In Touch

James Harding, the BBC's Director of News, tells Peter White about a new one million pound fund, earmarked to train and recruit disabled journalists. Derek Sinclair, from the organisation Contact-a-family explains child benefits. Charlotte talks about her visually-impaired daughter who has additional disabilities and tells Tom Walker that although she's well-connected into a parents' network she i...

on February 23, Greater Manchester Police were called to Levenshulme by two witnesses who reported a man with a gun behaving in an agitated manner. The attending firearms officers tasered the man and subsequently discovered he was blind and that what had been thought to be a gun was, in fact, his folding white cane. This follows a similar incident in 2012 when a blind man's white stick was mistake...

Dr Tanvir Bush talks about a recent experience she had when she was involved in a hate-crime as a result of her blindness. She also talks about her new novel 'Cull' which is a satire exploring a world in which hate crimes are tolerated, resulting in what she calls the 'dehumanisation' of disabled people. Tanvir is hoping to crowd-fund the publication of the book. Gough is an Australian comedian, w...

RNIB's Acting CEO Sally Harvey talks to Peter White about the charity's plans for its future. Will it merge with the charity Guide Dogs and what impact will the RNIB's restructuring plans have on jobs - particularly those held by people who are blind? We hear from an employee of the RNIB's dedicated Cliffden Hotel - currently for sale - and her crowdfunding initiative to raise more than a million...

Media commentator Kevin Mulhern gives his view on the leadership situation at RNIB and GDBA, the leading UK charities for blind and partially-sighted people. Both organisations currently have temporary Chief Executive Officers in place and Kevin speculates on the impact this could have on the confidence of blind people in the charities' ability to lead and lobby for them in the future Tom Walker m...

NHS England's Head of Public Policy Olivia Butterworth asks for listeners' experiences of obtaining information in an accessible format, following the recent introduction of the Accessible Information Standard. We hear from Mel Griffiths who was refused information in a format she could read, when her physiotherapist said they didn't have time to email it to her. Student Charles Bloch was refused...

Peter White is joined by RNIB's Geoff Fimister, disability employment advisor Caroline Stansfield and Professor Roy Sainsbury, to discuss the implications of the Government's green paper on Work, Health and Disability. Peter asks Geoff and Roy about the RNIB's statistic claiming that 1 in 4 blind people of working age are in employment. Mike Lambert's latest column outlines his experience of the c...

Tom Walker visits Northern Ireland to meet three visually-impaired women: musician Clare Bowes lost her sight in the Omagh bombing of 1998 and has since set up her own music academy. Andrea Begley won the BBC talent TV programme The Voice' in 2013. Andrea talks to Tom about her experience on the show and the impact her visual impairment has had on her career. Joanna Toner runs 'Laughter Yoga' sess...

The Canute is the latest development in refreshable multi-line Braille and is demonstrated by Ed Rogers from Bristol Braille Technology. Sean Randall is a teacher at Worcester New College where the Canute has been tested by students. Sean talks to Peter about its pros and cons. Amit Patel is totally blind and has fitted a small video camera to his guide dog Kika's harness. The footage has enabled...

Peter White is in Istanbul for the second of two programmes recorded in Turkey. Maggie Moore is a guide dog owner and has inspired blind and partially-sighted people in Turkey to set up their own guide dog association. Led by lawyer Nurdeniz Toncer, the first association has just been launched. UK guide dog trainer Alan Brooks has been training Ece Onderoglu in England, to become Turkey's first gu...

News, views and information for people who are blind or partially sighted.

Journalist Richard de Costobadie is a big fan of BBC news online. Recently however, he suspects there is a trend towards some stories being presented in a format he cannot access: video clips, without explanatory audio, but scrolling text overlaid instead. Mark Fulcher is a blind piano-tuner who wants to be able to submit his claim form for Access To Work electronically, as on several occasions hi...

LOOK, the charity supporting parents of blind children is 25 years old. CEO Charlotte Carson talks to Peter White about the legacy left by her parents Jennifer and Gareth Bowen and her aims for the organisation's future. Denise Leigh and Joy Addo, also both blind mums, talk about the problem of carrying or transporting babies, if you are blind or visually-impaired. Charlie also offers her experien...

