In Touch

Peter White with a focus on smaller blind charities in the UK. We hear from Visionary, an umbrella organisation which represents more than a hundred of these charities. The Chief Executives of Sight Concern Worcestershire and Sight Service Gateshead tell us about the challenges they face. And we hear from the people who use the services on offer. PRODUCER: Mike Young.

Leading eye experts in the UK have signed an open letter in The Guardian calling for more funds for medical research. We'll hear from Professor Chris Hammond who is one of the signatories of that letter... And Fight For Sight's Dr Rubina Ahmed. And we meet Mike Tetley, the blind physiotherapist who's still working after more than 60 years.

This is the second episode in which a flautist, a singer, a composer and multi-instrumentalist swap stories about making it in their chosen profession. They discuss how they got into the industry, whether blindness gives them an advantage and share their tips for success Guests: Liz Hargest, Shaun Hayward, Andre Louis, Anne Wilkins. Presenter: Peter White Producer: Lee Kumutat

A flautist, a singer, a composer and multi-instrumentalist swap stories about making it in their chosen profession. They discuss how they got into the industry, whether blindness gives them an advantage and they also share tips for success. Guests: Liz Hargest, Shaun Hayward, Andre Louis, Anne Wilkins. Presenter: Peter White Producer: Lee Kumutat

Fern Lulham assumes the role of festive fashion correspondent and gives the low-down on what’s hot this chilly Christmas. Emma Williams, who teaches visually impaired students at New College Worcester techniques for daily living, talks Peter through the best way to approach the task of present wrapping. And just three of Lee Kumutat’s favourite In Touch treasures from the past eleven years. Presen...

In May the High Court ruled that the use of Tactile Voting Devices was unlawful. Blind and VI people are regularly confronted with polling staff who do not seem to realise the rules, so ahead of the General Election we discuss what you're entitled to with Ailsa Irvine from the Electoral Commission. We also hear from Rachael Andrews who brought the case on the basis that her vote as a blind person...

In response to the RNIB announcing the sale of its three care homes and three colleges, In Touch has been contacted by an employee who says staff weren’t warned their workplace was being sold. 23-year-old Josh Mcentee lost his sight three years ago in an horrific car accident. He found he was still able to do martial art Jiu jitsu – and is setting up classes for sighted and visually impaired peopl...

The RNIB is proposing to sell its remaining schools, colleges and residential care homes after taking the decision to close The Pears School in 2018. Peter White asks new CEO Matt Stringer how this fits in with its strategy for the future. Presenter: Peter White Producer: Lee Kumutat

Do visually impaired children have more disrupted sleep than sighted children? University College London is looking for children to take part in sleep research. And we fulfill one listener’s request to learn about how visually-impaired people met their significant others. Presenter: Peter White Producer: Lee Kumutat

The new Apple Plus SciFi series See is about a world in which everyone is blind. Until twins are born sighted and become a reason for tribes to go in to battle. Blindness consultant Joe Strechay tells Peter White how you teach sighted actors to portray blindness. Advent For Change, a not-for-profit enterprise, has developed a braille advent calendar. She explains why it doesn’t contain chocolate....

Earlier this year a high court judge decided that the rule which sets out the requirements for a tactile voting device to be available at every polling station is itself unlawful, because it does not allow blind or partially sighted people to vote "without the need for assistance". And this isn't the only concern about our right to a secret and accessible vote. So what changes can we expect before...

Keith Jones is a lawyer and works from home. He wanted to volunteer for the charity Hospice of the Valleys. He went for an interview and was accepted. However, a risk assessment was carried out on the location, and it was deemed unsuitable for him to work there. Keith says it’s discrimination but can he sue? Sean Delaney from the National Council of Volunteer Organisations outlines the law in this...

In 2018 Ofcom set out guidelines for TV providers to make their electronic programme guides (EPGs) accessible. It outlined there should be text-to-speech information as well as magnified text. Programmes that are audio-described should also be easy to find. Digital UK which provides the Freeview platform is undertaking a consultation on which channel their accessible EPG should appear. Liz Reynold...

