[access-uk] Re: Charity for blind hits out at Bromley council (From News Shopper)
- From: "Ibrahim Gucukoglu" <ibrahim_gucukoglu@xxxxxxxx>
- To: <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 12 Jan 2011 07:56:14 -0000
MessageHi.
I totally agree here. I cant see what all the fuss is about. Never at any
time in my life as far as I can remember have I ever had talking books paid for
by my local council or charity, be it public or private. Talking books as
supplied by the RNIB is only £69 per year, a significant subsidy when you
consider they loan you a player and potentially dozens of books per year. If
you want to read, you should be prepared to pay for it as reading is not a
human right and even if it were, the council in most boroughs provide their own
library services with books on cd, cassette and even playaway as is the case in
Peterborough where I live. The fact that some blind people are either too lazy
or just plane ignorant of these services is no excuse not to ask them, for all
they have to do is get off their asses or pick up the phone and ask. In an age
where most young blind people and even a large majority of the middle aged and
elderly have access to technology of some sort or other or know people who have
access to said technology, the information about service provision in your
local borough is readily available online and details of how to access these
services is often posted in libraries and town halls. For heaven sake, wake up
everyone, smell the roses and start putting your hand in your pocket and paying
for things you want or that you feel you need. Joe public doesn't get free
books, so why the heck should we.
All the best, Ibrahim.
----- Original Message -----
From: David
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Wednesday, January 12, 2011 7:36 AM
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Charity for blind hits out at Bromley council (From
News Shopper)
Hi,
I would like to say that for that the last forty years or more I have had to
pay for my equipment and also for my talking books. So far as I can see their
is no change for me, or is Hertfordshire unique?
David Weston.
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of
Gordon Keen
Sent: 11 January 2011 09:38
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Charity for blind hits out at Bromley council (From News
Shopper)
Here we go then, the big society - my arse!
Charity for blind hits out at Bromley council
1:18pm Monday 10th January 2011
By David Mills
A CHARITY which represents the blind and visually impaired has hit out at
Bromley Council for temporarily suspending equipment provision.
Services which include the talking books, as well as equipment such as
walking canes and liquid level indicators, are all under review by the council.
Kent Association for the Blind (KAB), which has a sight centre in Blyth Road,
Bromley, will be pressuring the council to continue providing funding.
Dick Groves, aged 65, of South View, Bromley, said: "Visual impairment is the
most feared of all sensory impairments. Provision in Bromley is extremely
patchy."
Mr Groves, who is blind, said: "This is a classic example of the way in which
action has been taken without consultation and without information being given
to one of the weakest sections of society and least able to respond."
A KAB spokesman said: "We are currently in contact with our service users to
explain the service has been temporarily suspended by the London borough of
Bromley.
"We are sharing other providers of these services such as the Calibre audio
library, a completely free service, to ensure users are not going to go without
talking books.
"We at KAB are going to be making representations to the council to press the
case that it would be more cost effective to continue to fund provision because
we believe withdrawing that service represents a real risk to people's safety
and their ability to get out and about.
"The costs that could be generated by injury would far outweigh the cost to
the council of providing equipment."
A council spokesman said: "We have a strong commitment to providing talking
books in our libraries with no plans to cut the service and we will continue to
make special concessions to waive charges to people with a registered visual
impairment.
"We have however moved from cassettes to CDs and downloadable material over
the years but we still keep a large collection of older cassettes in our Home
Library Service, which supports customers who are physically unable to get into
a branch.
"There are also free national talking book service and as well as our library
service we will be assisting people to access the talking books from the
national Calibre service together with the equipment provided by the British
Wireless for the Blind Fund.
"To make sure we make the best use of our resource we wanted to avoid
duplication and whilst we no longer fund the KAB talking books service, KAB is
pointing people to our library and to these free services.
"In terms of equipment supplied by the KAB on our behalf such as portable
lamps, talking clocks and mobility aids, again we want to make sure we use
resources as efficiently as possible and have suspended this KAB while we carry
out a review.
"However we do continue to fund KAB to provide assessment and rehabilitation
services for people with visual impairments."
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