When trying to line things up in Microsoft Word, particularly overlaid shapes and symbols, it can be a lot quicker, and a lot less frustrating, if you switch on Gridline view.

Once activated, grid lines appear, overlaid onto your document, but they do not print out – this is useful so you can quickly see if things are where they should be.

To switch on Gridlines head into the Ribbon bar at the top of screen in Word, then click on the Page Layout tab, and look towards the end of the row of icons for the Align icon.

Click on the Align button and towards the bottom of the menu you should see “View Gridlines”, clicking the option toggles the view on and off.

You can also customise the Gridlines by choosing the Grid Settings option which allows you to make objects snap to other objects, set the horizontal and vertical spacing, use margins, and alter the way the grid lines appear.