Bringing good vision back to the partially sighted is a lofty aim but one that Give Vision has achieved, thanks to backing from the NHS Innovation Fund and Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich.

Prototype versions of its SightPlus goggles resemble today’s VR headsets closely and involve using a smartphone as a screen. This relays live video of the world, allowing users to tailor the image’s contrast, colour, magnification and so on to their visual needs, enabling them to see in much more detail.

The first users have included a nine-year-old with inherited macular degeneration and a partially-sighted Paralympic sprinter. The bulky headset is expected to be reduced to the size of normal glasses and controlled by a simple remote.

In May, The Sunday Times reported specialist optometrist Michael Crossland as saying: “This is a very exciting project and could be used by people who are not helped by normal glasses.”