St Austell pubs launch Braille menus

August 15, 2008: St Austell Brewery is launching menus in Braille in its pubs and hotels to help blind and partially sighted customers ordering food and drinks.

The brewery is working with South West-based Braille transcription company Golden Chord to produce menus which are being launched in the brewery’s 30 managed houses. The move has won praise from the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB).

Jeremy Mitchell, St Austell Brewery's head of marketing, said: “As a Cornish family business we’re working hard to make all of our pubs welcoming, inclusive and accessible for all our customers.

“As well as having menus in Braille, all of our staff are trained to assist blind and partially-sighted diners by reading out menus, including the specials board, if that’s what customers would prefer.”

Golden Chord chief executive Roger Firman, himself a Braille user, said: “Golden Chord is delighted to be collaborating with St Austell Brewery in helping to provide accessible information.”

The actual transcription is being undertaken for Golden Chord by Stephen Gardiner, who lives in west Cornwall, and who has worked with Roger and other visually impaired people for over 25 years.

RNIB campaigner Julianne Marriott said: "RNIB welcomes this initiative. We work to remove the barriers to everyday information that limit the independence of blind and partially sighted people, and Braille menus are a great example of how businesses can help achieve this.

"St Austell's Brewery’s emphasis on making sure staff are trained and aware of the needs of blind and partially-sighted customers is also crucial to making their pubs welcoming to all customers, and we're delighted that they are investing in this."

Braille user Zoe Weller, who tried out the new menus at the Norway Inn, Perranarworthal, said: “I was very impressed with this menu. It was very well laid out, and food items were very easy to locate. It’s great to be able to visit a restaurant and read the same material as my sighted friends, as it puts me on an equal footing with them.”

The first St Austell Brewery pubs and hotels to launch menus in Braille are: the Atlantic Inn, Isles of Scilly; the Central Inn, Newquay; the Copley Arms, Hessenford; the Cornish Arms, St Merryn; the Fort Inn, Newquay; the Harbour Inn, Porthleven; the Holmbush Inn, St Austell; the Lifeboat Inn, St Ives; and the Lugger Inn, Polruan.