The NHS Greater Manchester Community Urgent Eye Care Service (CUES) provides urgent assessment, treatment or referral for sudden onset eye problems such as flashes, floaters, vision loss or minor eye injuries.

This service is available in all 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester.

If you have any problems with your eyes, including the symptoms below, you should first contact your regular opticians (also known as optometrists):

• A red or painful eye
• Something in your eye, that won’t come out
• Sudden change in vision
• Flashes or floaters

If this is not possible or they are not a provider of the NHS Greater Manchester
Community Urgent Eye Care Service (CUES), you can find a practice that can help you by going to primaryeyecare.co.uk/find-a-practice and entering your postcode.

This will enable you to find the nearest participating opticians/optometrists to you. We have more than 200 practices delivering this service across Greater Manchester. The service is available throughout the week and from some locations at weekends and evenings.

Always call first – this is not a walk-in service. You will be able to explain your eye problem after which you may then be given self-care information, booked in for an appointment (virtual or in person), referred to hospital eye services, or referred to your GP practice if there are other health issues that need to be addressed.

Please note that this service is not an eye test.

If you have a major eye condition that is being regularly monitored by your optometrist or hospital eye service, such as cataracts, diabetic retinopathy or glaucoma, this is not covered by this service. In this case you should consult your usual opticians or hospital eye service directly for advice in the usual way.