Accessibility statement

Accessibility statement

This statement was updated on 20 November 2023.

This accessibility statement applies to the Worcestershire County Council website

We are aware that there are some outstanding accessibility issues with the site and we are in the process of working with our website provider to rectify these issues.

This website is run by Worcestershire County Council. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

  • zoom in without the text spilling off the screen
  • navigate most of the website using just a keyboard (including skip to content or skip to main navigation)
  • navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader
  • use the Family Information Directory by Synergy; the system complies with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1. AA standard
  • use the Meetings, agendas and minutes Portal (Post April 2014) by Civica; the system complies with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1. AA standard
  • use the Procurement Portal by In-Tend Limited; the system complies with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1. AA standard
  • attend the online events that we host via Zoom; for more information please visit Zoom - Accessibility

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website aren’t fully accessible:

  • we are currently experiencing some issues with our contacts area for those who need to zoom into our website and use keyboard accessibility or screen readers
  • carousel and collapsible components may not be fully logical to screen reader users
  • some search filters and forms are not fully accessible to keyboard or screen reader users
  • many older PDF documents aren’t fully accessible to screen reader software
  • some videos don’t have captions
  • some embedded iframes do not always contain a title and this content may be difficult to perceive for screen reader users
  • some images don't have descriptions of what the image shows
  • some forms are not labelled correctly for screen reader users
  • some filters on our events and news pages are difficult to navigate when zoomed as the focus cannot be seen
  • colour contrast makes it hard to read the text in some parts of the website
  • some pages show a Google map that screen reader users and keyboard users can find difficult to use
  • some pages show a Twitter feed that screen reader users and keyboard users can find difficult to use
  • some documents and PDFs are not accessible
  • some pages and documents are not written in plain English

Feedback and contact information

We are still preparing our full accessibility statement. If you need to get in contact please refer to our customer services page.

If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille, please contact: equality@worcestershire.gov.uk.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, please contact: digitaldesigners@worcestershire.gov.uk.

Enforcement procedure

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person

Some of our offices and libraries have audio induction loops. You may wish to check whether a loop is available before your visit, please see the contact us page.

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

Worcestershire County Council is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Compliance status

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1. AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed in the Non accessible content section.

Non-accessible content

We are still auditing our site to be able to define the full list of accessibility issues and when these can be fixed.

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

  • 1.2.2 Captions (Pre-recorded) fail 
    • some embedded videos do not have captions or a transcript 
  • 1.2.5 Audio Description (Pre-recorded) fail 
    • some video content does not have an alternative for non-sighted users in the form of an audio description or transcript 
  • 1.3.1 Info and relationships fails 
    • some tables do not have a caption element to describe their content,  
    • unordered list contains content that is not allowed 
    • text not contained in semantic HTML on the Birth registration page 2 form 
    • there are forms where the form elements are not grouped 
    • lists of related links should be written semantically as a list 
    • there are some pages where we use input fields that have no description 
  • 1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence fails 
    • some carousels read in an illogical order  
  • 1.4 Distinguishable fails 
    • some menu items and menus in the contacts area do not announce open and closed states 
    • some items in the contacts are cannot be distinguished when zoomed in
    • some items on homepage carousels do not announce 
  • 1.4.3 Colour contrast minimum fails 
    • in some areas of the site text falls on poor contrast background  
    • text on some focus elements and forms do not meet minimum contrast 
  • 1.4.4 Resize text fail 
    • some text size in our website is very small and does not zoom 
  • 1.4.12 Text Spacing fail 
    • some text and interactive functions are close together meaning it might be difficult to use with poor dexterity 
  • 2.1 Keyboard fails 
    • there are forms where the form elements are not grouped there are some pages where we use input fields that have no description 
    • filters on the news, events and language are actioned by focus and not select as it currently announces 
    • our contacts area does not currently work when zoomed and using keyboard navigation
  • 2.1.1 Keyboard fails  
    • carousels don’t announce logically for users, you get to the left arrow, then the carousel items and then after the right arrow 
    • filters on the news, events and language are actioned by focus and not select as it currently announces 
  • 2.1.2 No keyboard trap fail 
    • when using Twitter feeds users on keyboard or screen readers are trapped in the twitter feed and cannot return to the site, this fails 
    • the chatbot cannot easily be exited when using a keyboard
    • the date selector on the events page traps keyboard users if no date is selected
  • 2.4.1 Bypass blocks fails
    • on the contacts area you need to navigate through a multi-layered menu to get to contacts, it means there is considerable navigation to be able to select a different contact 
  • 2.4.2 page titled fails 
    • some page titles throughout the site do not announce 
    • the search page does not announce that results have been filtered on page load
    • non-descriptive page title on the Birth registration page 1 form
    • non-descriptive page title on the Birth registration page 2 form 
  • 2.4.3 Focus Order fail 
    • on the homepage users are announced the heading latest news, then a button for ‘view all news’, this is illogical 
  • 2.4.4 link purpose in context fails 
    • some download links may not make sense when read on their own 
    • the same link text is used for links going to different destinations 
  • 2.4.6 Headings and labels fail 
    • some items on homepage carousels do not announce
    • some headings in the related items at the bottom of the page are out of sequence
  • 2.4.11 Focus Not Obscured (Minimum) fail 
    • the back to top and chatbot functions are floating objects that obscure content 
  • 2.4.13 Focus Appearance fail 
    • not all elements on focus have an obvious change of appearance to those with low vision 
    • focus state on the filters on the news and events page filters disappear off the page when zoomed 
  • 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum) fail 
    • users with difficulties of dexterity will struggle with the target size of some buttons and functionality
  • 3.2.1 On focus fail 
    • on load of the website the cookie item receives focus which is confusing for keyboard navigation 
  • 3.3.2 (labels or instructions) fail 
    • there are some pages where we use input fields that have no description 
  • 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation fail 
    • some pages use collapsible content instead of navigating to a new page, which maybe confusing as its inconsistent navigation 
    • some pages have many collapsible elements and extra interactivity to be able to read content on the page
  • 3.3.2 Label instructions fails 
    • filters on the news, events and language are actioned by focus and not select as it currently announces 
    • there are forms where the form elements are not grouped
  • 3.1.4 Abbreviations fail 
    • some pages have unexplained abbreviations  
  • 3.1.5 Reading Level fail 
    • some pages have a considerable amount of text and complex language  
  • 4.1.2 name, role, value fails 
    • there are some pages where we use input fields that have no description  
    • when the web chat is selected, it is not announced to screen reader as open or closed 
    • on the contacts page non-sighted users on screen reader inputs will not know when parts of the menu are open and closed to be able to use the navigation of the site 

