Accessible Books for Blind People in the UK

I’ve always been an avid reader and have searched for accessible libraries that I can use as a blind person. Here is a list of such libraries, which is not exhaustive but should get you started if, like me, reading is an important part of your life. The following is a list of libraries which are accessible to blind and partially sighted people and available to access in the United Kingdom.

• RNIB Reading Services offers braille, large print and audio books. It is completely free to access and they are always adding new titles to the collection. You can download talking books, and braille books in BRF format, directly from their website. You can also request braille and large print books by post, and receive talking books on USB or DAISY audio cd.
• Calibre Audio is a national charity which produces books for blind and partially sighted people. The library is free to join for anyone who has a print disability, and books can be accessed by streaming online, downloading to iOS and Android, or through their postal service, where they will send you the book on USB.
• The RNIB Education Collection (Bookshare) offers almost 700,000 educational titles that are accessible to blind or otherwise print disabled students. It is free for organisations such as schools.
• LibriVox is a volunteer led service that aims to record books that are in the public domain in audio format. The entire catalogue is free to listen to. You can download the books on iOS and Android devices or listen to them on your computer.
• Seeing Ear runs the National Accessible Library, providing books free of charge to people in the UK who are blind, have a print disability or a physical disability that prevents them from holding a book. Titles can be read in braille, as large print or by using a screenreader.
• The RealSAM Smart Speaker provides blind and partially sighted people with access to audiobooks, radio, podcasts, and information from local and national blindness organisations. It is available for use on smart speakers such as the Google and Amazon lines of products. It is available to existing customers for a promotional rate one off fee of £9.95 which lasts until 31st December 2021, before reverting to a standard £3.95 a month from 1st January 2022. New customers can subscribe to the RealSAM Smart Speaker for a one-off fee of £19.90 which lasts until 31st December 2021, then £9.95 a month from 1st January 2022.
• Listening Books is a UK audio book charity that provides books to people who are unable to read due to a disability. They offer several membership payment options, ranging from £20 per year for online streaming to £45 for access to books online or through the post. They also offer several free places for people who will struggle to pay the membership fee.
• Living Paintings produces tactile books for people who are blind. The library is free to access and the tactile images come with audio guides. Children’s books contain both tactile images and braille.
• The ClearVision Project is a postal library of children’s books. All books have both print and braille, enabling blind children to read with sighted friends and family members or for blind parents to read with their sighted children.
• The National Poetry Library offers braille and audio resources to blind members. They also have a free postal service of cd’s.
• Torch Trust provides blind people with Christian resources and activities, including a library of titles in various accessible formats.
• Local library services provide blind and visually impaired members with free access to their audio books, even if typically there is a fee to access them. These can usually be accessed through an app or on the computer.
• Project Gutenberg digitises books which are out of copyright. If you’re looking for older texts, you are likely to find them here. Books can be downloaded in multiple formats, including ePub.

Happy reading!