25 July 2008We aim to make this website accessible to all users, following certain standards and Government guidelines to ensure that this site can be used as effectively and as easily as possible by everyone.
PDFs
What is a PDF?
Many downloadable documents available within this site are in Portable Document Format (often referred to as a PDF). A standard adopted by governments and organisations worldwide, PDF is a reliable format for electronic document exchange that preserves document integrity so files can be viewed and printed on a variety of platforms. We chose to make many downloadable documents in this file format for data security and integrity reasons.
How can I open and view a PDF document?
In order to view a PDF document, you need software called Adobe Acrobat Reader that will allow you to read the link. You can download this software for free from a company called Adobe, it is called Adobe Acrobat Reader. On pages on the website where there is a PDF there will be a link for further information. If you click on the link a pop-up box will appear with details of the file size, estimated download time and a link to the Adobe website allowing you to download the reader for free.
Viewing
Printer friendly
Throughout the site at the bottom of each page is a ‘Print page’ option with a printer icon, this allows you to print a web page without the left hand menu.
Screen settings
The web pages will look and function as intended, ideally at a display setting of 800 x 600 pixels, or 1024 x 768 pixels.
Access keys
There are Access Keys (keyboard shortcuts) available on this site.
Windows, press ALT + AccessKey then ENTER
Macintosh, press Control + AccessKey.
Text only
There is also a text only option on the website. This is located in the menu bar that runs along the top of each web page. This will remove all images from the website, and present the information purely as text, the size of which can be increased or decreased as necessary. The site can be navigated by using the blue link text. To revert back to the normal mode from text mode click on the word ‘Graphics’ in the top left hand corner of the screen.
Text size
If you find the text size on this website too small or too large, you can change the size of the text via your Internet browser.
Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0, 5.5 and 6.0
If you are using Internet Explorer, go to the menu at the top of the browser page and select View, from the list of options, select Text Size. You will see a side menu open up which allows you to select the text size you wish to view the website in.
Netscape Navigator 4.6 6.2 and 7.0
If you are using Netscape Navigator, please see the following keyboard short-cut information.
For a computer using Windows operating system:
For a computer using a Macintosh operating system
For a computer using a Linux operating system
For more information about screen magnification, please view the accessibility pages on the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB) website.
Further information
Other accessibility options
Assistive technology
People who have visual impairments may be interested in the following assistive technology:
To find out more about these technologies and further information, please visit the website of the Royal National Institute of the Blind.
Tell us what you think
If you are a person with a disability and have trouble using our website - or if you experience difficulty using any of our services, products, or facilities - please tell us about the problem.
Please contact the Council's web team.