We plan to fix the main usability issues by Summer 2025.

Issues with files

  • there may be some files that are not fully accessible or in a singular file format

We use Silktide tool to monitor any issues regarding accessibility and aim to fix any issues that has been found as soon as possible. We use Adobe Pro's accessibility checker to check the PDF documents and Microsoft Office Accessibility Checker to check any Microsoft Office files. We have also created a guidance for our staff how to make accessible documents, for more information on this, please see the SCULPT for Accessibility page. We aim to provide alternative file formats to ensure all users can access content in documents.

Issues with third-party applications

We use some third-party applications which might not all be fully accessible, but the third-party companies are either in the process of reviewing their applications or have reviewed the applications and given a statement when the issues are going to be fixed. For more information, please see below.

Adult Services Provider Portal by ContrOCC.

Applying for a school place (Citizen Portal) by Capita.

Coordinate Sport Booking Website for school holiday activities, please read the Coordinate Sport accessibility statement

Coroners Portal by Civica.

CQC ratings by Care Quality Commission. 

Planning Applications Search Service by Swift Datapro Software Limited. Accessibility statement: We are assessing the options for upgrading the current portal to meet accessibility regulations. We would anticipate that an upgrade to the system will take place within the next six months.

Modern.GOV.UK this system houses documents related to Council meetings. Due to the nature of the meetings the documents could be maps or documents produced by third parties. We are aware that some of the documents are inaccessible. There is work taking place to ensure training is given to those who create the documents.

Online library services by Sirsi Corporation. Accessibility statement.

Online payments by Civica, please read the accessibility statement for CivicaPay eStore2.

Schools account payment by Civica. Accessibility statement: A fully accessible version is available upon upgrade. A business case has been submitted for approval of this.

Worcestershire Registration Service Customer Portal by CIVICA.

Worcestershire Adults Portal referral portal by Liquidlogic.

Disproportionate burden

We have not identified anything that qualifies as disproportionate burden as of yet, but we are still evaluating our site and may update this when we identify issues.

Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

Regulations do not apply to the following content of a website or mobile application of a public sector body:

Archives

Content of websites and mobile applications qualifying as archives which are exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations: Worcestershire Archive and Archaeology Service Catalogue of Archives

Live video

Live video streams do not have captions. We do not plan to add captions to live video streams because live video is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.

Older files

The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they’re not essential to providing our services. 

Online maps

Geographic Information System (GIS) maps, online maps such as Google maps, mapping services are exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.

Pre-recorded videos

Pre-recorded time-based media published before 23 September 2020 are exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

We use Silktide regularly to find accessibility issues and aim to fix them as soon as possible.

We also use SCULPT for Accessibility as a training model for our wider organisation to improve the creation of accessible documents.

We have conducted a full audit of our website to identify and fully understand all accessibility barriers our website may contain. We plan to re-test and and review the accessibility of the website and statement on a quarterly basis.

We are working closely with our website provider to address accessibility issues identified in this statement.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on February 2023. It was last reviewed on 20 November 2023.

This website was last tested during September 2024. The test was carried out by using our own testing methods.

Manual testing

To do our team testing we chose a selection of home pages, document pages, custom pages and a typical form to offer a cross-section of page types within the website.

Manual testing reports

Automated testing

Worcestershire County Council subscribe and pay for the Silktide tool for checking and monitoring the whole website's accessibility status regularly to identify any ongoing issues.

A sample of our website content is regularly being used to update and calculate the Worcestershire County Council website on the Silktide index.

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