News

From RNIB.

Be part of the conversation, share your ideas…

We’re reaching out to invite you to be part of an important conversation about the future of our personal transcription service. Personal transcription is a request by a customer to have a personal document transcribed into an accessible format of their choice. As someone with lived experience or a close connection to sight loss, you can help us to understand what people need and how we can best support them. We want your help to shape what comes next.

We want to explore:

• What people need from transcription services today.
• How people are navigating their needs outside of our service.
• What role we should play in the future.

When will I be needed?

We’re holding three virtual meetings each month in July, August and September and ideally you would be able to attend all meetings.

How to get involved:

Please complete this form by Wednesday 2nd July. We want to ensure we have as representative a group of people as possible, as well as those who are able to think long term and in the interests of all blind and partially sighted people. Following review of all respondents, we will let you know if you’ve been selected to take part.

Thank you.

We are pleased to announce that we will be returning to Sight Village Central this year, and this time with a special visitor! Chantelle Griffiths, who many of you know either from our Braille for Beginners course or as a moderator of our other events, is visiting us from New Zealand and would love to meet you in person over the two-day exhibition.

You can find Chantelle, Matthew and others from the Braillists team at Table 56, Isle 5, Affinity Suite.

On the stand, we will have our usual assortment of braille and tactile items, Braille for Beginners resource packs and flyers in both braille and print. Like last year, we will also have some braille bookmarks to give away, and new for this year, we will be offering you the chance to take home your very own reset object! (Don’t know what a reset object is? Check out this podcast.)

Sight Village takes place on Monday 7 July (10:00 AM-4:00 PM) and Tuesday 8 July (9:30 AM-3:30 PM). Find out more and book your free tickets here.

Full address: Eastside Rooms Conference Centre, Woodcock Street, Birmingham, B7 4BL

Monday at 1:35 PM & Tuesday at 1:45 PM, Seminar Room 1
Presenter: Chantelle Griffiths

Whether you are new to braille or a seasoned professional, join us to explore some practical, tangible ways to hone in on your sense of touch. In this workshop we will dive deeper into some of the fundamental principles we need to improve our tactile and braille technique, including the surprising intricacies of hand scanning, the power of reset objects and the principle of context versus code. Learn in real time alongside readers of all abilities and ask any questions you may have about the art and science of braille reading. With lots of practical, actionable tips, tricks, exercises and techniques, there’s something here for everyone.

Monday at 2:15 PM and Tuesday at 9:45 AM, Seminar Room 1
Presenter: Stuart Lawler, Head of Digital Content and Braille Specialist, Sight and Sound Technology Ltd

As we mark two centuries since the invention of braille, we’re excited here at Sight and Sound Technology and are taking a moment to reflect—and to look ahead to the future. Braille has revolutionised access to information for blind and visually impaired people, and its impact continues to grow. When paired with the assistive technologies we’re passionate about, the potential is truly limitless. Join Stuart Lawler, who will take us on a journey through the history of Refreshable braille technology, explore today’s innovations in both single and multi-line braille displays, and offer a glimpse into what the future may hold.

Hosted by Bristol Braille Technology:

Location: Sacks of Potatoes, 10 Gosta Green, Birmingham B4 7ER (just a 4-minute walk from the Sight Village venue)

This informal gathering is the perfect way to unwind after the first day of the exhibition. You’ll have the chance to meet fellow Braille users, connect with innovators in the field, and experience the joy of Braille in a fun and relaxed atmosphere over your favourite drink.

And we have two subjects in particular that we want to have a discussion about, so we especially hope you can join us if they interest you: the future of tactile maps, and creative writing using Braille. These are both areas that Bristol Braille is going to be running projects within and we welcome inventive minds to share their experiences.

If you can’t make it to Braille and Beer, but would like to discuss your ideas with Ed or Steph during Sight Village, you can book a one-to-one session here.

We very much look forward to seeing you at Braille and Beer and sharing everything new from Bristol Braille Technology!

Braille access just got easier: text-to-speech is now built right into the Paige website. Whether you’re translating braille for school, home, or fun, you can now hear the translation read aloud without needing a screen reader.  This makes learning and using braille smoother for everyone, especially those new to assistive tech.

Perfect for:

• New learners exploring braille
• Teachers supporting classrooms
• Families helping braille users

This update is now live on both the Translate tool and Learn tool.

Watch it in action and share it with someone who could benefit from more accessible braille learning.

From our friends at Paige Braille:

From June 26–29, finalists from across the U.S. and Canada will gather in Los Angeles for the 2025 Braille Challenge Finals, hosted by the Braille Institute. This one-of-a-kind academic competition brings together the brightest young braille readers and writers, celebrating literacy, achievement, and connection.

More info at brailleinstitute.org/braille-challenge

If you are registered for our Braille for Beginners On Demand course, our next Office Hours session will take place on Tuesday at 7:30 PM. Please look out for a reminder email containing your unique joining link. If you have not received it by Tuesday lunchtime, please write to [email protected] for assistance.

If you are new to braille and not registered for Braille for Beginners, please consider signning up at www.braillists.org/beginners.

For people not following Braille for Beginners, your next session will be next Tuesday. Please see next week’s Newsletter for more information.

Our popular Braille Bar returns this Tuesday at 7:30 PM. No question is too small, from kit to code – just ask and our experts will assist you!

Register for the Braille Bar here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwtdOyopjMiHdyORwRuXacnY9IrA4lVN2Bh

Or, to join by phone, use these details:

• Phone number: 0131 460 1196
• Meeting ID: 880 3508 8878
• Passcode: 123456

The Third Tactile Reading and Graphics Conference recently concluded at the Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ, Amsterdam, bringing together over 400 participants from around the world to discuss braille, tactile graphics and much more.

In this special event, we will bring together an eclectic panel of attendees to relive the Conference and share their key takeaways.

Register here.

To join by phone, please use these details:

• Phone number: 0131 460 1196
• Meeting ID: 895 4517 7091
• Passcode: 123456