We are committed to making our website accessible.
Design standards
We work to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 and place additional focus on assisting screen readers using ARIA Landmarks. We also work to the BSI PAS 78:2006 guidelines where possible.
Structure of the site
We have one set of pages for the whole site, which we aim to make accessible to all. We do not separate accessible and less accessible pages into separate sections.
Content
We aim to use clear, plain English in a concise and meaningful way.
Use of cookies
Every user is informed about how the site uses cookies on their first visit. For more information, see our cookies policy.
Use of multimedia
We aim to label all images, and use images just where appropriate (not for purely decorative text and headings).
Text will be scalable, as will all pages themselves. We set a maximum size for most pages, to ensure lines are wrapped according to commonly accepted typographical rules.
Why is there no button to make text larger?
Browser technology has moved on significantly, enabling easy page zoom with shortcuts that should be listed in the ‘View’ menu of the browser. Page zoom has the benefit that each element of the page will be scaled proportionately. It is also more common for people with visual impairments to have their own software built-in, which automatically increases the text size.
Changing your computer screen settings
To change the size of the image shown on your screen on a PC running the Windows 95 and upwards operating system, go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > Display > Settings and change the desktop area by using the sliding bar. On an Apple Macintosh, you can use the Monitor & Sound Control Panel to change the resolution.
Having difficulty with your keyboard or mouse?
You can fine-tune your mouse and keyboard settings under Start > Settings > Control Panel > Accessibility in Windows 95/98/NT/2000 and XP.
Browser support
There will always be small differences in the display between browsers, but we do aim to broadly support:
- Newer versions of Internet Explorer for Windows
- Safari for Macintosh
- Mozilla Firefox for all platforms
- Google Chrome for all platforms
If you are using an older browser (a level 3.0 browser for instance), you may see inconsistencies in the presentation of pages. It may help you to download a newer version of a browser to improve your general Internet experience. The following are available to download for free:
Rather than using automated tools and badges, which can be a bit hit-or-miss, we aim to be responsive to your needs. Please notify us of any specific problems you encounter, or any suggestions you have for improvement.
Help with PDF files
PDF stands for Portable Document Format. It is a universal file format that displays the fonts, images, graphics and layout of a document, regardless of the application and platform used to create it. In order to view and print a PDF document, you will need to download the free PDF viewer from the Adobe website. Most computers come with the free Adobe Reader® software as standard.
We are continually working to improve the accessibility and usability of our content but if you are experiencing any difficulties downloading files or accessing a particular page, please contact us.
