International Council on English Braille (ICEB)

Quick links: Unified English Braille, IPA Braille, Developing Braille Codes for Languages other than English: Best Practices, Committees, Contact Us, Site Map

Braille, a system of raised dots, is the primary literacy medium for people who are blind, deafblind, or have severe low vision. The International Council on English Braille (ICEB) coordinates and promotes the use of braille throughout the English-speaking world.

NEWS

ICEB Releases the Third Edition of the Rules of Unified English Braille

the International Council on English Braille (ICEB) is delighted to announce the completion of the third edition of The Rules of Unified English Braille, superseding the second edition published in 2013.

This edition introduces several new features including:

• a comprehensive index of all rules;
• use of Unicode braille patterns for all examples; and
• the addition of many more cross references.

All changes to the UEB code since 2013 have been incorporated into this new edition. In particular:

• the rules and terminology for quotation marks and apostrophes have been rewritten to facilitate more accurate automated translation;
• medial capitals are now permitted around shortforms, e.g. DeafBlind, QuickTime, and LetterWriter;
• new symbols have been added for the checkmark (tick) and German sharp s (eszett);
• a clarification that the contraction for ‘th’ should be used in the name Beethoven has been added;
• a word followed by the line indicator may now be brailled in contracted form;
• the line indicator may now be used to indicate a column break in a table; and
• a small number of words have been added to the Shortforms List.

The Rules of Unified English Braille is the definitive UEB Rulebook produced by ICEB. The electronic files are available below for free download and can be printed or embossed for personal use.

The PDF version is designed for printing. See:
Rules of Unified English Braille 2024.pdf.

The braille edition of the UEB Rulebook, in seven volumes, is available as formatted braille (BRF) files with page size 25 lines by 30 cells:
Rules of Unified English Braille 2024 brf files zipped

ICEB 8th General Assembly 2024

The International Council on English Braille (ICEB) held its 8th General Assembly from Saturday, 25 May 2024 to Thursday, 30 May 2024 in Auckland New Zealand.

Updates to the Rules of UEB

As of July 2022, the ICEB Executive and Code Maintenance Committee have approved the following changes to the Rules of Unified English Braille (2013).

• Sections 2.6, 10.9 and Appendix 1 have been rewritten to clarify the effect of medial indicators in longer words containing shortforms on the Standing Alone Rule.
• A new symbol has been assigned for the German sharp s (eszett).

These changes and all previous updates can be downloaded from the UEB page.

Braille Types and Files

This document gives an overview of braille and explains some of the most important terminology around the various different codes of braille that may be encountered. It also gives details about how braille is typically stored and processed by today's computers and summarises the file formats commonly used to store braille documents. It concludes with links to other resources that may provide more information on specific topics.

Developing Braille Codes for Languages other than English: Best Practices

ICEB has developed a document to provide an overview of best practices and issues to consider regarding the development of braille codes to represent a particular language.

ICEB newsletter

The ICEB quarterly newsletter has up-to-date stories on ICEB activities, and braille news and events from around the world. The most recent issue was released in September 2023.

• ICEB newsletter issue 16, September 2023 - BRF (braille)
• ICEB newsletter issue 16, September 2023 - PDF (print)

See the Braille Promotion page for back issues and a link to automatically receive the newsletter when it is released.

Press Release: ICEB Reaffirms the Importance of Braille during Times of Pandemic and International Crises

Press Release: ICEB compiles adult braille instruction resources from across English-Speaking countries

Face-to-face meetings

The executive of the ICEB meets face-to-face once every two years, at the start and end of the General Assembly and at a two year interval between Assemblies.

The most recent meeting was The 2024 meeting of the Executive Committee held may 30 2024 in Auckland, New Zealand.

The next in-person meeting of the Executive Committee will be the 2026 mid-term meeting held in Watertown, Massachusetts, United States from 22-26 June.

Braille Music

ICEB's Braille Music Committee has compiled a list of resources on how Braille Music and UEB can be used together.

List of Training Resources Updated

ICEB has compiled a list of UEB training and resource materials available from its member countries. This list was last updated in February 2018.

Purpose and General Organization of the ICEB

The purpose of the International Council on English Braille is to coordinate and improve standards for braille usage for all English-speaking users of braille. Refer to the ICEB Committee page for details of its organization, committees and representatives.

The members of the ICEB are the various countries where English is spoken, and membership is open to all such countries. The present membership consists the following eight countries:

• Australia
Australian Braille Authority
• Canada
Braille Literacy Canada
• Ireland
The Irish National Braille and Alternative Format Association
• Nepal
• New Zealand
The Braille Authority of New Zealand Aotearoa Trust
• South Africa
South African Braille Authority
• United Kingdom
UK Association for Accessible Formats
• United States
The Braille Authority of North America

The ICEB Constitution was adopted May 31, 1991, and last revised May 27, 2024.

ICEB General Assembly Archives

The ICEB General Assembly meets every four years.

• 2024 General Assembly Reports, Papers and Presentations - hosted in Auckland, New Zealand
• 2024 General Assembly Resolutions
• 2020 General Assembly Reports, Papers and Presentations - virtual event hosted in London, England
• 2020 General Assembly Resolutions

The following resource documents are the outcomes of 2020 resolutions.

• Shorthand Braille Codes
• Adult Braille Learning Resources
• 2018 Mid-Term Executive Meeting Reports - Dublin, Ireland
• 2016 General Assembly Papers - Baltimore, USA
• 2016 General Assembly Country Reports
• 2016 General Assembly Resolutions
• 2012 General Assembly Papers - Johannesburg, South Africa
• 2012 General Assembly Resolutions
• 2008 General Assembly Resolutions - Melbourne, Australia
• 2004 General Assembly Resolutions - Toronto, Canada
• 1999 General Assembly Resolutions - Baltimore, USA
• 1995 General Assembly - Seven Oaks, Kent, UK

ICEB Codes

• Unified English Braille: The largest project of the ICEB has been the development a single Unified English Braille code (UEB) for both literary and technical purposes throughout the English-speaking world. The development phase of this project has been completed and UEB is now the official braille code for English materials in all of our member countries. See Unified English Braille (UEB).
• UEB Training and Resource Materials: ICEB has compiled a list of UEB training and resource materials available from its member countries. UEB Training Resources
• IPA Braille: This project, carried out under the auspices of the UEB Linguistics Committee, has produced a recommended standard braille code for the International Phonetic Alphabet. See IPA Braille.
• Braille Music is a separate and complete code. The ICEB's Braille Music Committee has compiled a list of resources explaining how Braille Music and UEB can be used together.

Further Information

For further information about the ICEB, see ICEB contact information.

See also the current ICEB Brochure for a more complete mission statement, information on activities and sources of funding, the membership application form, and other ways of contacting ICEB.

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