Scope and ownership
This accessibility statement applies to www.uos.ac.uk which is owned by the University of Suffolk. It is designed to be used by as many people as possible. The site should be clear and simple to understand.
We have built our website so that:
- You can zoom in up to 300% on pages without the text spilling off the screen
- It has responsive design viewable on a range of desktop and mobile devices
- Pages have a ‘skip to content’ link
- Pages have appropriate colour contrast
- Pages use heading levels so assistive technologies like screen readers and browser plugins (like HeadingsMap for Chrome or FireFox) can show you the page overview and let you skip to any section of the page.
- Most images have text descriptions where appropriate
- The site can be navigated using just a keyboard
- You can listen to the website using a screen reader. Webpages are coded so screen reader users can quickly navigate between page regions using ARIA landmarks.
- Videos are used across the site to provide additional information. All videos uploaded after 23 September 2020 will have accurate captions.
AbilityNet and MyComputerMyWay have 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 are not fully accessible:
- Heading levels jump from H1 to H3 on Landing pages (such as About the University). Headings are otherwise in the correct order.
- Generally videos published prior to 23 September 2020 do not have captions or audio description. These features will be included in videos published after 23 September 2020 where required.
- Some images on our website don't have appropriate alternative text.
- PDFs lack accessibility tags meaning the headings and structure are not accurately communicated to screen readers correctly. This also means they can’t be browsed via the Bookmark view in Adobe Reader. Images within these PDFs are also not marked with alternative text.
- Web based forms on the website only display one error at time meaning that users may need to submit the form multiple times for all validation errors to be identified.
Feedback and contact information
If you are unable to access a certain part of this website or require something in a different format please email studentlife@uos.ac.uk
In your email please include your contact details, the web address (URL) for the page you are trying to access and what information you were trying to get.
Alternatively you can call 01473 338833 or visit the Student Centre in person at the Waterfront Building.
Our Student Centre team will respond to you in the first instance and will be able to advise you on options and timeframes.
Reporting accessibility problems with this website
We actively seek to maximise the accessibility of our website so if you find barriers that we’ve not covered in this accessibility statement please inform us and we will add the issue to our improvement plans where appropriate.
Please email any issues, comments or observations to studentlife@uos.ac.uk who will acknowledge your email within three working days and give an indication of the potential workarounds. In the email please provide your contact details, the web address (URL) of the page and details of the issue.
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
Different people have different accessibility needs. You can contact us in a number of different ways:
Phone: 01473 338833
Email: studentlife@uos.ac.uk
Live Chat: www.uos.ac.uk
In person: Student Centre, Ground Floor, Waterfront Building.
Our buildings are accessible for wheelchair users and accessible parking (for permit holders only) is located behind the Waterfront Building, accessed via Coprolite Street. The closest accessible parking for visitors is at Duke Street Car Park.
Technical information about this website’s accessibility
The University of Suffolk 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 below.
Non accessible content
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons. We are actively working to fix these issues.
Non compliance with the accessibility regulations
Some Heading Levels are skipped
The homepage and landing pages are missing a secondary heading and skip a level meaning they are not nested correctly making the page difficult to navigate for screen reader users as they are unaware of the visual hierarchy of headings.
Whilst this does not fail WCAG 2.1 AA success criteria, we will look to improve heading nesting during our redevelopment of the website, scheduled for launch in spring 2023.
Some decorative images have alternative text
There are decorative images used within call to action boxes which have alternative text. Decorative images should not have alternative text as this creates ‘audio clutter’ for screen reader users. We plan to remove these as the alt text is not needed in these cases.
On some pages the main header image has a yellow background implemented as an image with alt text. e.g. on the site search page. We plan to replace these to use CSS instead.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criteria 1.1.1 (Non-text Content)
We will resolve these issues during our redevelopment of the website scheduled for launch in spring 2023.
Some Images have meaningless alternative text
Some legacy images within the content do not have a text alternative or have meaningless alternative text. When we publish new content we make sure our use of images meets accessibility standards.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).
We will resolve these issues during our redevelopment of the website scheduled for launch in spring 2023.
Course search filter option is selected
After a user has selected the filter options on course search pages they must navigate back to the search button in order to apply the filters. When the after a search is submitted the user must then navigate back through the page to get to where they were. This can make the search more fiddly to use for keyboard users. Filtered results are also not announced to screen readers.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criteria 2.4.3 (Focus Order: Level A)
We plan to resolve this issue during our planned redevelopment of the website scheduled for launch in spring 2023.
Web form fields do not use autocomplete
Not all personal information entered into fields on forms autocompletes meaning users must re-enter frequently requested information. We plan to use these going forward and update the existing forms on the site.
This fails WCAG 2.1 success criteria 1.3.5 (Identify Input Purpose)
We plan to resolve this issue during our redevelopment of the website scheduled for launch in spring 2023.
Some office documents are not compatible with screen readers
Some office documents on the website (especially PDF) lack the correct tags and do not have the ability to reflow meaning these documents are not compatible with screen readers. We are working to migrate these documents over to accessible formats such as HTML and where this is not possible we are working an external supplier on bulk remediation of these documents.
We plan to resolve this issue during our redevelopment of the website scheduled for launch in spring 2023.
External Platforms
Unibuddy contact widgets
Unibuddy is an externally hosted service that provides contact widgets on our website enabling prospective students to chat with student ambassadors. Unibuddy has worked with the Shaw Trust to audit their service. Further details of the issues identified by the Shaw Trust can be found on the Unibuddy Accessibility Information page.
Click4Assistance chat widget
The fields on the Click4Assistance chat widget have an incorrect tabbing order when controlled via the keyboard. There is also insufficient colour contrast when hovering over the ‘Start Conversation’ button.
We plan to resolve this issue during our redevelopment of the website scheduled for launch in spring 2023.
Disproportionate burden
We don't categorise any of the accessibility issues on www.uos.ac.uk as a disproportionate burden to fix within the meaning of the regulations.
Content not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
Videos published prior to 23 September 2020 do not have captions or audio description.
What we’re doing to improve accessibility
The university has created training and reference resources for all website editors to ensure this is embedded into website content update and development processes. We use a web governance service, Little Forest to monitor our website and ongoing accessibility compliance.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 22 September 2020 and it was last updated on 25 May 2022.