At Aston University's eye and hearing clinics, we'll look after you with the highest level of personal care. We will tailor your experience to suit you and your eye and hearing needs. Our eye and hearing clinics are open to the general public, Aston staff and students to support their eye and hearing care needs.

Located in Birmingham city centre, we are the largest optometry teaching centre in the world. Our students are taught in the clinic under close supervision by experienced practitioners. Appointments are longer than typically experienced on the ‘high street’ as every aspect of eye/ear health and vision/hearing is checked. These clinics allow the next generation of optometrists and audiologists to gain valuable clinical experience and for patients to receive thorough eye/ear care, using advanced instrumentation, in a comfortable and spacious setting.

Aston University's Audiology team is working in partnership with Specsavers to provide hearing tests, dispense hearing aids, and provide counselling and advice alongside a full aftercare package. We can also advise people on personalised noise protection and swim plugs. The clinic will accept NHS referrals. Please contact the clinic for more information.

All eye and hearing consultations are free. Please note there may be a charge for any personalised spectacles or hearing aids.

Aston Eye Clinic

Eye Examinations

Eyes are thoroughly examined for common refractive conditions such as short sightedness (myopia), long sightedness (hyperopia) and astigmatism.

If patients require spectacles or new lenses, prescriptions will be provided.

Clinicians will also examine the health of your eyes, looking for signs of cataract, glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration as well as general health problems which sometimes affect the eyes first.

Spectacles

Our dispensing clinic provides a wide selection of spectacle frames - from budget styles to designer names - at competitive prices. With many frames in stock, patients are assisted by qualified dispensing opticians to find frames that look great, fit well and are good value for money. We dispense what is best for the patient depending on their individual requirements.  We offer full dispensing services including, but not limited to:

  • Safety eyewear 
  • Sports eyewear 
  • Occupational dispensing 
  • Ptosis props 
  • Lundi loops 
  • Paediatric dispensing 
  • Hospital prescriptions 
  • Complex hand made frames for individual requirements or conditions 

We will supply any lens currently on the market and have no core product range therefore no limitations or brand loyalties. Prices for frames start from £14.00 and vary depending on type, brand and material. Designer eyewear lines include:

  • Coca Mint
  • Furla
  • Jensen
  • Land Rover
  • Louis Marcel
  • Range Rover
  • Ray-Ban
  • Police
  • Wolf
Contact Lenses

The contact lens clinic provides a comprehensive contact lens fitting and aftercare service to all new and existing contact lens wearers. We always ensure your lenses are comfortable and provide the clearest vision possible. Contact lenses have improved greatly over the last few years, so even if you have tried them before or been told you are not suitable for them, it is always worth another try.  We can supply any brand of contact lens available in the UK and fit depending on patient individual requirements.  

We have an extensive range of lenses at very competitive prices, including:

  • Daily disposables
  • 2 weekly wear
  • Monthly’s lenses
  • Coloured daily and monthly contact lenses (for those people wanting to have a change of look)
  • Lenses for dryer eyes
  • Lenses to restore clear vision - for older eyes 
  • Lenses to correct astigmatism
  • Rigid Gas Permeable lenses to include those for corneal astigmatism and multifocals
  • Lenses for Keratoconus, Pellucid Marginal Degeneration, irregular cornea, high astigmatism and cosmetic lenses for scarred corneas.
Dry Eye Clinic

Dry eye disease (DED) [sometimes referred to as dry eye syndrome] is a condition where the tears produced are insufficient to moisten and nourish the eye/s. This causes symptoms such as dryness, irritation, poor vision refreshed by blinking and even watering. Dry eyes can be a persistent symptom due to a disruption of the very fragile tear film which bathes the surface of your eyes. In the Dry Eye clinic, we aim to determine the cause of the problem (initial appointment) and to apply an effective management strategy (follow up visits). 

Find out more about services provided by our Dry Eye Clinic under book now.

Reading, Learning and Binocular Vision Clinic

This specialist clinic is for people with reading or learning difficulties, or other binocular vision problems. We will carry out a binocular vision investigation to determine levels of eye coordination and focus. If no eye problems are detected, a coloured overlay assessment (plastic sheets for reading) will be undertaken which may be followed by a colourimetry assessment. 
This clinic is also suitable for patients requiring a colourimetry assessment due to headaches or migraines. 


