Royal Blind National Braille Week
See the work
We launched our campaign for charity Royal Blind as they marked the 200th anniversary of Louis Braille’s birth during National Braille Week in January 2009.
At the same time, we launched an appeal to raise £2 million to save one of the UK’s leading braille presses - which ensures that blind people have access to the written word.
To bring the campaign to life and give it media currency, we recruited Scottish author Ian Rankin (whose son attends the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh) as an ambassador for the campaign.
And we cleaned up in the media.
The Times covered the story with our pictures (we brailled part of Rankin’s Fleshmarket Close and created an installation on the walls of the street of the same name for a photocall). The Guardian has put its weight behind the campaign with news coverage, as well as an editorial in praise of braille and the campaign.
STV, GMTV Scotland and the BBC all covered the story for TV, while You & Yours weighed in with a piece on Radio 4 and Radio Five Live also covered the story. Across the regions, there were pieces across BBCs Radio Scotland, York, Solent, Bristol, West Midlands and Three Counties (amongst others) and another 60-odd pieces from the various interviews co-ordinated with our chums at MarketTiers.
And - what with a Scottish charity and a Scottish author - the nationals north of the border also weighed in with lengthy pieces across the Scotsman (twice), Record, P&J and Herald.
The team of Alan, Nicki and Amy are justifiably proud of what has been a fantastic campaign. And thanks to the work, Royal Blind should be well on their way to hitting their fundraising target.