Podcast
In Touch
Hosted by BBC Radio 4 · EN
News, views and information for people who are blind or partially sighted
30episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
The Future of Braille
1w ago00:18:49Tap to summarizeIn Touch discusses braille's future and how it adapts alongside today's variety assistive technologies that can aid with reading, writing and consuming information. We are helped by young braillists from St Vincent's School in Liverpool and three seasoned braille users, Jackie Brown, Ian Macrae and Dave Williams.Presenter & Producer: Beth Hemmings Production Coordinator: Helen Surtees Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image and he is wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three separate white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch" and the Radio 4 logo (the word ‘radio’ in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside of a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one is a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.
Transcribe →Redress for Failed Passenger Assistance, Funding for Visually Impaired Musicians
2w ago00:13:43Tap to summarizePassenger Assistance is a service rail users can book for help with things like navigating unfamiliar stations and catching connecting trains. When it goes right, it can be a service that boosts independence and travel confidence, but it can often go wrong. So now the Office of Rail and Road, who are the regulator for Britain's railways, are consulting on a new framework that aims to make the process of putting things right for passengers fairer. The regulator's Head of Consumer Jacqui Russell explains what is in their framework and how you can respond to their consultation. More details of how to do respond below:Consultation webpage: orr.gov.uk/search-consultations/consultation-framework-determining-redress-booked-assistance-not-provided If you need the consultation documents in large print, audio recording or braille, contact ORR on: 0207 282 2000 (select option 3) You can also email consultation responses to: ATP@orr.gov.ukThe Elizabeth Eagle-Bott Memorial Fund is provided by the RNIB and it helps visually impaired musicians with additional costs, such as access technology, instruments and music tuition. The fund celebrated its 25th anniversary recently with a concert in London and it featured performances from the fund's alumni. Kevin Satizabal Carrascal attended the concert for In Touch and spoke to musicians about the kinds of things the fund has helped them with. RNIB's Daisy Higman also provides information on how you can apply for next year's fund. Presenter & Producer: Beth Hemmings Production Coordinator: Helen Surtees Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image and he is wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three separate white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch" and the Radio 4 logo (the word ‘radio’ in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside of a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one is a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.
Transcribe →Cooking: Tips and Tricks
3w ago00:18:38Tap to summarizeWhether you are a confident cook or complete novice, In Touch provides tips on how to navigate the kitchen with a visual impairment. We have gathered a panel of blind and partially sighted people with an interest in cooking and who have a range of experience, levels of vision and kitchen set ups, to provide their tips, tricks and work-arounds.Presenter: Peter White Producer: Beth Hemmings Production Coordinator: Kim Agostino Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image and he is wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three separate white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch" and the Radio 4 logo (the word ‘radio’ in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside of a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one is a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.
Transcribe →Modified Exam Papers
Jun 2300:18:49Tap to summarizeIn Touch explores the barriers faced by visually impaired students when sitting their GCSE and A-Level exams, when obtaining both exam papers and revision materials in braille and large print formats.Presenter: Peter White Producer: Beth Hemmings Production Coordinator: Kim Agostino Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image, wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three individual white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch" and the Radio 4 logo (the word Radio in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one of a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.
Transcribe →Guided Shopping, Swimming Sisters
Jun 1600:18:45Tap to summarizeShopping doesn't come without potential challenges if you're blind or partially sighted: locating the items you want and, depending on your level of sight, being able to get up close enough to understand if what you’ve found is really what you were after. Well, John Lewis is the latest brand trying to help, developping a pilot guided shopping scheme within their flagship store in London. In Touch sent along Emma and Dave Williams to try it out and John Lewis' Head of the Oxford Street branch tells us about any potential plans for a wider roll-out of the scheme. The Commonwealth Games will be taking place in Glasgow in July. The Games run every four years and welcome athletes from across the Commonwealth of Nations. This year, visually impaired sisters Astrid and Ursula Carroll will be competing in swimming, but for different teams (Astrid for Team Scotland and Ursula for Team England). How did this happen? The pair explain more and discuss their training, and what they are looking forward to about the Commonwealth Games.Presenter: Peter White Producer: Beth Hemmings Production Coordinator: Helen Surtees Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image, wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three individual white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch"; and the Radio 4 logo (the word Radio in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one of a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.
Transcribe →The Royal College of Ophthalmologists' New President & Questions about the future of Braille
Jun 900:18:48Tap to summarizeWith ophthalmology being the busiest NHS outpatient specialty, with around 9.7 million appointments in England in 2024, the Royal College of Ophthalmology's new president, Mohamed Elalfy undoubtedly has a busy three years in the role ahead. Mohamed speaks with In Touch about his plans for the College and about issues of concern to eye health and care patients, including the issue of long waiting times for appointments and potential new treatments for eye diseases.Caroline Mackenzie contacted In Touch with concerns over whether or not her young grandson should learn braille. She has been wondering whether or not it will be worth his time, given how quickly assistive technology is evolving. Does braille have a future in the face of evolving technologies? To share your thoughts on this, please email intouch@bbc.co.uk or leave a voice message on 0161 836 1338.Presenter: Peter White Producer: Beth Hemmings Production Coordinator: Helen Surtees Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image, wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three individual white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch"; and the Radio 4 logo (the word Radio in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one of a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.
