Accessibility and this site

Conformance to w3c/wai guidelines

Our site is standards compliant, fully accessible and built with XHTML and CSS and we recommend you view it with a standards compliant browser.

You can of course use any browser you wish including a handheld or wireless devise and any assistive technology you need to use. We are confident that our site will work perfectly well, although it may not look as good in older technologies, and non compliant devices.

To ensure that this site is genuinely accessible to all, we have undertaken the following tasks:

  • This site is built according to w3c standards and specifications and validates as XHTML 1.0 strict
  • Visual presentation is completely separate from content and style sheets validate to w3c standards for CSS
  • This site will degrade gracefully in older less capable browsers and devises - sorry if it doesn't look that great for you!
  • We have added access keys and other useful accessibility features
  • We have avoided the use of javascript, unless it's function has no bearing on accessibility
  • This site does not use tables for page layout
  • Forms have been coded in simply and we have used labels and grouping to give added meaning
  • There is no multimedia or sound on the site, so those with a loss of auditory capability should have no problems
  • We have generally used black text on a white background
  • We have used simple English language for the site

Access keys

We have used access keys to aid navigation, for those preferring or needing to use a keyboard. Where possible we have followed the UK government guidelines in an attempt to keep things consistent and familiar, and have also added visual indicators to the access keys which you will see underlined in all the main navigation elements:

  • Home Page = 1
  • Contact us = 9
  • Access Keys Page = 0
  • Site Map = 3
  • Terms and conditions = 8

How to use Access Keys

This depends on your operating system and the type and version of your browser, here are some common ones:

For a PC running Windows and using Internet Explorer version 5 or better:
Press and hold the ALT key, press the Access Key and then press ENTER.

For a PC running Windows but using Internet Explorer version 4 browsers
Press and hold the ALT key, press the Access Key of your choice.

For a PC running Windows and using Netscape v6+ or Mozilla (firefox):
Press and hold the ALT key, then press the Access Key of your choice.

For a Mac computer using Internet Explorer version 5 or better
Press and hold Control and then press the Access Key.

Please note, as browsers get better, support of Access Keys will get better and may even standardise. However, they are currently not supported by Opera or earlier versions of the above web browsers, and access key support can be a little flaky.

If this site looks strange

As mentioned above, this site degrades gracefully in older browsers and technology, which means that it may not look that great for some people using older browsers or non graphical devises. However, you will still find the site works and you will still be able to use it quite successfully.