Can you help the Melksham Talking Newspaper?

CHIPPENHAM & District Talking Newspapers, which produces the Melksham Talking Newspaper, is appealing for volunteers to help them in their recording studio. 

The volunteer group, which produces and distributes recorded audio news on USB memory sticks for blind, partially sighted and housebound people in and around Melksham, Chippenham and Malmesbury, are planning to return to its studio in Chippenham, after over a year of recording stories from their homes. 

They need help to run their recording software and operate the sound mixer, which they have promised is “easy to learn”, and full training will be provided. 

Volunteer Brian Heath, who currently records the Melksham Talking Newspaper in his loft at his home, told Melksham News, “We are fortunate to have a great team of volunteer readers who, since the start of the first Covid-19 lockdown last year, have been champing at the bit to be able to get back into our tiny studio in Chippenham and resume our normal service. 

“Your readers will recall that during the various lockdowns I have been producing and distributing our Melksham edition at home, while my colleagues Margaret and Gwyn Rees have been doing the much harder weekly job of recording and sending out a combined Chippenham and Malmesbury edition, also from their home. 

“As we prepare for a planned return to studio operations from August 5th onwards, we are finding that while the readers are eager to return, we are very short of “operators” – in fact only Margaret Rees and I, and one other lady, seem to be willing to carry on.  

“So we desperately need to find a few more people willing and able to travel to Chippenham for two or three hours on a Wednesday afternoon (fortnightly) or a Thursday morning (weekly) to run our recording software and operate the sound mixer.  

“Both are pretty basic, easy to learn and straightforward to use, but in any case Margaret and I will provide full training and oversee each new operator’s first few recording sessions until they are confident in going solo. 

“Ideally we shall find enough new operators to re-establish our pre-Covid rota system, in which operators (and readers) simply write in their names on a calendar to indicate those recording dates on which they are available.  Initially, though, we shall have to organise the rota ourselves to ensure full and “trained” coverage, training etc. 

“Age is no barrier: I was 79 before I started! Some experience of using Windows-based computers and/or sound mixers could be useful, but by no means essential. All we ask is a few hours of people’s time and a desire to help us to help those not blessed with good eyesight to keep in touch with what’s going on in their local areas. 

“Any of your readers who feel able to help are invited to give me a call on 01249 814005 or 07944 818971.”