71914-12BLIND people in Swindon missed out on hearing the stories in the Advertiser when the Post Office lost their tapes.

The tapes, which are recorded by volunteers from Swindon Talking Newspaper, keep the blind and partially sighted up to date with all the town's news.

But last week three sacks containing 200 tapes were mislaid at Dorcan sorting office.

The tapes are recorded on Wednesday evenings, copied on Thursday mornings and taken to the sorting office.

The distinctive wallets usually arrive on listeners' doormats on Fridays.

Mike Beale, one of the producers and vice-chairman of the charity, said: "The first we knew anything was wrong was when listeners phoned us.

"By Monday we had had calls from 40 listeners wanting to know what had happened to their tapes.

"We couldn't give them an answer because the Post Office didn't know where they were and kept assuring us that most of them had been distributed to other sorting offices around the town.

"It wasn't until Tuesday afternoon that a customer services spokesman admitted they had been found in a 'dark corner' of the Dorcan sorting office.

"This is the second time it has happened in the last 12 months."

Mike said the charity has other problems with the post.

Craven House, in Victoria Road, where the charity is based, used to receive its post by 10am, but now the delivery does not arrive until noon meaning staff have a longer wait for the tapes to be returned so they can start on the next edition.

Royal Mail spokesman Richard Hall: "This was our mistake and we apologise to the talking newspaper and their listeners for the error.

"When the tapes were brought in to the Dorcan Mail centre they were unfortunately put to one side.

"Once we were alerted to the fact that customers had not received them we did a search and found the tapes and returned them so they could be re-recorded.

"We have tightened up our procedures to prevent this happening again."

One of the listeners, great-grandmother Edna Bates, 92, from Laurel Court, in Upper Stratton, said: "This is not the first time that something like this has happened.

"Two of my last three tapes have not turned up.

"This post service is nothing like it used to be.

"When I was young I could post the letter in the morning and have it delivered at an address in the same town that afternoon."

And Dorothy David, 72, of Westminster Road in Toothill, added: "Call me nosy but I am a Swindonian through and through. I rely on the talking paper to keep up with the local news.

"I was very disappointed when it didn't show up."

Swindon Talking Newspaper was started in April 1982 and celebrated its 1000th edition earlier this year.

Listeners do not have to be registered blind or partially sighted.

The service is available to anyone who is unable to read newsprint.

It is completely free and listeners can even borrow a portable tape recorder free of charge if they need to.

For more information call 01793 522511.

Kevin Shoesmith