Website accessibility statement inline with Public Sector Body (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018

This accessibility statement applies to:

https://community.thedatalab.com/page/welcome

This website is run by The Data Lab, part of the University of Edinburgh. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

• using your browser settings, change colours, contrast levels and fonts while retaining most functionality;
• navigate to most of the content on the site using keyboard only;
• zoom in up to 300% with reflow enabled and without loss of content;
• utilise assistive technologies, including screen readers and speech-to-text software, to access most areas of the system;
• encounter no moving, flashing or scrolling items
• experience no time limits when using the site.

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

Customising the website

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability. This is an external site with suggestions to make your computer more accessible:

AbilityNet - My Computer My Way

With a few simple steps you can customise the appearance of our website using your browser settings to make it easier to read and navigate:

Additional information on how to customise our website appearance

If you are a member of University staff or a student, you can use the free SensusAccess accessible document conversion service:

Information on SensusAccess

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:

• the system is not 100% fully compatible with text-to-speech assistive technologies (including Job Access with Speech (JAWS) and NonVisual Desktop Access (NVDA)
• the system is not 100% fully compatible with speech-to-text assistive software (for example, Dragon NaturallySpeaking) with all browser configurations;
• users may not be able to access all content by using the keyboard alone or solely through tabbing;
• it can be difficult for the user to identify their position on the page when navigating by keyboard;
• users experience a loss of content above a zoom level of 300% where content overlaps;
• alternative text is not present on all non-text content;
• some text is written in continuous capitals or italics;
• some links are formatted incorrectly meaning they don’t contain meaningful hypertext;
• not all links indicate whether they open a new window or as a pop-up.

Feedback and contact information

If you need information on this website in a different format, including accessible PDF, large print, audio recording or braille:

• Email: [email protected]
• Telephone: +44 (0)131 651 4905
• British Sign Language (BSL) users can contact us via Contact Scotland BSL, the on-line BSL interpreting service: Contact Scotland BSL

We will consider your request and get back to you in 5 working days.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We are 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:

• Email: [email protected]
• Telephone: +44 (0)131 651 4905
• British Sign Language (BSL) users can contact us via Contact Scotland BSL, the on-line BSL interpreting service: Contact Scotland BSL

We will consider your request and get back to you in 5 working days.

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 please contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS) directly:

Contact details for the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS)

The government has produced information on how to report accessibility issues:

Reporting an accessibility problem on a public sector website

Contacting us by phone using British Sign Language

British Sign Language service Contact Scotland BSL runs a service for British Sign Language users and all of Scotland’s public bodies using video relay. This enables sign language users to contact public bodies and vice versa. The service operates between 8.00am and 12.00am, 7 days a week.

Contact Scotland BSL service details

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

The University of Edinburgh is committed to making its websites and applications 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 (WCAG) 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

The full guidelines are available at:

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA standard

Non accessible content

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

Noncompliance with the accessibility regulations

The following items to not comply with the WCAG 2.1 AA success criteria:

• Not all non-text content presented to users has alternative text
  • 1.1.1 - Non-text Content
• It is not possible to use a keyboard to access all the content
  • 2.1.1 - Keyboard accessible
• Some images that are also links are not coded correctly and read out the full URL when using assistive software, rather than meaningful hypertext
  • 2.4.4 – Link purpose (In context)
• Some heading and heading levels are missed
  • 2.4.6 Headings and Labels
• Visual information to identify user interface components, such as keyboard focus, do not always have a sufficient contrast ratio
  • 2.4.7 - Focus Visible
• Pop-up windows and new browser tabs appear without warning the user
  • 3.2.2 - On Input
• Content is not robust enough that it can be interpreted by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies
  • 4.1.2 - Name, Role, Value

Unless specified otherwise, a complete solution, or significant improvement, will be in place for those items within our control by October 2024.

Disproportionate burden

We are not currently claiming that any accessibility problems would be a disproportionate burden to fix.

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

We are not currently claiming that there is any content outwith the scope of the accessibility regulations.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

We will continue to address the accessibility issues highlighted to deliver a solution or suitable workaround. Unless specified otherwise, a complete solution or significant improvement will be in place for those items within our control by October 2024. We will continue to work with the supplier, HiveBrite, in order to improve accessibility. While we are in the process of resolving these accessibility issues, or where we are unable to do so, we will ensure reasonable adjustments are in place to make sure no user is disadvantaged. As changes are made, we will continue to review accessibility and retest the accessibility of this website.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 31^st October 2023. It was last reviewed on 10^th November 2023.

This website was tested by the University of Edinburgh’s Disability Information team in September 2023, using Mozilla Firefox (102.10.0esr), Microsoft Edge (112.0.1722.34), and Google Chrome (111.0.5563.147) for comparative purposes. We test on Firefox, Chrome and Edge to ensure breadth and variety, whereby a recent survey on world-wide usage levels shows that Chrome is increasing in popularity and is now the favoured browser for screen readers:

WebAIM: Screen Reader User Survey 2021

We tested:

• Spellcheck functionality;
• Scaling using different resolutions and reflow;
• Options to customise the interface (magnification, font, background colour et. cetera);
• Keyboard navigation and keyboard traps;
• Data validation;
• Warning of links opening in a new tab or window;
• Information conveyed in colour or sound only;
• Flashing, moving or scrolling text;
• Operability if JavaScript is disabled;
• Use with screen reading software (for example, JAWS);
• Assistive software (TextHelp Read and Write, ZoomText and Dragon NaturallySpeaking);
• Tooltips and text alternatives for any non-text content;
• Time limits.

Change Log

The change log will be updated alongside accompanying accessibility improvements to the system.