Hello wherever you are reading this. I guess the first thing is to tell you why I
am here. Well, in a nutshell, I’ve just
been made redundant by my employer, the Royal National Institute of Blind
People, (RNIB.) When I started working
for them as a Technology For Life Coordinator, Northern Ireland, in October
2022, I hoped and actually believed that I could make a difference to blind and
partially sighted individuals, and pass on my lived experiences as a blind
person. I also thought I would remain in
post until I retired. But, almost two
years later, the RNIB, in its infinite wisdom, is going through another major
restructure, part of which includes the demise of the Technology For Life team
in which I have been an integral part.
So what next?
Well, I have decided that I still have a bit of life in me
yet, and want to be able to put my skills and knowledge to good use. So I have set up my own small business as a
trainer/consultant to continue working with anyone who is prepared to pay
me. I am calling my business STRIVE
Ability, the acronym being: Support, Training, Resources, Inclusion, Value,
Empowering. It’s a mouthful, but it
represents all the attributes I have and stand for.
What will I offer?
I am totally blind, and use a whole raft of mainstream and
bespoke technology to maintain my independence.
I am a life-long Braillist and use it every day. I am therefore offering support and training
in the use of Braille equipment such as displays and note-takers; and producing
and proofreading Braille documents. I am
an experienced screen reader user so can assist with JAWS training on the
computer, or VoiceOver and TalkBack training on Smartphones and tablets. I have a great relationship with assistive
technology manufacturers and companies, so can advise on what is the right
equipment for the buyer to use. I am a
very creative person and love writing articles and features. I have a Masters Degree in Creative Writing,
and have had quite a lot of my articles and reviews published in specialist and
mainstream literature. Indeed, I am the
author of Braille On Display which is about to be published in its third
edition.
I will continue to write blog posts as and when there is
anything interesting, helpful or even funny to share with you. I am not a fan of social media so don’t
expect to see me there much because I think it causes more problems than it
solves.
So let this be the first of many blog posts sharing my
knowledge, technology tips, lived experiences, and of course some laughs along
the way. Please check back regularly to
see what I am up to, and to browse the various links on my website. I will keep adding content that will
hopefully be interesting and useful.
Having had the pleasure of working with Jackie for the last two years I have witnessed the differences she has made to blind and partially sighted people in Northern Ireland. Her knowledge and skills in the assistive tech field are outstanding. The fact that she now wishes to share these skills wider is brilliant!!