As we are a teaching clinic 3/4 students may be observing and our clinics only operate from October to March. The assessment may last up to 90 minutes and more than one visit may be required. Fees do apply for this clinic. We would need a current optical prescription (from within the last 12 months) and any reports you may have from school, hospital or doctors would be helpful but are not essential. For more information about this clinic please email eyecare@aston.ac.uk 

Low Vision Clinic

Aston Eye Clinic offers a low-vision service to assist those people with permanently reduced vision. Clinicians assess residual vision and work with the patient to aim to find solutions for visual tasks they are struggling with. Clinicians offer advice, issue magnifying and other aids and can make referrals to local agencies when appropriate. Most magnifiers and other aids are provided on loan whilst they are useful to the individual. In addition, other specific services are offered within this clinic to enable a match to a patient's specific visual needs. 

Contrast enhancement 
There are times when people suffer from reduced contrast sensitivity function and find magnifiers will not help. Clinicians assess the level of your contrast sensitivity function and if found to be reduced, will work with the patient to aim to find solutions to enhance contrast as a possible solution for visual tasks they are struggling with. 

Technology workshop 
There are a variety of electronic aids on the market that may provide a solution for people with permanently reduced vision for the visual tasks they are struggling with. Clinicians will demonstrate and train you on the aids to see if they are a viable solution for you. These options cannot be loaned through the clinic but it will enable you to see if they are a suitable solution for your visual tasks prior to purchase.  

Autofocus bi-optic training 
These telescopic devices can be a solution for people who struggle with distance tasks when out and about (Please note these devices cannot be used for driving). Clinicians will demonstrate and train you on the aids to see if they are a viable solution for you. These options cannot be loaned through the clinic, but they will enable you to see if they are a suitable solution for your visual tasks prior to purchase.  

Charles Bonnet Syndrome service 
It is common for people with reduced vision to experience visual hallucinations (which are known as Charles Bonnet Syndrome). Patients can find it helpful to discuss this with an experienced clinician in a safe space to share their experiences and explore possible ways that may limit them and their emotional impact. 

Myopia Clinic

At Aston University Myopia Clinic we provide advanced myopia care for children and teenagers with short-sightedness. With our state-of-the-art instrumentation and evidence-based treatments we can now slow your child's myopia progression.
Preventing your child's degree of myopia from increasing with effective treatment gives them the chance to enjoy a lifetime of better vision and the potential for better eye health. We offer both a general myopia clinic and the option to participate in clinical trials relating to myopia control.

If you are unsure if this would be suitable for your child we can discuss this at your initial appointment or please contact the myopia research team at myopia@aston.ac.uk
 

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Contact Us

Telephone: 0121 204 3900
Email: eyecare@aston.ac.uk
Address: Aston Eye Clinic, Vision Sciences Building, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham, B4 7ET

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Aston Hearing Clinic

Book for Earwax Removal

The method of wax removal used will be with either a small vacuum – microsuction, or a gentle stream of water – Irrigation.

The clinician will choose the most appropriate method based on the anatomy of your ear, the amount and consistency of the wax and any other medical considerations.

If you haven't experienced any of the following you will be eligible to volunteer:

  • Current blood, discharge, or pain in the ear (or within last 90 days)
  • Current or recent troublesome vertigo (within last 3-6 months)
  • Current or recent perforations of the eardrum (within last 3-6 months)
  • Any recent, existing, or suspected ear infection (within last 3-6 months)
  • History of any operations on the ear/s or cleft palate (repaired or not)

If you could use some olive oil spray or drops in your ears, once or twice a day, for a week before attending that would be very helpful. We recommend the Earol olive oil spray which is much more comfortable to use. It's available in most chemists and major supermarkets, though olive oil drops are as good if you have a preference.

To book, please email eyecare@aston.ac.uk or call 0121 204 3900

Book for a Hearing Protection Consultation

If you want to protect your hearing on a daily basis and would like to discuss available options, please book an appointment to speak with our consultants. 

Book for a Swim Plug Consultation

If you want to keep your ears dry but like partaking in swimming and water sports purpose fit swim plugs may help. To find out more information, discuss the health of your ears and to get an impression of your ears taken please book using this link.

All consultations are free but charges may apply for the actual personalised swim plugs.

Contact Us

Telephone: 01384 214851 (Specsavers)
Address: School of Optometry, Vision Sciences Building, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham, B4 7ET

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