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Introduction Visual Impairment Fact Sheets Media Resources
Subscribers pay an annual subscription for their choice of the 200 titles. There is no cost for postage because the tapes are sent free under the "Articles for the blind" concession from the post office.
The subscribers must be unable to read 12pt type with the aid of spectacles and must provide evidence from a doctor or optician that they have a visual impairment. Disabled people with certain limitations that make it difficult for them to read printed material may also receive the service.
Each wallet dispatched to a subscriber contains 1 or 2 publication tapes and an address card, bearing the subscribers' name/address/publication and a barcode for the computerised ordering system.
A tape may be used many times, and each time it's returned, it's wiped, re-wound and then re-recorded with another title.
Over 2 million tapes per year, up to 40,000 a week - that's over 60 sacks a day are despatched and then returned - after they've been listened to.
There are over 200 titles available in five different formats - tape, computer disk, e-mail, CD-ROM or via the dedicated bulletin board.
National Talking Newspapers and Magazines has 8 recording studios and these are in use from 9am-5pm every weekday.
Magazines and national newspapers are recorded by up to 200 volunteers and from each "master" recording (or best quality recording) up to 4 sub-masters (or 1st copies are made). In production, each duplication bay can make up to 44 copies at a time and the machines that make the copies, do so in about 3 minutes for a C90 tape.
Because the tapes that have been returned may have been played on a cassette recorder with dirty playback heads, each duplicating machine has its head cleaned every 15 minutes to ensure that the tapes sent out are clean.
One duplicating position in each block in every bay has its output checked for recording quality, speed and to see that it is working correctly each time a new batch of 44 is recorded.
The duplicating machines put both sides of the recording on the tape at the same time - one side forward, the other backward and so when the tapes have been recorded on, they're re-wound to the beginning and put in wallets ready for despatch a few hours later.
All of the address labels that are returned with the tapes have their barcodes scanned into a database and the labels are then shredded to ensure they don't fall into the wrong hands. Address labels are printed a day in advance and while the tapes are being recorded prior to duplication, the labels are slotted into the windows on the pouches - ready for filling.
TNAUK Registered charity number: 293656
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