Contents of this statement
- Using this website
- Increasing access on different devices
- How accessible the website is
- Contacting us
- Technical information about this site’s accessibility
- How we tested the website
- What we’re doing to improve accessibility
This accessibility statement applies to the Boston Manor House website www.bostonmanorhouse.org
1. Using the Boston Manor House website
This website has been developed to be usable by everybody, regardless of age or disability and has been designed to comply with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 Level ‘double-A’. This website is under constant review to improve accessibility and usability.
It is run by the London Borough of Hounslow. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this site, and have considered accessibility since the start of the website’s development.
An accessibility audit has been carried out and the following accessibility features can be customised on every page:
- Colour contrast options: low contrast, black text displayed on a white background (default contrast), and dark mode (yellow text on black background)
- Change text size – there are three font sizes available
This website has been designed to support personal browser and device settings and assistive technologies such as screen readers and magnifiers. This means you can:
- Change the size of the browser window and zoom in up to 300% without the text spilling off the screen
- Access and navigate all menus using assistive technology
- Navigate the website using just a keyboard
- Navigate between headings and links on all pages using assistive technology
> SI WILL CONFIRM THE ABOVE
2. Increasing access on different devices
There are changes you can make to different devices to increase access to our site, depending on how you prefer to access the web, including:
- Speech output
- Magnifying the screen
- Making the mouse-pointer bigger
- Slowing down the mouse speed
- Using the keyboard to move around a website
AbilityNet has advice and further information on how to personalise your browsing experience and make your device easier to use.
3. How accessible the website is
The site includes features to increase accessibility, including:
- Text content written in plain English
- A consistent layout and easy to find contact details
- The use of headings to split up the content visually and to improve navigation by screen-reader users
- The use of alternative text to describe all images
- Accessibility options with short-cuts to help adjust the visual appearance of the site
We are focused on ensuring that anyone can access this website, but having carried out an access review of the site know that some parts of the site are not fully accessible:
- SI to check if any
4. Contacting us
If you need information on this website in a different format like large print, Easy Read, audio recording or Braille please contact us:
- Email: Bostonmanorhouse@hounslow.gov.uk
Reporting accessibility problems with this website
We’re always looking for ways to improve accessibility and welcome your feedback. If you find any problems that aren’t listed in this statement or think we’re not meeting the requirements of the accessibility regulations, get in touch. Contact us:
Bostonmanorhouse@hounslow.gov.uk
We will get back to you with an initial response within 24 hours
Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person
We can be contacted in person, but please email or phone using the contact details outlined above if you’d like to get in touch
Boston Manor House, Boston Manor Road, Brentford, TW8 9JX
Enforcement procedure
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the accessibility regulations. If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).
5. Technical information about this website’s accessibility
Boston Manor House is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
In this section, you will find out more about the accessibility of our website and how far it conforms to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 level AA. The known issues are not an exhaustive list, but we have summarised the main problems we found on the site when testing representative pages.
Compliance status
This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below:
Non-accessible content
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons:
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
We will test this – unlikely to have any for phase 1
Disproportionate burden
THERE IS A POSSIBILITY FOR ORGANISATIONS NOT TO MAKE ALL OF THE ACCESS FIXES, IF THEY BELIEVE THAT THE COST OF FIXING AN ISSUE WOULD BE A ‘DISPROPORTIONATE BURDEN’ WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE ACCESSIBILITY REGULATIONS.
HERE IS THE GUIDANCE RELATED TO THIS ON THE .GOV SITE:
[Note: in this subsection list accessibility problems you’re claiming would be a disproportionate burden to fix
Bear in mind that something which is a disproportionate burden now will not necessarily be a disproportionate burden forever. If the circumstances change, your ability to claim disproportionate burden may change too.]
IF NOT, WE’LL SIMPLY STATE: ‘NOT APPLICABLE AT THIS TIME’ UNDER THIS HEADING
Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
Some access problems fall outside the scope of the accessibility regulations:
- PDFs and other documents
Some of our older PDFs and Word documents do not meet accessibility standards – for example, they may not be structured so they’re accessible to a screen reader. This does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2. Name, role, value
The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018, however please get in touch with us if there is some content that you can’t access so we can find an alternative.
Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards.
- Some external sites that we link to might not be fully accessible
Some of the content and information that we link to might not meet accessibility standards – MoSFH is not responsible for the accessibility of external content and sites such as Google Maps. However, where there is a choice, we will always choose the most accessible options.
6. How we tested the website
This site was designed and built by Surface Impression and accessibility was considered from the start of the site design, with reference to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1. In May 2023 we carried out an access test of the site against WCAG 2.1 standard for phase 1 of the site
We tested them using a combination of test methods including:
- Automated validator test – we ran the site through a validator and interpreted and analysed any errors and alerts highlighted (checking against WCAG 2.1. AA) using WAVE https://wave.webaim.org).
Later in 2023 more pages and sections will be added for this we will test a sample of pages, including core templates, most commonly used and a random selection of others.
We will test them using a combination of test methods including:
- Expert access audit – expert auditor reviewed the site for common access barriers
- Automated validator test – we ran the site through a validator and interpreted and analysed any errors and alerts highlighted (checking against WCAG 2.1. AA) using WAVE https://wave.webaim.org).
- Access user testing with 3 participants (using different assistive technologies)
7. What we’re doing to improve accessibility
The website will be regularly reviewed for accessibility issues internally by the Boston Manor House team and we plan to test it externally by an independent access auditor and testing with assistive technology users, on an annual basis.
We are committed to providing a website that is accessible to all and will review this access statement on a regular basis, at least every 12 months from the date of publication. At that stage we will review all the issues listed under ‘Technical information about this website’s accessibility’ and check whether the accessibility problems have been resolved within the time specified. We will also check the accessibility of new content that has been added since launch.
Other ways that we are working to make sure that our website and content is accessible to all include:
- Raising general awareness of accessibility across Boston Manor House
- Undertaking staff training and raising awareness within the organisation
- Doing more research into how to increase accessibility of content including videos and audio, PDFs and PowerPoint documents
- Updating our guidelines for staff, external developers and contributors
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 30 June 2023. It was last reviewed and updated on 30th June 2023
This website was last tested in May 2023. The test was carried out by an independent access advisor and test participants using different assistive technologies. We agreed on a sample of pages to test, including common user journeys.