Website Accessibility

By law we are required to provide an accessibility statement

Accessibility statement for https://localoffer.northlincs.gov.uk

Using this website

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

change colours, contrast levels and fonts
zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen
navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.

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:

you can’t modify the line height or spacing of text
some older PDF documents aren’t fully accessible to screen reader software
some recorded videos have automated captions and don’t have transcripts.
Some elements aren’t highlighted on focus on the home page
Some directory search form items need labelling for screen readers

What to do if you can’t access parts of this website

If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille email the Customer Services team at customerservice@northlincs.gov.uk

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 10 working days.

How we tested this website

We use Monsido to continuously check accessibility compliance for all content on all pages of our www.localoffer.gov.uk website. The site is re-tested every week.

We tested:

our main website platform, available at www.localoffer.gov.uk
all associated plugins that we use to enhance page content across the site. For example the general layout of pages in how they look and are laid out, Navigation Menus, Breadcrumbs and Sliders. As plugins are updated accessibility may decrease or improve.

Any exceptions are noted within other sections of this Access Statement.

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

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

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

Issues with technology

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

Some form inputs don’t have proper descriptions and properties, so the information in them isn’t available to people using a screen reader. This doesn’t meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value), 1.3.1(Info and Relationships) and 3.3.2 (Labels or Instructions).

We plan to add fitting descriptions and roles to the problematic form inputs. When we publish new content we’ll make sure our use of form inputs meets accessibility standards.

Issues with images, video and audio

It’s not always possible to change the device orientation from horizontal to vertical without making it more difficult to view the content. This doesn’t meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.4 (orientation).

It’s not possible for users to change text size without some of the content overlapping. This doesn’t meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.4 (resize text).

Interactive tools and transactions

Some of our interactive forms are difficult to navigate using a keyboard. For example, because the slider buttons on the homepage are missing keyboard focus styling.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

Accessibility needs are actively considered as part of designing any new content, transactions and services. We follow GDS content design principles where possible and we understand the importance of inclusive design https://www.gov.uk/guidance/content-design

We regularly monitor accessibility compliance using the SiteImprove product and we will resolve issues that arise wherever possible.

We also respond to customer feedback and use this to make things better wherever possible.

We’re working with the providers of all 3rd party systems and plugins to ensure they are either compliant, replaced or removed by September 2020.

This statement was prepared on 20 September 2019. It was last updated on 3 April 2024.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems that aren’t listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, email Customer Services at customerservice@northlincs.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

Find out about other ways to contact us on our contact us page.

How we’ve made this website more accessible

We are committed to complying with the Disability Discrimination Act and have made significant improvements to our website in order to reduce the barriers experienced by people with disabilities.

By following Government guidelines, it is our policy to create pages to W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Priority 2 level (Double A).

In the future we aim to offer more online services and we are designing these to be level 3 (Triple A) compliant, although if we purchase “off-the-shelf” software this will be at least level 2 compliant.

We are aware, however, that occasionally we do make mistakes. If you find any of our pages inaccessible please use the Website Feedback Form to let us know. Please include details of the technology you are using and we will make every reasonable effort to either remove the barrier or provide the information in a format that you find acceptable.

My Computer, My way

My Computer My Way is AbilityNet’s easy to use guide to the accessibility features built into your desktop PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. It can help with four areas that might cause you problems:

Vision – help with seeing your screen
Hearing – help with sounds and audio
Motor – help with keyboard and mouse difficulties
Cognitive – help with reading, spelling and understanding

My Computer, My Way guide – AbilityNet

Access keys

If you have difficulty in using a mouse or similar devices, you can use keyboard shortcuts. We follow the government’s access key system.

You can use the following short cut keys to help you navigate around the site.

0 – Access key details
1 – Home page
3 – Site Map
4 – Search
6 – Privacy
7 – Website Disclaimer
8 – Terms & Conditions
9 – Contact us
S – Skip navigation

How do I use the access keys for my browser?

We know that users make use of a wide range of different internet browsers. To find out how to make use of access keys we have supplied instructions for the main browsers in use.

To use these access keys follow the instructions below.

Internet Explorer version 8 and below (PC)
Hold down the ALT key, press the number or letter of the access key, release both keys then press ENTER

Internet Explorer 9 and above (PC)
Hold down the ALT key and press the number or letter of the access key

Internet Explorer (Mac)
Hold down the CTRL key and press the number or letter of the access key

Netscape (PC)
Hold down the ALT key and press the number or letter of the access key

Firefox (PC)
Hold down the Shift and ALT keys and press the number or letter of the access key

Firefox (Mac)
Hold down the CTRL key and press the number or letter of the access key, for version 14.0.1 and higher Hold down the CTRL and Option keys and press the number or letter of the access key

Safari (PC)
Hold down the ALT key and press the number or letter of the access key

Safari (Mac)
Hold down the CTRL and Option keys and press the number or letter of the access key

Chrome (PC)
Hold down the Alt key and press the number or letter of the access key

Chrome (Mac)
Hold down the CTRL and Option keys and press the number or letter of the access key.

Resizing text

If the text is too small for you to read comfortably then you can resize it. Instructions are given for major browsers below:

Internet Explorer 4: Choose View>Internet Options…>Accessibility… and check the ignore font sizes specified on web pages option. Click OK, OK, and then you can alter the text size using the View>Text Size option
Internet Explorer (version 5 and later): Choose Tools>Internet Options…>Accessibility… and check the ignore font sizes specified on web pages option. Click OK, OK, and then you can alter the text size using the View>Text Size option
Mozilla FireFox: Select the keys CTRL and + (From menu: View, Text Size, Increase) together to increase text size and CTRL and – to reduce it (From menu: View, Text Size, Decrease)
All other browsers: You should be able to resize the text directly from the menu bar. Please see your specific browser help pages if you are having difficulty.

Low graphics pages

Although not strictly text-only, these pages are quicker to download and useful if you don’t need the images or if you are on a slow connection.

Reading the website

We aim to make our website as easy to read as possible and follow the Plain English principles. We are constantly working to improve our website and make it easier to understand.

Downloadable documents

We aim to provide content in html format where possible. Where we have to use different formats this will be because:

the information is too long or too complex for a webpage
the content is an official council document, for example a council strategy documents or meeting minutes
the user is likely to want to print the content, for example a brochure
the document is needed in its original format – for example, bus timetables
documents are from other agencies or other systems – for example, government publications or reports

We are working to improve the accessibility of our documents.

Download document viewing software

Where possible we try to provide downloadable documents in the following formats:

PDF – A reader can be downloaded free from the Adobe website (full instructions for downloading the reader are provided)
XLS/XLSX – A reader can be downloaded free from the Microsoft website – XLS viewer (full instructions for downloading the reader are provided)
DOC/DOCX – A reader can be downloaded free from the Microsoft website – DOC viewer (full instructions for downloading the reader are provided)

If you have difficulties obtaining information from a PDF you can use Adobe’s web-based conversion service to produce an HTML version. However, please be aware that the standard of HTML produced is not very good.

We appreciate that it is frustrating to be unable to access information. Please bear with us whilst we continue to work on improving the accessibility of our site.

If any downloadable document presents a barrier to accessing information, please contact us with details of the document in question, the problems encountered and what we could do to help.

Local Offer