Accessibility Statement
Who this document is for
This document is for everyone; accessibility affects us all in some form or another, from blindness or problems with motor control, down to simply accessing the internet from a mobile phone.
In order to be able to properly navigate a website and understand its information, appropriate features must be put in place. This document will help make it clear which accessibility features we have made available on this site, and how to access them.
Contents
Access keys
Update panel
Account holders
Javascript
Older browsers
PDFs
WCAG compliance level
Aiding accessibility in browsers
Access keys
Certain elements can be given a shortcut key to make them quickly accessible. These come in handy for the less able and able-bodied alike, but are often forgotten about by website developers while the general public continue to be ignorant of their existence.
To use an access key in modern browsers, simply press the following:
On Windows (Firefox, Internet Explorer and Safari): Shift + Alt + the key you want to use.
On Windows (Opera): Shift + Escape + the key you want to use.
On Macs (Firefox and Safari): Control + the key you want to use.
(Access keys may be usable on other systems, but unfortunately it is outside the scope of this document to discuss them here.)
The UK Government has set up e-GIF (e-Government Interoperability Framework) to try and standardise common uses for access keys. Our wording is slightly different but follows the same guidelines, as follows (original wording in brackets):
S - Skip navigation
1 - Home page
2 - About us (What's new)
3 - Site map
4 - Search
5 - Frequently Asked Questions
6 - Help
7 - Complaints procedure
8 - Privacy policy (Terms and conditions)
9 - Contact us (Feedback form)
0 - Accessibility statement (Access key details)
Note: using the 'S' access key blocks a shortcut on Firefox. Not all of these pages may be used (see below)
The following list uses extra keys and is consistent with all sites created with our website developer's framework, but please note that individual pages may use only one or two items (or even none).
: - left
{ - up
~ - right
@ - down
q - nav bar 1
u - nav bar 2
x - nav bar 3
y - nav bar 4
z - update box (possibly change this to a live region)
_ - log in/ log out
+ - basket
< - purchase list
> - quick order
? - textarea (large text input box)
g - upload file
j - developer info and links
k - customer homepage
n - customer messages
} - wishlist
| - compare
¬ - submit form (WARNING: there is a danger of mixing forms)
Update panel
Due to the way that the internet has evolved, so-called "Web 2.0" behaviour has made websites less accessible (particularly for people with cognitive problems, motor skills and the blind). Web 2.0 sites often include animation and dynamic updates to the current page. For some people, it can be difficult to tell when one of these pages has changed or in what way.
To aid in this, we have included an update panel at the bottom of relevant pages. When page elements change, this panel will be updated. Sadly, technology is currently not at the stage where screen readers will automatically notify you of the updates. This means that people using screen readers will need to refresh their virtual buffer (usually by turning their browse mode off and then back on) before consulting the update panel.
We know that this is not an ideal way of providing access to Web 2.0 facilities, but it is a small step until 'Live Regions' are supported by both web browsers and screen readers.
Account holders
This site was originally created with the emphasis on Javascript. Accessing the site without it being turned on may present some difficulties. If you encounter some problems, send us an email, stating:
Your operating system (Windows, OS X, Linux)
Your browser name (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari...)
Browser version - this can be found by clicking 'Help' in the menu and selecting the 'About' option.
Javascript
See 'Account holders'.
Older browsers
We highly recommend that you upgrade your browser regularly. Doing so means that you have access to greater security, more features and it helps to move the web forward. Remember that it is free to upgrade all the common browsers.
At the time of writing, these are the latest (popular) browser versions:
Internet Explorer: 8.0 beta
Firefox: 3.0
Opera: 9.5
Safari: 3.1
PDFs
While there are currently very few PDFs used on this site, there are some. Screen readers often have trouble with Adobe's PDF file format so it is recommended that instead of being read in the browser, they are downloaded directly or saved to the desktop. Downloading PDFs forces them to be viewed in the proper Adobe Acrobat browser, which contains better features for accessibility.
WCAG compliance level
This site is currently in the process of converting to a more accessible format. While it conforms to much of the WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines), there are areas where it currently does not. While we are aware of many of the current limitations, we openly invite constructive criticism as it helps us to provide better features and make the web more open to everyone.
Aiding accessibility in browsers
Not everyone is aware of the features that are available in aiding accessibility. Your computer operating system may provide some features, but others are available inside and outside the browser. Here is a small list:
Opera - one of the popular web browsers, also supports screen reading and Voice XML in seleted versions;
Fire Vox - a Firefox plug-in that enables some screen reader facilities;
Windows Eyes/ JAWS - the most popular screen readers. They offer extra features that others may not. They are used on top of web browsers, not in replacement of them. Other screen reading software includes: Supernova, Dolphin, NVDA (free software)
All popular modern browsers support zooming and text resizing. If you are currently not aware of these features, please read your browser's help files.