It is the time of year where youngsters across the country are receiving their exam results. For many, this will mean attending university for the first time in the next few months. It is a big time, but for visually impaired youngsters, there are added dimensions to consider. With this in mind, In Touch has assembled a panel of guests to provide hints and tips for new visually impaired students on how they can make the most of their first term at university. We provide advice on things such as the Disabled Students Allowance, negotiating new environments and making the most of the social side of university life.

Presenter: Peter White

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) supports people with the extra costs of a disability or long-term health condition and it is currently under review. The steering group behind The Timms Review now wants disabled people to apply to participate in a series of workshops throughout September and October to provide feedback on draft recommendations. Decisions on these recommendations are then expected to be announced in late Autumn. The deadline to apply for the workshops is Friday 21st August. There is an email address to request reasonable adjustments if you are not able to access the online application form: [email protected]

More information on these workshops, including application form, can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/timms-review-of-personal-independence-payment-register-your-interest-in-a-shaping-recommendations-workshop/timms-review-register-your-interest-in-a-shaping-recommendations-workshop#information-for-workshops-in-wales-northern-ireland-and-scotland

Terra Sarda Wines is a small Sardinian wine company based in Yorkshire that have a big ambition to provide all of the wines they sell with braille labels. It currently includes the braille labels on demand on three of their range. Terra Sarda isn't the first wine company to do this, but the inspiration came from hearing Brandon Hulcoop from transcription service All Things Dotty on the In Touch programme. Brandon and Sue Scott from Terra Sarda Wines tell us how their partnership developped.

Presenter: Peter White

If someone has little vision, is it actually helpful to describe historical sites and objects using only visual language? That is a question being posed by a new project 'Describing Heritage' by charity VocalEyes. It aims to challenge traditional audio description at heritage sites (museums, galleries, stately homes) by involving blind and visually impaired people in the creation of descriptions of objects and spaces. By co-creating audio descriptions that are based on all the senses, they believe that this will create the kind of description which could be more relatable to people with low vision. Our reporter Fern Lulham attended one of the curation sessions at The National Gallery to find out more about how this concept works.

Presenter: Peter White

A charity's plans to sell a site on which there are homes for disabled war veterans has left residents facing fears of eviction. The charity "Sight Scotland Veterans" says that it is no longer financially viable for them to run the site as it is currently. We speak to visually impaired veterans Pete Conaghan and Bill Mackie, both of whom live there, and to the Sight Scotland Veterans Chief Executive, Craig Spalding.

What has been the significance for disabled athletes of the recent Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games and how did visually impaired competitors fare? We're joined by BBC Scotland's sports news reporter Chris McLaughlin, as well as athletes Stephen Clegg, Ela Letton-Jones and James Ball.

Presenter: Peter White

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New College Worcester has been a dedicated school for visually impaired pupils for 160 years, but it has recently joined with an education trust which has enabled them to take in their first cohort of non-visually impaired students. The school's principal Rachel Perks tells In Touch about the reasons behind the change, what impact it might have on pupils and staffing and how this change should secure their financial future.

The Commonwealth Games are regarded as one of the few integrated large-scale sporting events, with disabled and non-disabled athletes competing alongside each other. The 2026 games are underway in Glasgow where some visually impaired athletes have already secured medals. With the help of BBC Scotland's sport correspondent Chris McLaughlin, In Touch provides an overview of the action so far. More to follow on next week's programme.

Presenter: Peter White

Can blindness be funny? This week In Touch discusses recent projects by two visually impaired comedy writers.

One is a new podcast called You've got Braille, co-written by visually impaired comedy writer and TV producer Reece Finnegan. The podcast focuses on a young blind man who is muddling through life's complexities, with the disability adding another tricksy layer. The podcast was produced by production company Hat Trick and RNIB.

Blind comic Aarian Mehrabani will soon be hitting the Edinburgh Fringe with his debut stand-up show 'How's your Head?'. Aarian has worked within comedy writing for a while, producing work with his own disability-led theatre company FlawBored. In the run up to Edinburgh, Aarian has been hosting comedy nights at Salford's Lowry Theatre, where he will also be previewing his debut stand-up show.

Presenter: Peter White

In 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

Passenger 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

The 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

Whether 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

In 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