CHESTER-LE-STREET District Council has revamped its website as part of a programme to modernise how residents access its services.

The new-look website is designed to be more user-friendly and easier to navigate.

All information is now structured in an easy-to-use A-Z format and includes a ReadSpeaker Navigator - a new feature on the website which "reads" out aloud what appears on the website as text.

The speech-enabled website provides additional access to people with dyslexia, low literacy levels, learning disabilities, English as a second language, or people with visual impairments.

It has a set of links to services provided by Durham County Council.

It also has a facility for discussion forums to allow residents to make their views known in public.

Apart from publishing information, the website will also cater for those wanting to request the council's services, including reporting an abandoned vehicle, applying for work experience, or reporting a dangerous structure.

Online forms mean that customers can contact the council when it suits them.

Customers and partners will also be able to interact in a secure space on the website that deals with confidential or sensitive information.

Initially, this service will include access to council tax, business rates, benefits and overpaid housing benefit services. In the future, customers will be able to make online payments to the council.

A housing and council tax benefits calculator allows residents to carry out self-assessments on the web, before the council makes a full and final assessment.

The website's address is www.chester-le-street.gov.uk