Worcestershire County Council 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 accessibility statement applies to the Explore the Past website.
This website is run by a third-party provider on behalf of Worcestershire County Council. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:
- zoom in without the text spilling off the screen
- navigate most of the website using just a keyboard (including skip to content or skip to main navigation)
- navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
- listen to most of the website using a screen reader
AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
Non accessible content
We know some parts of this website aren’t fully accessible:
- some interactive elements are not fully accessible to keyboard or screen reader users
- some pages do not have descriptive hyperlinks
- some forms or interactive components are not labelled correctly for screen reader users
- there is no skip to contents to bypass the menu
Compliance status
This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliance issues identified below:
- The site has no keyboard accessibility and no focus states across the main menu and is very hard to navigate using keyboard only (2.1.1 Keyboard)
- The main menu and collapsible elements cannot be operated by a keyboard and do not announce correctly on a screen reader (2.1.1 Keyboard)
- Links are not always descriptive and use vague terms (2.4.4 Link purpose)
- There is no skip to contents menu (2.4.1 Bypass blocks)
- In the archive collection services, three buttons have indistinctive focus states (1.4.11 non-text contrast (focus indicators)
- Images are all labelled by number when they read out in alt text with no context of the image to be able to hear and purchase (1.1.1 non-text content)
- On contact us page the follow us social media icons just read out as ‘link’ and should say something like ‘follow us on social media’ (1.1.1 non-text content)
- Social media icons at the bottom read their URLs out and it’s not clear where they go, these need alt labels to say, ‘Find us on Facebook’ or ‘Visit our YouTube channel’ (1.1.1 non-text content)
- The document list does not read out the name of the document (2.4.4 Link purpose).
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 7 January 2025. It was last reviewed on 7 January 2025.
This website was last tested during 7 January 2025. The testing was carried out using the following methods:
- Axe Developer Tools to check the underlying code
- Keyboard only access testing a selection of user journeys
- NVDA screen reader testing a selection of user journeys
- Zoom up to 400% to test that the site is responsive
The statement was last reviewed on 7 January 2025.
We are working closely with our website provider to address accessibility issues identified in this statement.
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: equality@worcestershire.gov.uk.
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, please contact: equality@worcestershire.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).