Transcribe →New Access to Work Recruits, Audio Description on Streaming Services
Jun 200:13:49Tap to summarizeThe Department for Work and Pensions is in the process of hiring nearly 500 new members of staff to help clear the Access to Work backlog and tackle long delays. The Access to Work scheme can help disabled people gain and maintain employment by providing funding for things like support workers and assistive tech. A review of the scheme is currently underway which aims to reform the scheme as it is struggling to keep up with rising demand, these new recruits are a separate measure by the department which aims to quicken the processing of people's claims. In Touch speaks to Minister for Social Security and Disability Sir Stephen Timms about these new roles. For the first time, the UK communications regulator Ofcom is introducing access requirements for streaming services like Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus and Netflix. This is following the Media Act 2024, and Ofcom's proposals will not only apply for audio description, but also for subtitling and signing. Cathy Taylor is part of Ofcom's Broadcasting Team and describes to In Touch what these new requirements could look like, and about a consultation which is seeking the views of access service users. Contact details for Ofcom's consultation are below: General advice telephone number: 0300 123 3333 Consultation email address: Tier1accessibility@ofcom.org.uk And the consultation web page: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/accessibility/tier-1-accessibility-code Closing date for responses: 7th August 2026Presenter: Peter White Producer: Beth Hemmings Production Coordinator: Helen Surtees Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image, wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three individual white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch"; and the Radio 4 logo (the word Radio in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one of a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.’
Transcribe →Audio Description on Streaming Platforms
May 2600:18:43Tap to summarizeOfcom has recently published a draft code requiring major streaming platforms to provide audio description for at least 10% of their content. This follows provisions in the Media Act 2024.In this episode - a first for In Touch - Peter White is joined by visually impaired guests, Nia Greer and Glen Turner to discuss the audio description of their chosen programmes.Our trio follow a broad approach, discussing not only the audio description itself, but also issues such as how easily it could be accessed and whether the 10% minimum provision is reasonable.The chosen programmes are the first episode of:The Dinosaurs, available on Netflix;Scarpetta, available on Amazon Prime Video, and;The Night Manager (Series 2), available on BBC iPlayer.Who chose what, did audio description improve their experience and were they inspired to watch the other episodes in the series?Presenter: Peter White Producer: Fern Lulham Production Coordinator: Helen Surtees Website image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image, wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three individual white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch"; and the Radio 4 logo (the word Radio in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one of a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.’
Transcribe →Probing the SEND Reforms, RNIB Newsagent Service
May 1900:18:30Tap to summarizeThe government has recently announced a reform of the provisions for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) pupils. It promises more resources for children in need of support. However, there are worries about how these reforms will work for blind and visually impaired children. Joining us for this episode is Dr Rachel Hewett from the Visual Impairment Centre for Teaching and Research (VICTAR). Dr Hewett is the author of a report that examines the benefits offered by specialist schools for blind and visually impaired children - and the fear these schools may be overlooked in the new reforms. We’re also joined by Victoria Ward, head of visual impairment education at New College Worcester, a specialist school for children with visual impairments.The RNIB's "Newsagent" service provides newspapers and magazines in an accessible format. Although now resolved, the service has recently been affected by IT problems. Iain Lackie is a regular user of the service and he joins us to share his concerns about how the problems were handled.Presenter: Peter White Producer: Fern Lulham Production Coordinator: Helen SurteesWebsite image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image, wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three individual white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch"; and the Radio 4 logo (the word Radio in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one of a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.’
Transcribe →The RNIB's new CEO, Simon Antrobus
May 1200:18:42Tap to summarizeThe UK's leading sight loss charity, RNIB, has a new CEO. Simon Antrobus took over the role at the beginning of the year, having spent the majority of his career within the charity sector, including the past ten years leading BBC Children in Need. In Touch speaks with him about the position of the charity's finances, their current recruitment situation, the organisation's priorities of the future and more.Presenter: Peter White Producer: Beth Hemmings Production Coordinator: Helen SurteesWebsite image description: Peter White sits smiling in the centre of the image and he is wearing a dark green jumper. Above Peter's head is the BBC logo (three separate white squares house each of the three letters). Bottom centre and overlaying the image are the words "In Touch" and the Radio 4 logo (the word ‘radio’ in a bold white font, with the number 4 inside of a white circle). The background is a bright mid-blue with two rectangles angled diagonally to the right. Both are behind Peter, one is a darker blue and the other is a lighter blue.
Transcribe →