We want our site to be accessible for all, and to help achieve
this, the site features access keys so you can navigate easily to
the page you're interested in. We also have instructions on how to
customise your PC should this assist you in finding the information
you require. Click on the links below to find out more.
Using
access keys
Setting the
screen resolution
Changing the
system colour scheme
Mouse
settings
Keyboard settings and useful
links
Using access keys
This website features 'access keys'. These are shortcuts which
allow you to get to certain parts of a web page quickly and help
you if you have difficulties using a mouse. We've used access keys
to locate the main links on the site and also access text boxes and
buttons.
We've used the UK Government access keys standard, as
recommended by the Office of the E-Envoy. How you can use the
access keys depends on the operating system you're using. If you
have a PC and are using Microsoft Windows, then you have to press
the "ALT" key while pressing the access key, then release these
keys and press Enter. If you're using an Apple system, then you
have to press the "CMD" key.
On this website we've used the access keys listed below:
S - Skip navigation
1 - Home page
3 - Site map
4 - Search
6 - Help page
8 - Terms and conditions
9 - Feedback page
0 - Access key navigation
To improve accessibility further, you can also use these
shortcuts:
a - About us
b - Branches
u - Closer to you
n - Newsroom
j - Jobs
c - Cymraeg
e - English
How you use these access keys depends on whether you have a PC
or an Apple Mac, and also on which browser you have.
For a PC:
Internet Explorer 5 +:
- Press and hold down the ALT key.
- Then press the number or letter (see the access keys as listed
above) and press Enter (or Return) key.
Internet Explorer 4:
- Press and hold down the ALT key.
- Then press the number or letter (see the access keys as listed
above).
Netscape 6 +:
- Press and hold down the ALT key.
- Then press the number or letter (see the access keys as listed
above).
For a Mac
Internet Explorer 5 +:
- Press and hold down the Control key.
- Then press the appropriate number or letter (see the access
keys as listed above) and press Enter (or Return) key.
Internet Explorer 4.5:
Access keys aren't supported.
Netscape 6 +:
- Press and hold down the Control key
- Then press the appropriate number or letter (see the access
keys as listed above).
Netscape, earlier versions:
Access keys aren't supported.
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accessibility index
Setting the screen resolution
The screen area setting is an important factor in how much
information your monitor can display. Have you noticed how
everything looks really big on your screen, or that many of the web
pages you view require you to scroll left to right in addition to
down? That's because your screen area is set too low, allowing only
a certain amount of information to be displayed. By simply
increasing the number of pixels your monitor is capable of
displaying, you can view more on your screen regardless of its
actual dimensions!
Instructions for Windows 95/98/NT
- Click the Start button (bottom left corner of screen).
- From the Settings menu, click on 'Control Panel'.
- Double-click on Display to open.
- Click on the Settings tab.
- Drag the Display or screen area slider to the right until it
reads 1024 by 760 or larger. If this resolution is not available on
the computer you're using, choose 800 by 600. [Note that you'll
need to scroll more on web pages when using this lower
resolution.]
- Click on OK to save changes.
- After the screen resizes, click the OK button again to confirm
the new screen size.
OR
- Minimize all open windows.
- Right click anywhere on the desktop as long as it isn't on an
icon.
- Select Properties from the pop-up menu.
- From the window that appears click on the Settings tab.
- You will see a slider titled Desktop area. Move the slider up
to 800 x 600 pixels, click on OK.
- A pop-up window titled Display Properties will appear with the
text: Windows will now adjust your display settings. This could
take a few seconds, during which your screen might flicker. If
Windows doesn't reappear correctly, wait 15 seconds, and your
original settings will be restored.
- Click on OK to see your display change and Windows will ask: Do
you want to keep this setting?
- Click Yes.
Instructions for Mac OS X
Exit all applications and choose Control Panels/Monitors from
the Apple menu.
Click on the Monitors & Sound button.
Under the Resolution option, click the 800x600 setting, or the
closest one to that.
Close the Monitors window.
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Changing colours, fonts and text size in
your browser
You can change features on your browser and control the way in
which web pages appear. This is particularly useful if you have low
vision, need larger fonts, or need high-contrast or different
colours from the ones set. Using options available in your browser,
you can change:
- The size, style and colour of fonts
- The background colours of web pages
- The colour used to indicate hyperlinks, active web links and
visited web links
How you do this depends on what browser you use. Below are the
steps for making these changes in Internet Explorer and
Netscape.
Internet Explorer 5.x (for PC)
To edit colours
- Click on Tools from the browser menu options (top right of
window).
- Select Internet options.
- Click on the Colours button at the bottom of the pop-up
screen.
- Choose the colour options that you find best, and then click on
OK to save the changes.
To edit fonts
- Click on Tools from the browser menu options (top right of
window).
- Select Internet options.
- Click on the Fonts button at the bottom of the pop-up
screen.
- Choose the font options that you find best, and then click on
OK to save the changes.
To change text size
- Click on View from the browser menu options (top right of
window).
- Select Text size, and choose the option that is best for
you.
To override the design settings of a web
page
- Click on Tools from the browser menu options (top right of
window).
- Select Internet options.
- Click on the Accessibility button at the bottom of the pop-up
screen.
- Tick any of the options that you want to override and click on
OK to save the changes.
