Chris, 43, says he is angry at the lack of understanding people have about the needs of blind and partially sighted people. He tells Maryam Qaiser how losing his sight left him still struggling to find a job and a home.
I am looking for a job - I want to do something like administration - but it is very difficult. You get to the interview stage but after that you don't hear back from them.
In 2003 I was diagnosed with an eye condition after an injury to my head. The injury left my sight pigmented and my vision became yellowish.
Over the years my sight has become worse and I now use a cane. I am now left with 20 per cent vision in both eyes.
At the time I was working in a warehouse then I did some agency work.
I think there is an element of discrimination against people like us. A lot of people have no idea what it is like to be in this situation.
Now I survive on Personal Independence Payments (PIP) and Employment Support Allowance (ESA) benefits.
I live at home with my parents, but I am waiting for a housing association property. It is a bidding system and it is relentless because you end up just losing out each week.
What angers me the most is people don't have any patience or consideration for partially sighted people.
People think it is okay to push past me or knock me as they walk by or when I am crossing the road.
Have Your Say
Tell us about the issues affecting you.
We are retracing the journey George Orwell made in his book, The Road to Wigan Pier , to share your stories of working and unemployed poverty.
They'll appear in a regular series in the Daily Mirror newspaper and here, on our special anniversary website
