NIRAD supports accessibility on the Web. Every effort has been made to ensure that this website is as accessible as possible, based on recognised accessibility guidelines and standards. Please note that some older web browsers and access devices do not fully support some of these standards. To aid those users who have disabilities, the pages of this website contain various accessibility features. It is possible to resize the text on webpages to make it easier to read. How to do this depends on which browser software you are using. Please follow the instructions below: Internet Explorer Select the “View” drop down menu Move your mouse pointed down to the ‘Text Size’ option A pop up sub-menu will appear and allow you to change the size of the font Netscape Navigator Use the keystroke Control – ] to increase the font size Use the keystroke Control – [ to decrease the font size Mozilla Firefox Use the keystroke Control + to increase the font size Use the keystroke Control – to decrease the font size Accessibility instructions for people with disabilities Each page has a ‘skip to content’ link to take users directly to the main content, to avoid repeating the main navigation. This link is the first link on every page for easy access to all users.
Where possible, form fields have been labelled for easy selection using a natural ‘tabindex’ to control the correct tabbing order from one field to the next. The pages use style sheets to control the design; when style sheets are not loaded, the page content is properly linear. All graphics have alternative text where appropriate and use the long description tag, where needed. The site avoids those HTML elements which reduce accessibility, such as using tables for layouts or depreciated tags. Listen to this site You can listen to the contents of the NIRAD website being read aloud to you. You can access this service by downloading a free piece of software, called a plug-in, from Browsealoud. Once the plug-in is installed on your computer, you can choose to listen to the content of web pages and files such as pdf documents on this and other Browse aloud-enabled sites being read to you. The service is designed to improve access to information and services on our website for people who find it hard to read. This includes people with dyslexia or mild visual impairments and those who do not speak English as their first language. Download the plug-in by clicking on the Browse aloud link above. This will take you to the Browse aloud website where you can find full instructions.
How does it work? Once you have downloaded the plug-in, the Browsealoud icon will appear in your system tray, which is usually found in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. When you move your cursor over text, the relevant sentence is spoken aloud. You can choose to listen to selected sections of text or the entire page from where your cursor is pointed. There is also an option to see the words that are being spoken in large size at the top of the screen. To customise your Browsealoud settings, right click on the icon once it is installed on your computer and choose ‘Open Browsealoud settings’ from the menu. Go to the Browsealoud Video Tour for further information Valid XHTML and CSS This website has been designed and developed using the latest Web Standards with valid XHTMLand CSS mark-up. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Conformance All pages are WCAG 1.0 AA approved and conform to all priority 1 and most priority 2 and 3 World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. This website is tested regularly for compliance with current accessibility standards.
