What is the Kingston Talking Newspaper?
The Kingston upon Thames Talking Newspaper provides a free weekly digest of local news and information for visually impaired residents in the borough. Delivered on a memory stick, the service is completely free of charge, thanks to the efforts of dedicated volunteers and the use of the Royal Mail’s free Articles for the Blind postal service. A free sovereign box is also available for anyone who needs one.
The news content is sourced from local newspapers, and each edition includes a short magazine section featuring updates from the local authority and other organisations offering information of interest to visually impaired listeners.
How Does It Work?
Each week, the magazine section is compiled in advance, and a master copy is created by one of our producers on Thursday at our studio in Surbiton. This is also when any late-breaking announcements, such as bus route changes, are recorded to ensure listeners receive the most up-to-date information.
At the same time, postbags containing returned memory sticks from the previous week are collected. The address labels on the pouches are reversed, ready for reuse.
The recording session involves three volunteer readers and a producer, and usually finishes around midday, after which copying begins. Once all copies are ready, the pouches are delivered to the local sorting office—so they can reach listeners, ideally, by Saturday morning.
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How can you help?
The Talking Newspaper depends on dedicated volunteers to read, produce, and deliver each edition. We are currently seeking help on Wednesday afternoons and Thursday mornings with tasks such as transporting pouches and logging returned items.
New volunteers are always welcome! If you can spare a few hours each week and would like to make a meaningful contribution to your community, we’d love to hear from you.
Contact Details
Telephone Brian Gaff on 0208 287 4180.
Kingston Upon Thames Talking Newspaper produces:
Kingston Talking Newspaper
Kingston Eye Opener
Kingston Upon Thames Talking Newspaper
© 2008 - 2022 Site/Player: Talking Newspaper Services Ltd
Audio content by Kingston Talking Newspaper