Torbay Social Club for the Blind & Visually Impaired

19/09/2026

A very good morning 🌅 to you all

We hope everyone is well.

Just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who has supported us by liking, sharing and commenting on our posts. It’s truly appreciated!

Have a great weekend 🙏

16/09/2026

I know it’s not quite what you might expect to see, but the facts are there!

How many people have already started to prepare for the festive season?

15/09/2026

💙 A BIG WELL DONE TO OUR VERY OWN SHAUN FULLER! 👏

Here at the Torbay Social Club for the Blind & Partially Sighted, we love celebrating the achievements of our members — and today we want to give a special shout-out to Shaun Fuller.

Shaun did something he had never done before.

He attended his first online business networking meeting, representing his residential and commercial utilities business.

For some people, logging onto Zoom, meeting a group of complete strangers and having just 40 seconds to introduce yourself and explain what you do might seem relatively straightforward.

But we know that everyone faces different hurdles.

Shaun is visually impaired and also lives with ADHD and Autism, so entering an unfamiliar environment and not knowing exactly what to expect can bring additional challenges.

He admits himself that he was apprehensive beforehand.

But he did it anyway. 💪

And what makes the story even better is that the networking group he visited is specifically aimed at the NeuroDiverse business community.

Shaun was welcomed, supported and given the opportunity to talk about his business alongside everyone else.

Most importantly, he enjoyed himself!

In fact, he’s already decided that one meeting isn’t enough. He’s now going to step outside his comfort zone again and visit another group within the network.

👏 Shaun, from everyone at the Torbay Social Club for the Blind & Partially Sighted — congratulations!

We’re proud to see one of our members challenging himself, building his confidence and showing what can be achieved when we focus on our abilities rather than allowing our hurdles to define us.

Sight loss doesn’t mean life stops.

Sometimes opportunities may need to be approached differently. Sometimes a little support is needed. And sometimes it takes a lot of courage to try something for the very first time.

But the important thing is to try.

And today, Shaun did exactly that. 💙👏

Please join us in giving him a big WELL DONE!

15/09/2026

Thought For The Day!

13/09/2026

👨‍🦯 LIVING WITH A SIGHT IMPAIRMENT – SHAUN’S JOURNEY

Living with a sight impairment can present challenges that many of us probably never have to think about.

Going somewhere unfamiliar means navigating almost everything with extra caution. Signage, tactile paving, obstacles and even the condition of the path can make a huge difference.

So, huge kudos to Shaun Fuller for making the journey from Paignton to Birmingham to attend our Utility Warehouse Amplify conference at the NEC. 💜

🚆 His train journey went smoothly, with special assistance arranged and provided along the way.

Getting from the station to the hotel was rather more challenging. Shaun was directed the long way around and encountered some rough terrain which could potentially have been treacherous for someone with a sight impairment.

Thankfully, once at the hotel, things became easier, with an adapted room on the ground floor.

The walk to the BP Pulse LIVE arena was more straightforward, although it still highlighted some interesting accessibility issues.

The tactile markings were adequate, although perhaps not the best. And whoever decided that putting a bus stop stand right in the middle of the path was a good idea clearly hadn’t considered everyone using that path! 🤦‍♂️

The alternative route around it wasn’t much better, thanks to low-hanging tree branches.

These might seem like small things to someone with full sight, but when you’re visually impaired, they can become genuine obstacles.

Thankfully, once inside the conference venue, Shaun found it relatively easy to navigate despite its enormous size. There were accessible areas for those who needed them, along with some extremely helpful members of staff. 👏

But this weekend wasn’t simply about making the journey.

🏆 Shaun was also recognised on stage for achieving his promotion to Senior Qualified Distributor – his THIRD promotion since starting his Utility Warehouse business.

So, Shaun, we’re extremely proud of you.

Not simply for the promotion, but for your determination to get there, both figuratively and quite literally!

Thank you for sharing your experience too, because accessibility improves when people are prepared to talk about what works — and what could work better.

Have a safe journey back to Paignton, mate.

