Solihull Talking Newspapers was founded by Graham Walker who lost his sight in his mid forties. Graham was inspired by an item about talking newspapers for the blind which he heard on the radio. He decided to look into the possibility of establishing a talking newspaper service for the blind and partially sighted people of Solihull. Funding for the recording equipment was originally donated by Solihull Association for the Blind. The first edition was produced on the 1st April, 1977, on 90 minutes audio cassette tapes. Recordings are now made using memory sticks and are approximately of two hours duration.
In 2017 seven local Lions clubs donated funds to allow us to buy a new recording machine and additional memory sticks. Volunteers record and copy 50 editions of the Talking Newspaper and four editions of the Magazine each year. Recordings are made in a purpose built recording studio, currently this is in 'The Core' in Solihull. Our news is taken from the local newspapers - The Solihull News and the Solihull Observer plus other local and national publications as appropriate.
- Solihull Observer Publication frequency: Weekly