Few of us like change. We like things to stay the same, regardless of how good or bad they are, because we are more comfortable with the familiar.

For blind and visually impaired people, distinguishing between an Irish £20 note and £5 note or between a 50p and a £1 coin is done by becoming familiar with their individual size, shape, texture and feel. The introduction of a whole range of new notes and coins is therefore an issue of concern to many visually impaired people.

However, thanks to the National Council of the Blind of Ireland (NCBI), in conjunction with the Euro Changeover Board of Ireland, blind and visually impaired people should be as well able to cope with the change to euro notes and coins as everyone else.

Ms Patricia Byrne, NCBI regional manager and coordinator of the organisation's euro information project, says its aim is to "ensure that visually impaired people do not feel any more concerned about the changeover than anyone else".

The NCBI has produced two audio tapes with information about the changes, along with leaflets, posters and material in large print and Braille. It has also organised a euro training day for each county. A number of visually impaired trainers attended each euro day to provide one-to-one training on the notes and coins, of which NCBI has a limited number of replicas.

"The people who attended the euro days were fascinated with the euro replica notes and coins," says Ms Audrey Tormey, a euro peer trainer with NCBI.

"It was their first opportunity to examine the notes and coins, which look and feel identical to the real thing. I give them as long as they needed to familiarise themselves and to feel confident about the new notes and coins. The tactile markings on the currency have encouraged people's confidence about identifying them. Generally, we've received a very positive response."

Indeed, the design of euro notes and coins was done very much with blind and visually impaired people in mind, as a result of input from experts on accessibility for people with disabilities as well as field testing, according to Ms Sarah Gahan, press officer with the NCBI. "The people who came to the information days liked the coins, and thought the colours were very distinguishable and with no grey areas. The print on the notes is also quite large."

The National Council for the Blind of Ireland will also distribute a talking euro converter as well as a Braille notes and coins measurer to everyone on their register later this year.