It has been a phenomenal week at RNIB Northern Ireland with
two events taking place on two consecutive days in Lisburn, County Antrim. First of all, I attended a library event on
25th February to celebrate 200 years of our wonderful Braille code
as part of the Braille tour round the Uk.
During the event, we had a class of P6 children visiting the Lisburn
City Library to learn about Braille and how invaluable it is to people like me
who have used it for so much of my life.
A friend and I talked to the class, and wrote each of their names on
cards that they could take home to show their families.
But the following day was the real highlight of the week
when RNIB hosted its second Tech Fair at the Lagan Island Centre in Lisburn.
The Background To Tech Fair
One of the things I realised almost as soon as I moved to
Northern Ireland in May 2010 was that there were no assistive technology
exhibitions taking place across the province, and I always thought it was much
needed and important for the visual impairment community. But I wasn’t in a position to try to make it
happen until I began working for RNIB in October 2022. At my interview for the job of Technology For
Life Coordinator Northern Ireland, my soon to be line manager asked if I had
any personal projects I would like to develop if I was offered the post. I said: ‘I think Northern Ireland needs an
assistive technology exhibition, and I would like to make my dream of hosting one
here come true.’ His reply was: ‘Fill
your boots,’ so I did!
The Birth Of Northern Ireland Tech Fair
It took many months to plan the first NI Tech Fair that was
held at the Europa Hotel in Belfast on 28th February 2024. It certainly took a lot of persuading to
convince my colleagues that it would be a success. But RNIB Northern Ireland Director, Robert
Shilliday, has since told me: ‘From the moment we opened the doors of NI Tech
Fair 2024 at the Europa, I knew it was going to be a success, and I was left in
no doubt that it was.’
Exhibitions of technology for blind and visually impaired
people are important because they show us what is available to purchase, and
give us the opportunity to have hands-on of the latest tech innovations. They are also networking, social occasions,
and have become something of a family get-together over the years. They are held all over the United Kingdom and
beyond throughout the year, and that is why I felt so animated that Northern
Ireland should host one too. So who better
to organise and be responsible for it than RNIB Northern Ireland?
Together with my working party colleagues, we planned the
first event for many months. It really
takes a lot of effort and commitment, but we did it on a fairly limited
budget. My son Ian flew over for the
first event in 2024 and was my eyes for the day. Not only did it give me the opportunity to
meet all the suppliers I have known for so many years, but also to connect with
friends I have made since moving here, particularly the pupils and support
staff I work with in the education sector as part of my own business.
Following the success of NI Tech Fair 2024, we got together
pretty soon after to start planning for NI Tech Fair 2025 which took place on
26th February at the Lisburn Lagan Valley Island Centre. The venue was bigger than the Europa Hotel,
and gave us the opportunity to host a series of speakers in a separate room
from the main hall. We also held a tech
surgery where visitors could bring their portable devices such as phones,
tablets and laptops, to receive technical support. There was also a large café area that allowed
friends and families to network while enjoying their refreshments throughout
the day.
This time, my good friend and RNIB technology volunteer,
Jaison, became my eyes for the day and guided me round the exhibition. Ian couldn’t attend this year, but Jaison did
a fantastic job of bringing me a chair to sit on when my back kept going into
muscle spasm.
Some of the pupils I work with came along to the exhibition again
this year, along with their families and support staff from the schools they
attend. I don’t think I’ve ever had so
many warm hugs with exhibitors, colleagues and friends as I did on the day, it
was truly amazing to see so many people who are like my extended family. When you have used as much technology as I
have over the last 40 years or so, you get to know the manufacturers and
dealers who sell it because it is a very close-knit industry. It was wonderful to hear the buzz emanating
round the hall as Jaison guided me from one stand to the next just as Ian had
done in 2024.
I cannot begin to describe just how exhausted I felt by the
time this year’s event closed at 4:30 pm.
The back condition I struggle with every day of my life made me feel
very fatigued, yet I felt ecstatic that the second NI Tech Fair had been
another huge success, and that people were already talking about attending the
next one in 2026. So congratulations to
everyone at RNIB Northern Ireland for pulling together to make Tech Fair 2025
such a success, and for keeping my dream alive of ensuring this beautiful part
of the country remains firmly in focus.
Yes it was my idea, my dream to start with, but it takes team work to
pull off an event like this, and we have that spirit at RNIB NI in abundance!
I also want to personally and publicly thank Jaison for
being my sighted guide throughout this year’s event, it would have been quite a
challenge to navigate the exhibition without his assistance.
What Product Stood Out?
For me, the highlight product on show at this year’s event
was the Monarch, developed in collaboration with HumanWare and the American
Printing House for the Blind. It is an
all-encompassing multi-line Braille device with Braille input and synthetic
speech and Braille output. The 10 lines
of 32 Braille cells enable you to read and write Braille, and examine graphs,
tables, pictures and so much more with your fingers. It is primarily for blind or visually
impaired pupils to access their textbooks and diagrams, but there are so many
more facets to this ingenious piece of kit that retails for £14,000 in the
UK. Yes you read that correctly,
£14,000! It sounds a huge amount of money to spend on a piece of technology that
will eventually be superseded as innovation never stands still. But if you think of purchasing a car as a
sighted driver, then the Monarch is your equivalent analogy as a blind consumer. So adding to the piggy-bank is already
underway in our house!
If you want to find out more about this product, visit
So see you somewhere in Northern Ireland next year when we
can, to use the title of a Blackmore’s Night song, have ‘All The Fun Of The
Fair.’