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“There’s nothing else like Living Paintings” – Carol’s story
18th June 2025
For Carol Barnfather, Living Paintings has been more than a resource, it’s been a constant companion throughout her career and a cause she’s proudly volunteered her time to support.
Carol, a qualified braillist, first discovered Living Paintings while working as a teaching assistant. Supporting a young boy with delayed language development and vision impairment, she found the books an invaluable tool for helping him engage with stories, develop comprehension, and build confidence.
“The Living Paintings books allowed the boy I worked with a chance to enjoy the same stories as his class, and that’s so important for inclusivity. It was a QTVI (Qualified Teacher of Children and Young People with Vision Impairment) who came in to work with me and told me about the service,” she says.
Because of some of his challenges, he was a bit behind his classmates, but access to these books gave him a great opportunity to catch up. He could take part in similar tasks to the rest of the class but with simpler text and the raised tactile images helped him visualise and understand the story. Other pupils loved feeling the pictures and would always ask to be his reading partner while he read the braille, it was inclusive and inspiring. The team at Living Paintings were always great at sending books to match topics at school, too.
Access to these vital resources helped the young boy enormously, so much so that he was able to progress like his peers and move on to secondary school.
“This particular boy used the books at every stage of his education. As he got older, we would order teaching packs and science packs from Living Paintings, so they helped him every step of the way,” she says.
I was so proud when he moved on to secondary school. I felt like I wanted a new challenge and really enjoyed helping children with visual impairments.
As her career progressed into a Children, Young People and Families Officer at a sight loss charity, Berkshire Vision, Carol reconnected with Living Paintings to support preschool groups.
“It made sense to get involved with Living Paintings again and I was stunned at how many parents don’t know about this brilliant, free resource,” she says. “I would take books to Berkshire Vision activities to show parents what is available and to share with children to encourage them to explore books and enjoy a story. I would take books to appointments, drop-ins, anywhere that a child may need to unwind and engage with a calming activity. The books are always so popular and I’ve made it my mission to let all parents with visually impaired children know about it and many families I work with have signed up.”
As well as using the service for her job, Carol has also volunteered her time with the charity, helping clean and prepare books and offering her expertise in braille. “Living Paintings has been a part of every stage in my career. There’s nothing else like it and I’m proud to give back.”