Your baby's vision

A baby’s vision develops quickly during the first 12 months. Newborns can see shapes, faces and bright colours. As they get older this becomes more detailed, with babies being able to focus on smaller objects and by four months old they begin to develop skills such as depth perception. By 12 months their sight should be similar to that of an adult.

Your baby’s vision will be checked as part of the newborn physical examination that you will be offered within 72 hours of your baby’s birth. A doctor, midwife, nurse or health visitor will carry out the examination, which includes a check the appearance and movement of your baby’s eyes. In very rare cases they may see signs of cataracts. But this check can’t tell you how well your baby can see.

Your health visitor will check for normal development. However, it is important to know what to look out for, who you should contact if you have concerns and when you should take your baby to see the optometrist.

Some signs that could indicate a problem with vision or an eye condition are:

• Watery eyes
• Redness in the eye or eyelid
• Frequent blinking
• Problems recognising familiar objects or a delay in visual response
• Dislike of bright lights or sunlight
• Difficulty maintaining eye contact.

Ask your health visitor or GP for advice if you see any such signs. They may recommend seeing an optometrist.

Taking children for sight tests before the child starts school means that problems can be spotted and treated early. This gives a child has the best possible start in their learning journey.

Don’t worry if your child doesn’t know their letters and numbers yet: optometrists have all sorts of ways to assess children’s eyes such as using fun pictures and symbols. And don’t worry if you have a particularly lively child! The optometrist and their team are experts in making a sight test fun for children and encouraging them with praise and rewards, just like in the classroom.