-time for two independent clinics in Pershore and in Gloucestershire
She worked at Cheltenham General Hospital until 2009 when she moved to Canada and continued to practice optometry by completing the Optometric Bridging Program, the Canadian Standard Assessment of Optometry and obtaining her Canadian optometry license.
After moving back to the UK she joined the Worcestershire LOC in July 2019 as she wanted to be involved in communicating the LOC’s work to other local Optometrists; increasing her own knowledge of commissioning and local referral pathways; keeping Optometry at the forefront of primary health care; and to help ensure Optometry reaches it’s potential and continues to thrive as a profession.
Victoria Merrett
Officer
Victoria is an independent practitioner in Worcester who wasn’t able to have her photo taken.
Jonathan Lee
Officer
Jonathon is an Optometrist and is a Specsavers francisee with practices in Stourport, Kidderminster and Droitwich.
Steven Bainbridge
Representative: Bromsgrove
Steven is an Optometrist and have been working in Redditch for the past 12 years. Growing up with and being part of a local family business, he has seen the changes to local Optometry and challenges facing the profession. He is part of the LOC to bring support to these challenges, in any small way he can.
Amy Wilkes
Officer
Amy is an optometrist and recently became an IP. She currently works in Worcester Royal Infirmary and at independent practices in Gloucestershire.
Pritpal Sandhu
Communication Officer
Pritpal Sandhu is the principal optometrist and co-owner of Peter Smith Opticians, Pershore. He qualified at Aston University and has worked at Peter Smith Opticians since 2003.
Pritpal joined the Worcestershire LOC in July 2019. He has always kept himself informed of changes in the local area and has now felt the need to be part of the discussion to benefit the patients in Worcestershire. His role is to assist with communications amongst its members and within the primary care trust.
Outside of work, he is a doting father to 2 girls, Simran and Amrita.
Matt
Events Officer
Having qualified as an Optometrist at Aston university in 2004 Matt joined the committee in 2012. His main committee role is CET lead which involves planning our regional training and education events.
Matt is a performer in the area providing domiciliary services for Outside Clinic. He joined the committee to ensure domiciliary provision is represented at a local level.
Andrew Griffin
Officer
Andrew is an independent dispensing optician with a practice in Pershore
Andrew Jelley
Officer
Optometrist and independent practice owner in Tenbury Wells.
Phillip Virdi-Smith
Officer
Phillip has been involved in optics since 1984, firstly as a dispensing optician, then a contact lens practitioner and as an Optometrist since 2001. He has been in independent practice since 1989 but does locum work throughout Worcestershire and Cheltenham. He is currently practicing at his own practice in St Johns in Worcester.