Can blind people play baseball or be morris dancers? Of course they can!

Local sight loss charities exist throughout the UK to provide practical and emotional support to blind and visually impaired people. We wanted to learn more about the services they offer and the challenges they face. Fiona Sandford is the CEO of Visionary, the membership organisation for these charities and she joins us to answer our questions.

The immensely popular BBC programme Doctor Who recently celebrated it's 60th anniversary. We look at how the show has been made more accessible to its many blind fans and speak to some of the people who have made it happen.

Presenter: Peter White

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

Accessible In Home Displays (AIHDs) work with Smart Meters so that blind and visually impaired people can more easily monitor their use of energy. Their features include large buttons, high contrast displays and text to speech functions.

Around a year ago, we looked at complaints from listeners about problems in obtaining AIHDs from their supplier and were hopeful that the issue had been resolved. However, it's clear that some problems remain. We speak to a listener who contacted us about their recent experience and we also hear from their energy supplier.

Our other guest on this edition is no stranger to In Touch, having started as a reporter and gone on to produce the show for many years. They join us today to tell us about being a visually impaired photographer and how that passion took them to Chile to get pictures of rescued miners who had been trapped underground in 2010. Guessed who it is? Tune in and find out!

Presenter: Peter White

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

With a general election a certainty at some point this year, two recent developments have alarmed organisations representing disabled people. Before 2020, there was a fund that provided financial aid to disabled people running for elective office, but that fund has not yet been reinstated. And also: its being argued that in the Prime Minister's latest cabinet reshuffle, the role of Minister for Disabled People has been downgraded.

We discuss what these developments mean for visually impaired people. Helping us do that is Lord Blunkett, Steve Darling, who will be running to be the MP of Torbay this year, Lia Nici, who will be running for MP of Great Grimsby & Cleethorpes and Anna Tylor, Chair of the RNIB.

Presenter: Peter White

The Transport (Scotland) Act has been in place since 2019, which includes a nation-wide ban of parking cars on pavements. But only in December 2023 were local councils across Scotland given the powers to enforce fines of up to £100 to people doing so. Some local councils are saying that they need more funding and resources to be able to conduct assessments of their streets and to implement enforcement. We put this to Scotland's Transport Minister Fiona Hyslop and we hear from visually impaired resident of Glasgow about how pavement parking impacts her everyday journeys.

Meanwhile, The Thomas Pocklington Trust are reigniting a decade-old campaign that calls for a similar ban across England. The Trust's head of public affairs and campaigns, Mike Bell tells us what they're calling for.

Presenter: Peter White

Andrew Lennox took over as the CEO of The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association in September 2023. We thought we'd give him a little time to get his feet under the table but now he joins us to describe his vision for the future of the charity and what they plan to do about the long waiting lists for new and replacement dogs.

Roger Sharp has always had a passion for cars; building them, repairing them and racing them and when he lost his sight at the age of 48, that passion didn't fade. Roger has finished rebuilding a classic Ford Escort, while without vision. Our reporter Fern Lulham went to check it out.

Presenter: Peter White

Stuart Hann is The Blind Chocolatier and he has a small shop in the Lake District.

Stuart worked as a pastry Chef before he was diagnosed with Leber's Hereditary Optic Neuropathy in 2015. It is a rare eye condition that impacts his central vision. Stuart is now registered legally blind and uses various adaptations in his kitchen and shop to create a variety of artisan chocolates. Here at In Touch we love chocolate and so we couldn't resist paying him a visit to hear about his process and, most importantly, to sample some of his work.

Presenter: Peter White

Peter White pays a visit to the school that he used to attend, now called New College Worcester, to find out how some of the current pupils are preparing for Christmas. They tell him about what is happening at the college over the festive period, how they deal with the chaos of present unwrapping and knowing who has got what and they discuss inappropriate presents they have received as visually impaired people.

Presenter: Peter White

Ophthalmology is the busiest outpatient speciality in the NHS, with 8 million attendances in England in the last two years. However, there is a crisis of capacity and many patients are not receiving the specialist treatment that they need to retain their vision. The Eyes Have It is a partnership are trying to change that. It is comprised of the Macular Society, Fight for Sight / Vision Foundation, RNIB, Association of Optometrists, The Royal College of Ophthalmologists and Roche. The partnership's primary aim is to advocate for a national approach to improvements across the eye care sector in England. In Touch attended their parliamentary event in the Houses of Commons, and spoke to various professionals within the sector about the issues and the specifics of what they are calling for.

Presenter: Peter White

When you have a visual impairment, it can be very valuable for your own wellbeing to connect with other visually impaired people and share tips and advice on life. And when you are a young person with a visual impairment, there can be a lot to think about in regard to your future. Well, sight loss charity Look UK is aiming to bridge the gap for young visually impaired people with a mentoring programme. With the help from some of the scheme's current mentees and mentors, we discuss how it works and the potential benefits it can offer.

Look UK are currently seeking new mentors. To apply, visit: https://www.look-uk.org/mentoring/. Or email [email protected] (include your full name, age, and a contact phone number).

Presenter: Peter White