Two hands reading a braille book

Celebrating World Braille Day

On January 4th 1809 Louis Braille, the inventor of Braille, was born.
 
Braille is a tactile code that is designed to be read by touch. It consists of a series of raised dots in a cell. A cell comprises of six dots that, depending the position those dots, represent different letters
 
Braille has become an important tool to increase accessibility for everything from signs in public spaces to birthday cards. It is used in nearly every country in the world, and there is a Braille code for almost every language.
 
Amy Nomvula from BBC Radio Norfolk had a chat with our Leisure Activities Coordinator, Mark Smith, about the importance of Braill.
 
“Braille is really the medium of going into a restaurant and being able to read a menu yourself, maybe touching a button on the lift control and knowing what floor you’re going to. It could even just be opening your post at home and reading your bank statement.”
 
The interview was broadcast on The Friday Night Show on Friday 6th January. You can listen back by following the link (the interview starts at around 57:03): https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0dp9svv.
 
If you’re interested in learning Braille we have a Braille class at our Norwich hub. You can find out more by calling Richard at 01603 573000 Ext. 322 or emailing [email protected].

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