VOLUNTEERS from West Dorset have been on a spec-tacular mission to help needy people in the third world see.

Members of the Bridport, Dorchester and Weymouth and Portland Lions Clubs handed over 6,500 pairs of used glasses – collected over the past year – to the Petersfield Lions Club, which distributes them to those in need through its annual SpecTrek appeal.

Norman Apps, of the Weymouth and Portland Lions, said: “We, along with Lions clubs throughout the UK, collect and grade used spectacles for distribution in the third world.

“This has far more benefit than hard currency as in many poor countries if the cash were available it would be almost impossible to purchase a pair of spectacles.

“A simple thing like a pair of spectacles can turn a dependent person into a productive citizen, less dependent upon aid.”