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Popular topic: impairments
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Guide Dogs welcomes Nottingham’s accessible buses
August 18th, 2010
Posted by Ben Jones
Guide Dogs has welcomed a service that provides 'talking buses' to make public transport more accessible to blind and visually impaired people.
The charity praised the audio-visual system installed on buses by Nottingham City Transport, which automatically makes passengers aware of which stop they are at.
It is pushing for all buses and coaches to be equipped with the technology as part of its Talking Buses campaign.
John Welsman, Guide Dogs transport policy officer, said the service helps people with visual impairments feel safer and more confident when using public transport.
“Without audio-visual systems on buses telling blind and partially-sighted passengers where they are and where they are going, bus travel can be prohibitive for a group of passengers who cannot see where they are by looking out of the window,” Mr Welsman said.
Nottingham City Transport will introduce the technology on new buses on its 77 and 45 routes from autumn.
By law, most trains must feature audio-visual information systems, yet this does not currently apply to other forms of transport, the charity notes.
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Guide Dogs hosts football fundraisers
June 7th, 2010
Posted by Ben Jones
Guide Dogs is running a series of football-themed fundraising events ahead of the beginning of the World Cup on Friday (June 11th).
According to the charity, its Get Dribbling events aim to unite blind and sighted people to raise money and awareness of sight loss and are part of the wider Get Together initiative.
The organisation has assembled a digital “kit bag” that gives supporters all the information they need to set up their own football competition in aid of Guide Dogs, including campaign posters and top fundraising tips.
Beth Marsh, head of fundraising development at Guide Dogs, said the initiative could bring together “friends, family, neighbours and work colleagues”.
“The World Cup is a great way to unite the nation. Millions of people enjoy the beautiful game, with or without the benefit of sight,” she added.
According to Guide Dogs, blind football teams consist of four blind or visually impaired players, a sighted goalkeeper and a sighted guide.
The ball is also equipped with ball bearings, enabling players to locate it by sound.
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Computing technique ‘could aid partially-sighted individuals’
May 20th, 2010
Posted by Ben Jones
A computer-based technique could be used to help partially-sighted people improve their environmental awareness and ’see’ better.
Researchers at Durham University have used computers to test the vision of individuals with hemianopia, a condition that causes a loss of vision following a stroke or other brain injury.
The research, funded by the Medical Research Council and the Economic and Social Research Council, indicates that people taking part in the computer-based training became faster and more accurate at detecting objects such as numbers and coloured dots.
It is thought that the technique encourages partially-sighted people to explore the part of their vision affected by the condition more thoroughly and may also boost concentration and awareness.
Lead researcher Dr Alison Lane commented: “This simple technique is a very viable rehabilitation option and in future could be easily accessible at low cost to everyone who needs it.”
The study also found that people with hemianopia might be able to improve their sightThere are over two million people in the UK with a sight problem, according to the Royal National Institute of Blind People.
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RNIB launches World Cup guide for blind fans
May 19th, 2010
Posted by James Lahey
The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) has release a guide to the 2010 World Cup for blind and partially sighted football enthusiasts.
Available in large print, braille and audio CD, the guide covers key details about the upcoming competition, including fixtures, team profiles, stadium information, facts and figures and TV scheduling.
Priced at £2.99, the guide is available via the charity’s website or via email.
Speaking to Community Newswire, RNIB product manager John Whytock commented that sports fans with visual impairments are often neglected since they are not given access to up-to-date information in a format they can understand independently.
Mr Whytock said: “There are thousands of blind and partially sighted football fans in the UK and now they won’t have to scramble for second-hand information.”
“There will be no excuses for pub quiz ignorance now,” he added.
The 2010 World Cup begins on June 11th, while the England team plays its first game against the USA the following day.
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Guide Dogs supported by npower employees
May 18th, 2010
Posted by Charlie Powell-Brett.
Guide Dogs has been working with energy supplier npower to boost its fundraising and improve awareness of its work.
Staff at a number of the company’s north-east offices have met blind and visually impaired people with their guide dogs during lunchtime visits.
Employees were encouraged to sponsor a puppy, recycle for the charity and offer their time and volunteers.
The organisation has secured an extra £792 annually through the meetings and will visit more npower offices in the near future.
Nicola Wilson, Guide Dogs development fundraiser for the north, stated: “The dogs love all the attention they receive at these visits and the volunteers who dedicate their time enjoy answering all the queries and talking about their experiences as guide dog owners and volunteers.”
She added that the charity would be unable to serve blind and visually impaired people without the support of employers such as npower.
There are 4,600 guide dog partnerships across the UK, each costing around £50,000.
Guide Dogs operates a number of breeding programmes and puppy walking initiatives, as well as offering services such as matching dogs to owners.
