Plain English

All of our content is checked for plain English, and we aim to use a written style which is straightforward and understandable.

Listening with speech-enabling software

This site is fully compatible with speech-enabling software, for example Jaws and Browsealoud.

Large amounts of text on screen are often difficult for people with literacy and visual impairments.

Speech-enabling software reads out web pages for people who might have difficulties reading online.

Most speech-enabling software is free and easy to download. Once installed you can listen to hundreds of websites.

Access keys

Access keys enable you to move around the site without using a mouse. We have included the UK Government’s standard access keys to enable you to navigate the main website sections using the keyboard.

For Windows-based PC users – hold down the Alt key and press the number or letter listed below and then press Enter (Return).

For Apple Mac users – press the Ctrl key plus the number or letter listed below.

S = Skip navigation
J = Jump to top of page
0 = Accessibility (this page)
1 = Home page
2 = Find my nearest
3 = Journey planning
4 = Travel support
5 = Links
6 = What’s on
7 = Using this site
8 = Your feedback
9 = Contacts
A = About this site
T = Terms and conditions
M = Site map

Increasing text size

Internet Explorer users

Select View on the main toolbar of your browser and then Text size and choose the setting that suits you best.

Mozilla Firefox users

Select View on the main toolbar and then move down to Zoomthen across to Zoom In. Alternatively, press the CTRL key and the(+) key at the same time. This will increase the text size slightly and you can repeat this operation until you get the text size that suits you. To decrease the size of text, select Zoom Out or press the CTRL key and the (-) key at the same time.

Other ways

If you have a mouse with a scroll wheel, hold down the CTRL key (or the Command key if you are a Mac user) and move the scroll wheel up and down.

For Firefox users, hold down the CTRL key and press the plus (+) or minus (-) keys.

Finally, if you are using Internet Explorer 7, you can hold down the CTRL key and press the (+) or (-) keys to zoom the whole page in and out.

For more information about screen magnification, please see the following information, supplied by the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB): Web Browser Accessibility.

Updating your browser

The latest versions of popular browsers can be downloaded free of charge from these sites:
Internet Explorer
www.microsoft.com
Firefox
www.firefox.com
Opera
www.opera.com
Netscape
www.netscape.com

Other Accessibility Options

My Computer, My Way! – a guide to making your PC accessible
Action for blind people – great resources on access technology