Peter White talks to Simon Rockman, founder of Fuss Free Phones, and to Steve Tyler of RNIB. The company has partnered with RNIB to offer a mobile phone answering service to help blind and partially-sighted customers make and receive calls. BBC Washington Correspondent Gary O'Donoghue talks about his experience of working on the US Election and explains the impact of a change of government's names...

Peter White talks about guide dog waiting lists with BBC reporter and guide dog owner Ian Hamilton, who's been waiting for a replacement dog for over six months. Ian Macrae and Hazel Dudley look at accessible watches. Ian reviews the smart watch from Apple and Hazel shows Peter two talking watches by Verbalise which she describes as 'dressy'. Joy Addo presents her first column on being a blind Mum...

Richard Leaman is to step down as CEO of Guide Dogs, without an explanation. Peter talked to Rose Hewitt, Chair of COGDO, the Circle of Guide Dog Owners, who said that the members she's spoken to, want the charity to return to providing its core function of providing guide dogs for blind people. Ffion Miles is about to go on a trip to Australia and tells Peter about the planning involved. Ffion ha...

Fight for Sight's CEO Michele Acton, joins Peter White to talk about the charity's work funding medical research into eye disease. Stand-up comedian Chris McCausland reviews the Amazon Echo, a wireless voice-activated smart speaker, which is a mainstream product accessible to blind and partially-sighted people due to its voice-activated controls.

Peter White is joined by Cathy Yelf, CEO of the Macular Society, who talks about their new report calling for more collaboration in the funding of medical research to find a cure for Age-Related Macular Degeneration. Neil Heslop, newly appointed CEO of Leonard Cheshire Disability talks about his new role and the way in which he plans to lead the organisation.

Peter White is joined by Brazilian singer and journalist Monica Vasconcelos, who is the subject of a World Service documentary, in which she talks of her sight loss. Tom Walker meets Tony North who has been using a new reading device called OrCam. The user wears it like a pair of spectacles and points to text or information for the device to read out. Assistive technology consultant Graham Page ta...

Guide dog owner Kim Milward was illegally refused a hotel booking with her guide dog. She tells Tom Walker about her experience. CEO of Guide Dogs for the Blind Association - Richard Leaman gives his reaction. Plus, he doesn't rule out a possible future merger between GDBA and RNIB. Writer Red Szell pens his latest column and muses about being something of a reluctant guide dog owner.

Peter is joined by quizzer Nicki Cockburn who recently took part in the BBC TV programme 'Make Me An Egghead' and reached the semi-finals. She talks to Peter about how she first became interested in entering competitions and the tricks she enlists to remember things. Jackie is a listener who has asked the DWP for an electronic version of the Personal Independence Payments claim form. So far they h...

David Haynes of Action's Customer Council tells Peter how alarmed he was that the council was not consulted about the planned closure of the Action hotels. Jason Hill explains the concessionary TV licence rate for blind people. Tony Shearman talks to blind comedian Chris McCausland about his new solo show in London's Soho Theatre.

Peter White talks to retiring CEO of RNIB, Lesley-Anne Alexander. Lesley-Anne reflects on her legacy as RNIB leader and the future of the charity sector for blind and partially-sighted people. Peter asks about her views on streamlining resources within the sector and her policies on employment for blind and partially-sighted people within the organisation. She also explains how the charity's funds...

Peter White is in Rio with a preview of the 15th Paralympic Games. He talks to Tim Reddish about his role as Chair of the British Paralympic Association. He also talks to members of the GB visually-impaired Judo Squad about their hopes for medals. Richard Lane presents a column on the perils of mobile phones and Tony Shearman meets photographer Sue MacPherson and talks to her about her latest exhi...

Action's three specialist hotels are under threat of closure, as Action announces that they are no longer able to run them. Action's Director of Operations Teri Stephenson talks about some of the reasons behind this decision. Tom Walker, Susannah Hancock & Geoff Long take a look at the new polymer five pound note, under the supervision of the Bank of England's Chief Cashier Victoria Cleland Pr...