Looking forward to seeing you again soon. 💜

11/09/2026

Today sees two of our members, Shaun Fuller and Paul Smith, embark on their journey up to the NEC Birmingham, for an annual conference they attend for work purposes.

Shaun will be travelling up from Paignton, by train, and Paul will be leaving London bound for the same destination.

The idea, they hope, is to both meet up at Birmingham International in preparation for the event tomorrow.

Wishing you both a safe journey and a productive weekend 🙏💜

10/09/2026

With The Thrive Project – Torbay Social Club for the Blind & Visually Impaired just got recognised as one of their top fans! 🎉

Graham Leach, Shaun Fuller and Paul Smith are delighted to help support the community in any way we can, and by interacting with groups we can all do our bit.

10/09/2026

With Andys Man Club – Torbay Social Club for the Blind & Visually Impaired just got recognised as one of their top fans! 🎉

Graham Leach, Shaun Fuller and Paul Smith are delighted to support the club in any way we can.

Promoting the local community is what it’s all about and we look forward to continuing this exciting journey whenever we can.

09/09/2026

👋 Hi everyone — a little introduction from me

My name is Paul Smith, although many people know me simply as “Smiffy” — so please feel free to call me that! 😊

I’m also very proud to say that I’m a fully paid-up member of the Torbay Social Club for the Blind & Visually Impaired. 💜

I’m delighted to be working alongside Graham Leach and Shaun Fuller to help grow and support our club and community — both within the club itself and through the way we interact and engage with people across social media.

For me, this is all about community, inclusion, friendship and positivity.

Life can present us all with hurdles. Those hurdles become much easier to face when people are willing to support, encourage and look out for one another.

That’s exactly the kind of community we want to continue building here.

We want our social media platforms to be places where people feel welcome, respected and comfortable getting involved — whether that’s commenting on a post, sharing something useful, offering encouragement or simply having a friendly conversation.

There is, however, one thing on which we will be very clear:

Respect for others is non-negotiable.

Personal attacks, bullying, deliberately negative comments or bad-mouthing other members will not be tolerated. Posts or comments of that nature will be removed and, where necessary, those responsible will be removed from the community.

We make no apologies for protecting the positive and supportive environment that Graham and Shaun are working so hard to build.

There are far too many good people out there who genuinely want to support, encourage and help one another for us to allow negativity to overshadow that.

Graham and Shaun are two great people who care enormously about this community, and I’m very pleased — and proud — to be supporting them as both a member and someone helping behind the scenes.

I’ll also be reaching out and interacting with people directly where appropriate, and I’m really looking forward to collaborating, sharing ideas and helping to raise awareness of the club and the wider blind and visually impaired community.

💜 And if you’re reading this but you’re not yet a member, why not come and join us?

Whether you are blind or visually impaired yourself, or simply want to support what we are doing, we’d love to hear from you.

Every new member makes our community that little bit stronger.

If you’d like to know more about becoming a member of the Torbay Social Club for the Blind & Visually Impaired, simply send us a message through the page and we’ll be delighted to tell you more.

Come along, get involved, make new friends and become part of a community where support, friendship and positivity really matter. 💜

Different hurdles. Different experiences. One supportive community.

Here’s to making it even stronger — together.

Paul “Smiffy” Smith 😊

Proud member of the Torbay Social Club for the Blind & Visually Impaired

08/02/2026

Please help support this project 🙏

Hi Besties, we need your help 💪

Without funds we will not be able to run this year. Whatever you can spare will make all the difference.

The Pride Team is very small and all of us are volunteers, nobody takes a salary. We always do our best to keep costs down and to offer a free event for all to enjoy but unfortunately this year those costs have steeply risen 😔

Whether its donating, taking out a corporate sponsorship or buying tickets to our fundraisers - we need you ❤️

For full transparency, here are our costs:
Medical - £2,600
Security - £5,500
Sanitation & Fencing - £7,500
Entertainment - £7,000
Marquees - £2,000
Stage & Lighting - £8,500
Road Closures - £4,200
Insurances - £1,200
Total: £38,500

🔗Link in comments

Thank you,
The Torbay Pride Team