Services for the visually impaired
Date Added: 09/10/2021
If you support someone who is visually impaired, or are visually impaired yourself, Central Bedfordshire Libraries offer large print books, audiobooks, newspapers and magazines in accessible formats.
We have a wide range of books in large print by popular authors. You can browse what's available in your local library, or see what's available across our libraries on our library catalogue, Arena, by going to 'advanced search' and selecting large print from the menu under 'Select the type of stock'. Right now there are no charges for requests. You can also request and borrow e-books through Libby. When you read an e-book on Libby you can adjust the size and style of the text, including a range of accessibility font sizes.
You can borrow digital audiobooks though our complementary audiobook services Libby and BorrowBox. There are thousands of audiobooks to discover, with new titles being added all the time. Download the Libby and BorrowBox apps for Android and iOS and login with your library card number and PIN to discover what we have to offer. As well as digital audiobooks we also have audiobooks on CD in all our libraries. Browse what's available in your local library, or see what's available across our libraries on our library catalogue, Arena, by going to 'advanced search' and selecting spoken word - CD from the menu under 'Select the type of stock'.
Newspapers and magazines online
PressReader gives you access to thousands of national and international newspapers and magazines in a wide range of languages to read online or download. PressReader has a number of options to make the service accessible to readers with a visual impairment. Article View extracts text from the original newspaper or magazine and presents it in a way that’s easy to read and simple to navigate. Once you're in Article View, you can enlarge or shrink the font size on PressReader publications to fit your needs. You can select Listen to have articles read to you through machine reading. Try out PressReader for yourself, or visit our virtual library for more information.
Our online magazine service from Libby also offers a great range of magazines that can be downloaded and then magnified, or the font size changed. You can access PressReader and Libby with your library card number and PIN. Not a member? You can join online here. If you don't have your PIN you can get it sent to you here.
The Home Library Service
The Home Library Service is available to anyone who has no-one able to choose and collect items for them from a library, and who satisfies at least one of the service eligibility criteria. That includes borrowers who are registered blind or are partially sighted. It's open to people of all ages, and also to carers who may not be able to get to the library due to the nature of their caring duties.
Applications for the Home Library Service can be made by downloading the Home Library Service application form from our virtual library, or by contacting Flitwick Library, where the service is based, on 0300 300 8057.