Accessibility statement
Accessibility statement for NHFT.NHS.UK
This accessibility statement applies to the Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust website (www.nhft.nhs.uk).
This website is run by Northamptonshire Healthcare. 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 are not fully accessible:
- most older PDF documents are not fully accessible to screen reader software
- videos use YouTube's automatic captions and transcript, this may lead to minor errors
- the CQC information on the homepage is provided by a third party. Alternative text on the 'See the report' linked button is not fully descriptive when heard out of context by blind screen reader users
- some colour contrasts on banners are not fully accessible
- a recent audit has identified some technical
Feedback and contact information
If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille please contact our Patient Liaison Service (PALs):
- email: PALS@nhft.nhs.uk
- call: 0800 917 8504
We'll consider your request and get back to you in 7 days.
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, contact our communications team:
- email: commsteam@nhft.nhs.uk
- call: 0800 917 8504 (this is the number for the PALs team who will be able to log your concerns)
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).
Technical information about this website's accessibility
Northamptonshire Healthcare 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 2.2 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
PDFs and other documents
Some of our PDFs and Word documents are essential to providing our services. For example, we have PDFs with information on how users can access our services, and forms published as Word documents.
During September 2020 we reviewed 319 documents published on this site after September 2018, using Adobe Acrobat's Accessibility Checker. PDF or Word documents, which are essential to providing our services e.g. patient information, published after this date are scanned for accessibility before being uploaded.
Any PDFs containing service information are checked at a minimum every two years and are automatically unpublished if they are not reviewed. Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards.
There is some historical FOI, board papers, governor papers as well as more recent board papers which do not fully pass accessibility checks. These are for reasons including WCAG criteria lack of text alternative (1.1.1), use of colour (1.4.1), text contrast (1.4.3), keyboard accessibility (2.1.1), and section headings (2.4.10).
We are working to remove a large number of historical PDFs from the site as well as implement new document templates to address ongoing concerns by the end of March 2025.
If you need any documents in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille please contact our Patient Liaison Service (PALs):
- email: PALS@nhft.nhs.uk
- call: 0800 917 8504
We'll consider your request and get back to you in 7 days.
Contrast on banners
An audit on the site identified that on some banners there is not enough colour contrast between the text and the background imagery. Font colours have been updated and we are working to update imagery to improve contrast further. In addition, users of this site have the option to adjust the colour contrast to meet their individual needs using the accessibility tools at the top and bottom of every page.
Other accessibility issues
A recent audit of this site has identified a limited number of occurrences of other accessibility issues. These relate to:
- Some controls on pages (including links, buttons and fields) do not change appearance when they are selected. This fails WCAG 2.0 success criterion 2.4.7 (focus visible). We plan to fix this by the end of December 2024.
- Some controls on pages (including links, buttons and fields) do not clearly indicate when they are selected. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.11 (focus not obscured). We plan to fix this by the end of December 2024.
- Some text does not sufficiently contrast with its background colour, so people with moderate visual impairments cannot read it. This fails WCAG 2.0 success criterion 1.4.3 (contrast (minimum)). We plan to fix this by the end of December 2024.
- Some field sets do not contain a legend which describes its contents. This fails WCAG 2.0 success criterion 1.3.1 (info and relationships). We plan to fix this by the end of December 2024.
- Some page content and functionality cannot be accessed with a keyboard, so people with no vision and who use alternative keyboards or input devices that act as a keyboard cannot access the content. This fails WCAG success criterion 2.1.1 (keyboard). We plan to fix this by the end of December 2024.
- Some links are not defined in a specific way to enable them to be accessed by screen readers, so people using a screen reader cannot access the information. This fails WCAG 2.0 success criterion 4.1.2 (name, role, value). We plan to fix this by the end of December 2024.
- Some pages do not support reflow, so people with low vision cannot enlarge text on all web pages and read it in a single column without scrolling in more than one direction. This fails WCAG success criterion 1.4.10 (reflow). We plan to fix this by the end of December 2024.
- Some links on pages are listed without context, so people using screen readers do not know their destinations. This fails WCAG 2.0 success criterion 4.1.2 (name, role, value). We plan to fix this by the end of December 2024.
This report further details these: Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust - Accessibility Audit November 2024.pdf [pdf] 1MB. These issues are currently being fixed and updated.
Third-party content
The CQC information on our home page is also provided by a third party. Alternative text on the 'See the report' linked button is not fully descriptive when heard out of context by users of screen readers. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).
Content that's not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
PDFs and other documents
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.
Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards.
What we're doing to improve accessibility
In June 2020 Northamptonshire Healthcare commissioned an independent audit of the accessibility of this site. The auditor raised 5 main issues (3 Advisory) related to content of the site and 13 issues related to the design of the site, in which the website infringed the current WCAG 2.1 guidance. Updates were made to this site to remedy these issues. The following steps were also taken between July-September 2020:
- 272 pages on this site were reviewed to:
- ensure all text scores below 12 on the Gunning Fog Index
- remove meaningless text links
- update acronyms and abbreviations so that they appear in full when they first
- 319 documents published on this site after September 2018 reviewed for accessibility using Adobe Acrobat's Accessibility Checker
- Images reviewed to ensure appropriate alternative text
In August 2024, the Government Digital Service completed an accessibility audit of this site and highlighted a number of accessibility issues which required correction . These issues have been reviewed and the vast majority were corrected ahead of the GDS's 8 November 2024 deadline. The audit highlighted an issue with header banners at the top of many pages on this site, which it said did not display enough colour contrast between the text and the background imagery. We are working to correct this, but in the meantime users of this site have the option to adjust the colour contrast to meet their individual needs using the accessibility tools at the top and bottom of every page.
This website is audited for accessibility every 3 months by VerseOne Digital, as part of an ongoing contracted arrangement. The latest audit was conducted in November 2024: Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust - Accessibility Audit November 2024.pdf [pdf] 1MB
Issues identified in this regular report are then resolved by VerseOne as the website supplier.
Any new content we publish will meet accessibility standards.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was originally prepared on 22 September 2020. It was last reviewed and updated on 19 November 2024.