In Touch

A longitudinal study by the Vision Impairment Centre for Teaching and Research at the University of Birmingham and the Thomas Pocklington Trust, identified key challenges experienced by blind and visually impaired people when they moved on to Further Education. It also found that many did not gain quality employment despite earning qualifications in line with the general population. And is assisti...

The disability charity Sense are calling on the Government and local communities to prioritise disabled people as the country plans its way out of the Coronavirus restrictions. It's been laid out in their ‘Left out of Life’ report, which reveals the extent to which people feel worried about going out and anxious about measures like social distancing. We speak to the charity’s CEO, Richard Kramer....

Rapid lateral flow tests for Covid-19 were criticised earlier in the year for not being accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired. The government promised to do better, but did it happen? Spectators are making a welcome return to some of the big sporting events of the summer, including Test matches and the European Football Championship, but they are only allowed into stadiums if the...

Getting the right lighting in the home can be life-changing for people who are blind or visually impaired. Tonight we get a preview of a new guide due to be published by the sight loss charity Thomas Pocklington Trust which gives solutions to some common lighting problems. We invited one of our listeners, who emailed in about the subject, to put the questions to the author. And, after a big respon...

In this special programme, we examine the role genetics plays in both the inheritance of sight loss and its future treatment. We hear about the latest breakthrough reported in the journal 'Nature Medicine' in which the vision of a completely blind man was partially restored using light-sensing proteins first found in algae. He was treated with a type of therapy called optogenetics, which uses the...

New figures show there have been over 200 injuries and 1,100 complaints to local authorities since the trial of electric scooters began in 50 towns and cities across the UK. Sight loss charities are calling for stricter enforcement of existing regulations to keep people who are blind or visually impaired safe. And we speak to blind or visually impaired football fans as they make a welcome return t...

The pandemic has accelerated our use of the digital world, meaning accessible websites and apps have never been more important. So who's doing it well and who could do better? We've been collating your examples of website accessibility and put them to Robin Christopherson from AbilityNet, who offer advice for companies and public bodies on making their online platforms suitable for people who are...

Up until now it's been virtually impossible for people who are blind or visually impaired to cast their vote completely privately. But new technology trialled at polling booths in Norfolk last week could change all that. We hear from someone who took part. And after recovering from meningitis, a double lung transplant and seven cornea operations, Sam Roberts talks to Peter White about his newfound...

How does language affect how we view disability; and who gets to decide what words we should use? Peter White discusses the changing terminology around visual impairment following a report by the charity Leonard Cheshire showing that nearly three quarters of disabled people feel more needs to be done for non-disabled people to understand that their words can offend. Presenter: Peter White Producer...

Only one in four registered blind and partially sighted people of working age are in employment and on tonight's programme we hear one woman's struggle to get a job. Angharad Paget Jones applied for 2,000 jobs and had 200 interviews before she was offered a position - and she believes discrimination was sometimes to blame. And now that restrictions are easing, how are you feeling about going out a...

We speak to the woman whose sight deteriorated in the pandemic because her appointment was cancelled. And what are the very specific challenges for blind and visually impaired people when it comes to moving house? From labelling boxes to scoping out the new area, we hear from three listeners who've done it - and have some tips on how to make sure it goes smoothly.

Habilitation gives young people who are visually impaired crucial life skills, such as mobility and auditory training, to help them develop confidence and live their lives. But a new report has laid bare the chronic shortage of habilitation officers and revealed a patchwork of services provided by local authorities in England. One local council provided habilitation support to just 3% of the child...

3,000 puppies are to have their DNA sequenced via sailva swabs in order to build a database that will help improve the success rate of fully established working guide dogs. The 'Born to Guide' project is being led by Dr Tom Lewis, who told us how the database will establish links between dog genetics, health and behaviour. And we meet Xavier Hopkins - the visually impaired mountain biker who makes...

The Government's promised £3 billion pounds to transform bus services in England as part of its 'Bus Back Better' plan. But how much of the money is dedicated to improving accessibility? Our reporter Fern Lulham has been finding out whether services like talking buses are soon to become commonplace across the country. Meanwhile thousands of rail staff have been undergoing training to help them und...

Sarah Leadbetter, from Narborough in Leicestershire, is classed as clinically extremely vulnerable. However government correspondence advising her to shield was not sent in a format she could access - which she argued was discrimination. After her legal challenge, the government has agreed to review its communication with disabled people. While shops on the High Street are closing, Amazon has open...

The way banks work has been hugely affected by Coronavirus, with customers encouraged to go online and keep visits to the already dwindling number of branches to a minimum. Telephone banking has also changed, with an increased reliance on voice-activated technology rather than keypad entry. We ask whether those changes have helped with accessibility. And following our recent story about the online...

The RNIB have announced big changes to their braille library service. From next month braille books will be smaller, slimmer and newly printed on demand. Users won't even have to return the books but can instead choose to upgrade by buying a more robust spiral-bound version. The new Census 2021 forms are dropping through letterboxes and the organisers, the Office for National Statistics, are promi...

When attending hospital appointments became so difficult during the pandemic, Moorfields Eye Hospital developed an app that allows you to keep track of your vision at home. It links the user up with a specialist who can monitor the results for any changes and decide whether a face-to-face appointment is really necessary. We get the verdict of one listener who's been using it. And after our recent...

We focus on the death of Cleveland Gervais. Cleveland was blind and, one year ago, he fell from the platform edge and was struck by a train at Eden Park Station in South East London. There was no tactile paving strip on the edge of the platform he fell from. The Rail Accident Investigation Branch has now released its report into what happened. We hear from the Chief Inspector of Rail Accidents Sim...

We hear from Sarah Leadbetter who's mounted a legal challenge over inaccessible Covid related information. She argues the government did not give her accessible details about shielding. She's now been granted a judicial review at the High Court. And the famous life of the American deaf-blind author and disability rights activist Helen Keller is well documented. So why have doubts emerged online, p...

Transport For London's Mark Evers talks to Peter White about why their physical assisted guidance keeps being withdrawn. Now it's reinstated again, will they be able to keep it that way? And our reporter Johnny Cassidy looks at the world of the binged TV box set. Why isn't audio description available on every episode when a box set is placed on an on-demand TV service? Channel 4 took some time to...

We hear from In Touch listeners who've now had the first of their Covid vaccinations. How did they hear about where to go? What was the process like when they actually got the jab? And the RNIB has announced it's selling off its London HQ. The search is on for smaller London premises. RNIB Chief Executive Matt Stringer tells us why they need to make this move. PRESENTER: Peter White PRODUCER: Mike...

Peter White hears some of the problems being experienced by visually impaired people when it comes to getting tested for Coronavirus. And how to make sure you know when it's your turn to get a vaccination. Among our guests is GP Dr. Anshumen Bhagat and Sarah Lambert from the RNIB. There's a link on this programme page to the RNIB website for further guidance when it comes to getting an accessible...

Two of our reporters, Fern Lulham and Emma Tracey, tell Peter White about the apps they use in their daily lives. And we hear from the boss of StitchFix UK about their efforts to make online clothes shopping easier if you're visually impaired. Fern Lulham has also featured on the BBC World Service Digital Planet programme to talk about "Blindness In The Digital Age". You can hear more of that prog...

The UK railway industry's new "Passenger Assist" app is finally being launched in March. It was supposed to be introduced in 2019. We hear from the app's designers and from a visually impaired rail user who's given the app a try. And the new descriptive Zoom sessions opening up access to royal artworks. PRESENTER: Peter White PRODUCER: Mike Young