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Bank notes to help blind people

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Australia has just release a new $5 bank note. There is a tiny new feature designed to help people who are blind or visually impaired.

The A$5 note has two raised dots on both of its long sides, allowing those who cannot see to identify its value.

It’s the country’s first note to feature the raised dots, and is being hailed as a major breakthrough. “For the first time in the history of Australian currency it will be possible for someone who is blind or vision-impaired to just pick up a note and know instantly what it is,” says Bruce Maguire from the non-profit Vision Australia organisation.

There  is around 360,000 Australians who are blind or visually impaired.

The new design follows a petition started in 2012 by teenager Connor McLeod, who is blind from birth, and his mother. It gathered more than 57,000 signatures and is being credited with persuading the Reserve Bank of Australia to make the change.

From next year, the Bank of England will include raised dots on new £10 and £20 notes.

16 Responses

  1. Someone usually has to go with a blind person to make sure they don’t trip or walk into the road so they can do the maths and not the blind people!!!

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