Accessibility

Getting the most from this website

This website has been designed to be usable by the widest possible audience. However, if you have difficulty using the site, there are things you can do.

You can change some of the options in your browser and using the latest version of Netscape or Internet Explorer you will be able to:

alter the font, size and colour of most text (but not images)
alter the background colour
alter the line length, by changing the size and shape of your browser window
override the colour schemes of this website and others with your preferred settings

Setting up your browser

All our suggestions to improve the accessibility of web pages may apply to every site you visit. Please note that they won't affect images.

Microsoft Internet Explorer

To apply permanently the font and colour changes below:

on the View / Tools menu, click Internet Options
on the General tab, select Accessibility
check the three boxes to show ticks

Changing the font:

Using a sans serif font (such as Arial), rather than a serif font (such as Times New Roman) can make text easier to read.

on the View / Tools menu, select Internet Options
on the General tab, select Fonts
in the Proportional and Fixed-width font lists, select the fonts you would like to use

Displaying text larger or smaller:

on the View option on the menu, go to Text Size option
select either larger or largest font option

Changing text and background colour:

Website authors and designers often specify particular fonts, typefaces and background colours for their pages, and the combinations can sometimes make the text difficult to read. You can override these settings by choosing your own preferred, colour scheme:

on the Tools menu, select Internet Options
on the General tab, select Colours
uncheck the tick box labeled Use Windows Colours
select Text, and select the colour you want. Select OK.
select Background, and select the colour you want to use. Select OK

To hide images on web pages:

on the View / Tools menu, select Internet Options
on the Advanced tab, scroll down to Multimedia
uncheck Show pictures to remove the tick
select Apply, and then select OK

There are more options to make websites easier to read, such as removing animation and expanding text. To choose the other options:

on the View / Tools menu, select Internet Options
select the Advanced tab
choose the options you would like

Netscape Navigator 4.x

To change the settings on your browser go to the Edit menu, and select Preferences. From here you can make the following changes:

Changing the font:

select Appearance
select Font
change the Variable Width Font and the Fixed Width Font to the type you prefer

(To use these fonts when you visit all websites in future, select Use my default fonts overriding document specified fonts.)

Changing the colour of the text and the background:

select Appearance
select Colours
select Text, and choose the colour you would like to use
select OK
select Background, and choose a colour
select OK
select OK to close Preferences

(To use these settings in future, select Always use my colours, overriding document.)

To hide images on web pages:

select Edit
select Preferences
select Advanced
remove the tick from the box marked Automatically load images
select OK

If you have any problems changing these settings, please select the Help menu on the browser toolbar. Also, if your browser has different options to the above, consult the Help menu for specific instructions.

Accessibility

Medwaycare.org.uk is committed to providing information that is accessible to everyone and which complies with the Disability Discrimination Act. In accordance with central Government guidelines it is our policy to create pages to W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Priority 2 level.

Text only pages

Although not strictly text-only, these pages are quicker loading and useful if you do not need the images or if you are on a slow connection.

Useful Links

If you would like to know more about accessibility issues on the Internet, you may be interested in the following websites:

www.rnib.org

The Royal National Institute for the Blind

www.w3.org/WAI

Promoting web usability for people with disabilities