Note: For Internet Explorer 4, the options can be accessed by
selecting 'View' from the browser menu options.
Internet Explorer 5.x (for Apple Mac)
To change text size
Click on Edit from the browser menu options (top right of
window).
From the options menu which appears, select Preferences.
Click on Web content.
Deselect the button marked Show style sheets.
Return to the list of preferences.
Click on Web browser.
Select Language/fonts.
Select the font size you require.
Netscape
- Click on Edit from the browser menu options (top right of
screen).
- Select Preferences.
- Open the Appearance group of options.
To edit colours
- Click on Colours.
- Choose the colours that you want for text, background, visited
and unvisited links.
- To override the colours used by the designer of the web page,
select 'Always use my colours, overriding document'.
- Click on OK to save changes.
To edit fonts and font size
- Click on Fonts.
- Next to For the encoding should read 'Western', to tell the
computer which types of letters and symbols to use.
- From Size select the size of font that suits you (for example,
18).
- From the drop-down box next to the Variable Width Font field,
select Ariel.
- The Fixed Width Font box should already read 'Courier New'.
From 'Size' select 18.
- To override the fonts used by the designer of the web page,
select Use my default fonts overriding document specified
fonts.
- Click on OK to save changes.
Changing the colour scheme for Windows or Mac-OS
You can choose your own colour and font preferences, though
there are more options available for changing the settings in
Windows.
Windows
- Click on Start (bottom left corner of screen).
- Select Settings, and then Control Panel.
- Open the Display section either by double left clicking on the
icon, or by highlighting the icon and pressing Enter.
- Click on the Appearance tab to see the options available in
this section.
Then either:
- Click on the arrow in the 'Colour scheme' box to display the
colour scheme options available.
- Scroll down the list to see each one previewed above and, when
you find one that's suitable, press Enter to select it. (Some of
these colour schemes have large font versions.)
Or
- Click on the arrow in the Item box to display all the objects
whose colour you can change.
- Select the item that you want to change, and then open up the
colour options by clicking on the Colour button. (Clicking on other
inside the Colour box will give you the full range of colours
available on the system.)
- Choose the colour you want for that item.
- Repeat this for every item whose colour you want to change,
then click on OK to save you're the changes to your system.
Mac OS 8.5, 9.x
The main way to change your Mac's appearance is by using the
Appearance section within the Appearance control panel. It lets you
choose a variation colour for windows and a highlight colour for
text. (The highlight colour is the colour you see when you select
text in a program or click on an icon and hit return to rename it.
The variation colour is, as it says below the pull-down menu, the
colour that's used when you select an item in a menu.)
- Select Appearance Control Panel from the options along the top
of the window.
- Select Appearance.
- Click on Highlight colour drop-down menu to display the colour
options.
- Click on the Variation colour drop-down menu to display the
colour options.
To change the fonts on the system
- Select Appearance Control Panel from the options along the top
of the window.
- Select the Fonts tab.
- Select your options from the drop-down menus for Large system
font, Small system font and the Views font.
[The Large System Font is used in the title bar of windows, the
menu bar and menus, and tabs. The Small System Font is for
"explanatory text and labels." The Views Font is what's used for
filenames.]
When you have made all the selections, click on 'Save theme' to
save your changes.
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accessibility index
Mouse settings
Windows
You can change three settings of the mouse settings.
- Click on the Start button in the bottom left corner of the
screen.
- Select Settings, and then Control Panel.
- Open the Mouse section either by double left clicking on the
icon, or by highlighting the icon and pressing Enter.
To change the click speed, and whether for right or
left-handed use:
- Click on the Buttons tab.
- Select right- or left-handed.
- Select single or double click for opening items.
- Drag the slider along to choose the speed for
double-clicking.
- Click on Apply to save your changes.
To change the visibility and size of the mouse
'pointers':
- Click on the Pointers tab.
- Choose the scheme of pointers from the drop-down menu
(previewed in the box to the right).
- Click on Apply to save your changes.
To change the motion of the mouse:
- Click on the Motion tab.
- Drag the slider along to choose the speed you want for the
mouse.
- Select the acceleration that you prefer.
- Click on Apply to save your changes.
Mac OS X
The Apple Mac has various accessibility features which include:
an adjustable keyboard, an ergonomic mouse, CloseView screen
magnification software, Easy Access system software (StickyKeys,
SlowKeys, MouseKeys), electronic documentation, key-repeat disable,
text-to-speech synthesis and voice recognition (PlainTalk), sticky
mouse, and visual alert cues. All of these features are included as
part of the Mac's system software (System 7.x, 8.x, and 9.x), and
you'll find details by clicking on this link http://www.apple.com/accessibility/physical/index.html#mouse.
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Keyboard settings
Windows
You can change:
- The time that elapses before a held-down key starts
repeating.
- How quickly characters are repeated when you hold down a
key.
- How quickly the cursor blinks.
To change any of these:
- Click on the Start button in the bottom left corner of the
screen.
- Select Settings, and then Control Panel.
- Open the Keyboard section either by double left clicking on the
icon, or by highlighting the icon and pressing Enter.
- Select your speeds using the three sliders.
- Click on Apply, then on OK to save your changes.
Mac OS X
See above under 'Mouse settings'.
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accessibility index
Useful links
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accessibility index