A PIONEERING service will be showing off the latest gadgets to help the blind from vibrating banknotes to talking microwaves and tin lids.

The Action for Blind People’s Sight Loss Information Service is visiting Hartlepool and Thornaby, Stockton and will also provide specialist advice for people interested in or affected by visual impairment.

Visitors will also be able to try out sophisticated computer and magnification technology. PC and Apple have varying inbuilt settings that can magnify the contents on the screen, make information appear in high contrast and also enable text to be spoken.

Meanwhile libraries in Stockton are asking residents with sight loss and their families to take part in a nationwide survey about its services.

The Speak Up questionnaire follows the Make a Noise in Libraries fortnight which focused on accessible reading through audio books, large print and help people with sight loss to continue to read.

More than 250 library services including Stockton Borough Council are signed up to the Six Steps Promise , an accessibility pledge, through the Society of Chief Librarians and the Scottish Library and Information Council.

Councillor Norma Wilburn, Cabinet Member for Arts, Leisure and Culture, said: “This is an example of our commitment to provide maximum opportunities so everyone, especially vulnerable adults, has a better future and to continually develop our services to meet the needs of all our residents.”

Chairman of Share the Vision, Mark Freeman added: “Public libraries are a really important source of reading information and activities for people with sight loss.”

The Action for Blind People’s Sight Loss Information Service is visiting Middleton Grange Shopping Centre Car Park in Hartlepool, on Wednesday, June 24, between 10am and 4pm and the Pavilion Shopping Centre Car Park in Thornaby, Stockton, on Thursday, June 25, from 10am to 4pm.