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Scottish sign language teacher nominated for national award
May 10th, 2010
Posted by Ben Jones.
A teacher who devised a new form of communication for blind and disabled children has been nominated for an education award.
Mary Lee of the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh worked with colleague Lindi MacWilliam MBE to create a signing system for young people with multiple disabilities and visual impairments (MDVI), the Scotsman reports.
The 58-year-old could be recognised for her achievement through a Scottish Education Award since the Canaan Barrie language, which places a heavy emphasis on communicating through touch, is now in use all over the world.
Mrs Lee told the newspaper: “Our children have very unique needs as they are visually impaired, so we have to come from the point of view of children who cannot see.
“So we started adapting on-body signs they could use and they have really moved forward.”
The winner of the award will be announced at an event in Glasgow next month.
According to its website, Edinburgh’s Royal Blind School is a national centre of excellence in the education and care of young people with MDVI.
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New project to digitise 1m books for blind
May 6th, 2010
Posted by Imogen Welsh.
A total of one million books could be made accessible to blind and dyslexic people through a new project launching today (May 6th).
US non-profit Internet Archive has hired hundreds of people in five countries to scan a variety of books in many languages, converting them into a digital format that can be read by specialist reading software and devices.
Using funding garnered from libraries, companies, foundations and the US government, the organisation will offer the collection for free online.
Internet Archive founder Brewster Kahle told TG Daily: “Every person deserves the opportunity to enhance their lives through access to the books that teach, entertain and inspire.
“Bringing access to huge libraries of books to the blind and print disabled is truly one of benefits of the digital revolution.”
The organisation estimates that just five per cent of published books are available in a digital format accessible to blind people.
Its website also hosts free moving images, archived web pages, music, audio books and software.
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Disabled voters to have ’significant impact’ on election result
May 5th, 2010
Posted by Charlie Powell-Brett.
None of the political parties in Scotland have done enough to secure the vote of disabled people, it has been claimed.
According to Capability Scotland, while 96 per cent of disabled Scots and their carers plan to vote tomorrow (May 6th), just 31 per cent have decided which party they will vote for.
The charity’s voting intentions 2010 survey revealed that 14 per cent of disabled people in Scotland feel they are better off under the current government, while just under half will vote by post.
Key policy issues highlighted by respondents include social care, the economy and health, as well as the trustworthiness of MPs following the expenses scandal.
Susie Fitton, senior policy advisor for Capability, said: “Given that this section of the electorate is roughly equivalent to the pensioners’ vote, it seems crazy that political parties are not doing more to recognise and engage the political power of disabled people.”
Ms Fitton predicted that the votes of disabled people in Scotland would have “a significant impact” on the outcome of the election.
Local councils are obliged by law to provide physical access to polling stations, as well as low-level booths and equipment for voters with visual impairments.
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Mental health environmental art project secures funding
May 4th, 2010
Posted by Ben Jones.
An environmental art project geared towards helping people with mental health problems has secured funding from a major UK charity.
Run by Kirkgate Studios and Workshops in Shipley, Out There seeks to improve the wellbeing of individuals through art-based community gardening schemes.
According to the Bradford Telegraph Argus, the project is set to receive £70,000 from Ecominds, a grants programme operated by mental health charity Mind.
Research by Mind recently found that after a walk in the countryside, 90 per cent of participants felt they had boosted their self-esteem, while 71 per cent reported decreased levels of depression.
Out There project co-ordinator Claire Wellesley-Smith told the publication: “The grant will be invaluable in helping to transform the lives of Bradford’s residents who are experiencing mental distress.”
The project will begin on May 20th and will provide free sessions on Thursdays between 13:00 and 15:00 BST until September.
Kirkgate Studios and Workshops also runs the Just Art project, which engages young offenders through creative design, pottery and woodwork courses.
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Web accessibility research project backed by Google
April 1st, 2010
Posted by Ben Jones.
A research project that could improve internet access for blind and visually impaired users has been supported by a £50,000 grant from internet firm Google, it has been reported.
The project, entitled Single Structured Accessibility System for Web 2.0 Access Technologies (SASWAT), is being headed by researchers at the University of Manchester’s school of computer science and aims to assess how sighted users interact with the web.
According to the university, the team has also developed a new type of screen reader that has been tested by blind users and will manufacture it in association with Google.
Dr Caroline Jay commented that the growth of Web 2.0 technologies has left many visually impaired users behind because commercially available screen reading technology is not dynamic enough.
“Blind people are excluded from many of these exciting developments and our research aims to change all that,” Dr Jay said.
“They can have real problems accessing web applications such as calendars, tickers and suggestion lists found on travel, entertainment and social networking sites,” she added.
SASWAT collated the length of time sighted users spent looking at individual spaces on a single web page in order to translate that information for blind users.
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