麻豆社

Every day, 250 people are told they are losing their sight. Of these, four will be children. It鈥檚 a devastating diagnosis as families and carers come to terms with the reality that their child might never get to fully experience the things their sighted peers may take for granted.

Living Paintings are the national charity that don鈥檛 see blindness as a barrier to experiencing the visual world. For 33 years, the charity has been positively transforming the lives of families affected by blindness with its unique and accessible picture books for blind children and young people.

The charity takes the world鈥檚 best-loved children鈥檚 picture books and adapts them into tactile and audio experiences designed for sharing 鈥� at home, at school, with family and with friends. Bespoke soundtracks guide little fingers over the unique feely illustrations, so blind children can experience every stroke, lump, bump and expression of their favourite literary characters and scenes.

Living Paintings also creates its own feely resources to help blind children and young people experience the visual world at their fingertips. From books developed in-line with the National Curriculum to a wide range of topical books that allow them to explore their own interests 鈥� Living Paintings remain there for blind children and young people as they grow into adulthood.

The charity's ever-growing collection of picture books are available to borrow for free from its postal library, with thousands of blind people of all ages enjoying these very special deliveries.

The charity鈥檚 impact can be transformational for the children and young people they support. 98% of their members鈥� credit Living Paintings with improving their interest in learning, 97% say the service has given them greater confidence to engage with their sighted peers, and 97% have benefitted from an improved confidence in reading.

I鈥檓 incredibly honoured to present this Lifeline appeal on behalf of Living Paintings, a charity so very close to my heart.

When my daughter was young, story time was always a special moment for us. Not just because of the wonderful words within the pages but also the beautiful illustrations which bring the stories to life for little readers. I know this will be familiar to so many families. It鈥檚 the pairing of words and pictures that makes children鈥檚 books so magical. I can鈥檛 imagine how it would have felt to miss out on those moments. But this is the reality for thousands of families across the UK who are affected by blindness.

That鈥檚 why the work Living Paintings do is so important. They don鈥檛 see blindness as a barrier to the visual world, and their unique tactile, audio and braille experiences for blind children and young people mean they don鈥檛 need to miss out on the things their sighted peers take for granted.

My family and I have been keen supporters of Living Paintings for many years. I hope you can join us and help this fantastic charity continue to provide such a vital service to those that need them.

Five-year-old Matilda was diagnosed with oculocutaneous albinism at 12 weeks old and registered as visually impaired due to delayed visual development, photophobia (sensitivity to light) and nystagmus (involuntary eye movements).聽

Laura, Matilda鈥檚 Mum, said: 鈥淲e鈥檝e always been a family of avid readers. Matilda鈥檚 two older brothers loved books and reading, but Matilda showed no interest 鈥� despite all our efforts to enjoy story time together. None of the picture books we had at home held her attention. But Living Paintings changed that. From the first book we borrowed from them, Spot the Dog, Matilda loved them! The larger and tactile illustrations meant she could fully enjoy them and experience the full story. It was a revelation to her. Living Paintings have opened a whole new world for Matilda and inspired a love of reading that will last a lifetime.鈥�

Twenty-year-old Louis lost his sight when he was 18 months old due to Neuroblastoma, a type of children鈥檚 cancer. Louis鈥� parents always wanted him to have the same experience as his sighted peers and turned to Living Paintings when he was two years old so he could experience the joy of reading like his friends. Louis remains an active member and helps the charity by testing out new publications before they hit the shelves of their free library.聽

Louis said: 鈥淭he earliest book I borrowed was Thomas the Tank Engine, and I remember it vividly because it was the first time I could understand what the characters I loved looked like. Growing up, Living Paintings had all the famous characters from books and TV that everyone was familiar with, but now I could see them too 鈥� and appreciate them as any sighted person could. Living Paintings have had an enormous impact on my life. From when I was a child to now in my second year of university, Living Paintings have been a constant, always providing education and entertainment.鈥�

Alba is 33 years old and has been blind since birth. She is the mother of two sighted children, Eliot and Amy. When Eliot was very young, story time was incredibly special to Alba, who spent hours upon hours brailling books so she could read to her child. But as he grew older, he began to ask for Daddy to read to him instead.聽

Alba said: 鈥淔or Eliot, Daddy could easily read all the fun books his friends were enjoying. But I remembered how somebody had mentioned Living Paintings and I was so amazed when their books arrived. Now, I read with Eliot and Amy every evening as they sit on my lap. I can read from the braille, and we enjoy the beautiful embossed pictures together. We borrow three or four at a time and read and re-read them. The books come straight to us, and it almost feels like going to a real physical library, something I had always felt very jealous of because other mums could do that with their kids.鈥