1. There are 1.9 million people living with sight loss in the UK. This equates to around 3,000 people in every parliamentary constituency.
2. The Transcription Service, which is completely confidential and free-of-charge, is funded by Royal Mail. It will allow MPs across the country to write and reply to constituents using Braille or audio letters.
3. As part of the initiative, RNIB will transcribe Braille and audio post before sending a copy of the correspondence to the appropriate MP.
4. In 1965, the company launched the Articles for the Blind Scheme, which was specially developed to allow blind or partially sighted customers, and registered charities, send items to registered blind or recognised visually impaired people for free.
5. During 2014-2015, Royal Mail delivered over 3.6 million items through the Articles for the Blind service, representing an investment of around £4 million.

Royal Mail and the Royal National Institute Of Blind People (RNIB) have today announced a new Transcription Service that allows blind and partially sighted people to communicate more effectively with their local MPs.

The scheme, which is completely confidential and free-of-charge, is funded by Royal Mail and will allow MPs across the country to write and reply to constituents using Braille or audio letters.

Gary Grange, community investment manager at Royal Mail, said: “There are over 1.9 million people living with sight loss in the UK - that is around 3,000 per parliamentary constituency. For these people everyday tasks, such as corresponding with an MP, can be a real challenge.

“We hope that the service will give both MPs, and their communities, the support they need to meet the needs of their blind and partially sighted constituents.”
As part of the initiative, Braille and audio letters from constituents to MPs will be transcribed by RNIB into print and the subsequent replies from their MP will be transcribed back into the constituent’s preferred reading format.

Helen Dearman, Parliamentary Manager at RNIB, said:  We are really pleased to work with Royal Mail and MPs to help provide a scheme of this type; we know just how important it is for people with sight loss to be able to send letters or read their post independently, without having to rely on family and friends to help them write or read letters on their behalf.   This scheme will ensure that blind and partially sighted people can quickly and easily write to their MPs about the issues that matter to them and that MPs can reply in the format that their constituents prefer.

This latest initiative further adds to Royal Mail’s history of providing support to help blind and partially sighted people. In 1965, the company launched the Articles for the Blind Scheme which was specially developed to allow blind or partially sighted customers, and registered charities, send items to registered blind or recognised visually impaired people for free. The scheme was extended in 2005 to cover partially sighted customers.

During 2014-2015, Royal Mail delivered over 3.6million items through the Articles for the Blind service, representing an investment of around £4 million.

Source: Royal Mail Group