lose their sight as they cannot watch television or see friends as easily. Being able to read and listen to stories can literally provide a lifeline. The RNIB’s services can be accessed online or via a phone where their reader services provide a friendly response, mindful that their role is pastoral as well as service providing.
Lynne is keen to point out that signposting is a useful way that people can help the RNIB. They can also get involved in fundraising for audiobooks and can even have a dedication on these, which will stay in the library forever. Lynne’s parting words make a real impact, that books and reading allow people to live widely in their imaginations. Shirin Welham, Marketing Manager at Calibre, was excited to talk more about the organisation. Calibre is an audiobook lending library based in Aylesbury and founded in 1974. The charity had humble origins; Susan Beazley was frustrated by how little material there was for her son, who was partially sighted, to enjoy (there is presently still only around five per cent of titles which get produced commercially in audiobook formats). Susan and two friends began recording stories at her kitchen table. The operation has grown immeasurably since then and now has 43 employees and 172 volunteers serving 14,000 members and 60 book groups. Members range in age from four to over 100.
Calibre is for people who struggle to access print. This might include people experiencing sight loss, the blind, people with dyslexia or physical disabilities. The audio library contains 11,000 titles, 3,000 of which are for young people. The titles are across 60 different categories and include fiction, non-fiction in all manner of genres, including materials to support GCSEs and education. Last year 774 titles were added to the collection and members are kept up-to-date on new titles through audio newsletters.
Calibre are keen advocates of Inclusive Minds’ ‘Everybody In’ charter believing that every child should have the right for their lives and experiences to be reflected through books. The charity actively seeks to ensure their collection is inclusive in the widest possible ways featuring books by Angie Thomas, Malorie Blackman and many more. It also actively supports initiatives like Pride with themed recommendations for users to hear.
Audiobooks are available as MP3 CDs, on USB sticks, as downloads or through streaming. Users can borrow an impressive number of titles with up to five CDs and five USB sticks at any one time, together with four downloads and unlimited streams.
There is a one off joining fee for users: £35 for adults and £20 for children. Child users can access the 3,000 books in the Young Calibre library and once over the age of 16 can access the whole collection. Between 1,600 and 1,700 titles are sent out each day. These are distributed across the UK and can be sent to the EU and further afield too, thanks to the Marrakesh Treaty, signed in 2013, which makes the production and international transfer of accessible books for people who are blind or visually impaired easier through creating exceptions to traditional copyright law. The Calibre team work with publishers to try to make sure that some of the latest books are added to their library. Where books do not have commercial copies, a team of over 80 volunteer professional narrators are able to add books to the collection, recording these using professional equipment in their homes. Opportunities to support exist through donations, volunteering in the office and for professional voice artists, as readers. It is an impressive operation for one begun at a kitchen table! As with ClearVision and the RNIB, Calibre have a real sense of the way that their service is able to practically help users in learning and imagining but also contribute to quality of life and wellbeing.
There is real passion and innovation in the ways each of the 27 PEN&INC. Autumn-Winter 2019
Carys from New College Worcester gives a speech at the 2018 CKG winners’ ceremony
three organisations work so hard to ensure that reading does not have to be a closed book for anyone. Signposting to the charities is an important way of helping to make sure that the people who most need these services are able to access them. More information can be found out here: Calibre
www.calibre.org.uk; ClearVision Project
www.clearvisionproject.org; Guide Dogs
www.guidedogs.org.uk; Reading Sight
https://readingsight.org. uk/; RNIB
https://www.rnib.org.uk/ PEN&INC.
Jake Hope
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