The first thing to say is that we know the site is not perfect, and we are constantly making improvements. However, this article will contain information gained from learning about users' problems that may be useful to you when trying to overcome your own difficulties.

Tip #1 - Always Log in First:

You are advised, before doing anything else on the website, to log in using your username and password. Preferably, you will have already accepted 'cookies' by clicking 'Continue' in the cookie notice banner. Otherwise, under some circumstances, pages that you access before logging in may retrieve the 'not logged in' content from its 'cache' (or memory). This should not happen, but we know it sometimes does!

Tip #2 - Clear your Cache/Delete your Cookies:

If you are having problems, e.g. behaviour as in the tip above, move away from the website (e.g. go to a search engine page such as Google, Yahoo or Bing), and then clear your browser's cache and delete all cookies. To do this, try the following:

For Internet Explorer: Find 'Internet Options' (probably under 'Tools'). Choose 'Delete Browsing History'. Ensure 'Temporary Internet Files' and 'Cookies' are checked. Click on 'Delete'.

For Firefox: Find a 'History' menu link, then choose 'Clear Recent History...', then ensure 'Cookies' and Cache' are checked before clicking on 'Clear Now'.

For Chrome: Click on the drop-down 'menu' link (upper-right, look for 'three lines' symbol) then find 'History', either directly or via 'Settings'. Now look for 'Clear browsing data' - then make sure 'Browsing History', 'Cookies and Other Site & Plug-in Data' and 'Cached Images and Files' are checked (at least) and then click on the 'Clear browsing data' button.

For Safari (using a Mac): From the home screen, tap Settings, and then tap Safari. At the bottom of Safari's settings screen, tap Clear History and Website Data, or Clear cookies and data, or Clear Cookies and Clear Cache. Confirm when prompted.

Once done, try returning to the website. The 'Accept Cookies' banner should appear indicating successful clearing of the cookies. Now try and log in before doing anything else (as in Tip #1).

Tip #3 - Say "No" to 'Remembered' Credentials:

Say "No" if your browser offers to remember your log-in credentials (your username and/or password). This is not good practice in any event, but may cause problems.

Tip #4 - Double Check Your Log-in Entries:

Ensure you're using the correct username and password, but in particular make sure you haven't got the Caps Lock key on! Usernames and passwords are case-sensitive, and the effect of having the Caps Lock on is to reverse the capitalization of your entry (so Username becomes uSERNAME) which would be rejected. Easy to see if it's the username, but the password is masked.

Tip #5 - Forgotton Username or Password:

Use the "Forgot Login" facility under the Log-in boxes. The website administrators do not know your password as it is heavily encrypted and only held in an encrypted form, so there is no point in asking what it is!

Tip #6 - Ensure your Email Address is Up to Date:

Apart from getting notifications, the above procedure for retrieving your username or resetting your password relies on having an up to date email address. Contact the website admin (using This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) if this might be the problem. You will need to provide your old email address (the one held on the website) so we can verify 'you are who you say you are'!

Tip #7 - Let Us Know if None of this Works!:

Contact the website administrator (using This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) if none of these solutions seem to work for you.