On the 10th of October, the Scottish parliament passed a bill which, in part, bans parking on pavements. It is the first nationwide ban in the UK. Joe Irvin, chief executive officer of the campaign group Living Streets, says it is a win for pedestrians and blind and partially sighted people. But how will it be enforced, and does it go far enough? What is it like listening to the streets at night i...

Burger King had to apologise after a staff member refused to read a brownie’s ingredients list to a blind woman with a nut allergy. So how should visually impaired people go about finding safe meals when eating certain foods has serious consequences? UK Hospitality safety advisor Dr Lisa Ackerley, and Philippa Lomas, a blind mum of two children with severe food allergies, share their thoughts. Des...

Lucy Edwards spent six years perfecting her beauty routine after she lost her sight, and has passed on all she learnt in a book called The Blind Beauty Guide. She gives fellow blind journalist Emma Tracey her best makeup tips. Presenter: Peter White Producer: Lee Kumutat Pictured, from left to right: Emma Tracey and Lucy Edwards standing in the In Touch studio.

The Medical Practitioners Tribunal has found Bobby Qureshi put his own financial interests above the interests of his visually impaired patients. Qureshi was medical director at the London Eye Hospital, now under different management, implanting a new type of lens to patients who have macular degeneration. The tribunal found patients did not receive enough information on the risks prior to having...

Two visually-impaired opera singers tell us their stories. New Zealander Joanne Roughton Arnold chose singing opera over playing the violin. Alan Pingarrón from Mexico is taking part in a Royal Opera House training programme. Presenter: Peter White Producer: Lee Kumutat Reporter: Toby Davey

22-year-old Matthew Shiffrin contacted Lego to ask them to make instructions for their construction sets accessible to visually-impaired people. The blind Lego enthusiast had been devising his own, with the help of a friend, for ten years and making them available on his own website. The toy company has met the challenge and released instructions in a downloadable format for screenreaders, for bra...

This is the second episode of our series examining the times in our lives as blind people when we are faced with a loss of control and power entirely caused by our visual impairment. Both programmes look at ways of gathering yourself, restoring your dignity, suppressing that sense of powerlessness, and giving you back the control everyone needs to be functioning adults. Situations like feeling los...

This is the first episode of a two-part series examining the times in our lives as blind people when we are faced with a loss of control and power entirely caused by our visual impairment. Both programmes look at ways of gathering yourself, restoring your dignity, suppressing that sense of powerlessness, and giving you back the control everyone needs to be functioning adults. Situations like feeli...

Guillermo Robles took the pizza company Domino's to court because he claimed he was unable to access their website and app to order his meal of choice using the software that reads the screen aloud to him. He also claimed he was unable to take advantage of their discounts, and build his own pizza. But Domino's argues that the Americans with Disabilities act, the Ada, pre-dates the introduction of...

Michael Tupper from Clitheroe in Lancashire tells Peter White about legal action he is taking against East Lancashire Hospitals Trust because they aren’t giving him details on appointments and other information in his preferred format, large print. Michael is being supported by RNIB, whose legal adviser, Sam Fothergill, provides us with the legal background of the case. We also hear from LookFest,...

RNIB and manufacturer GEO are developing a smart meter that will be accessible for blind and partially sighted people. Audrey Gallagher from Energy UK tells Peter White about the meter and its accessibility features. We also hear from John Worsfold from RNIB who tells us about how the meter has been tested. The Department for Transport is conducting surveys on textured paving. Ann Frye, formerly h...

Caroline Casey has been campaigning for more disability inclusion for the past decade. Earlier this year she took her cause to Davos – the summit for big corporations. She wants 500 CEO’s to sign up to making and acting on one commitment around disability for their company. James McCarthy from Blind in Business, a charity working to boost the employment rates of visually impaired people at entry l...