This accessibility statement applies to content published on Leeds.gov.uk.
The council also uses a number of other applications for providing online services. Each of these have their own accessibility statement published.
This website is run by Leeds City Council. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. 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:
Feedback and contact information
If you need information on this website in a different format email
webmaster@leeds.gov.uk and tell us:
- the web address (URL) of the content
- your name and email address
- the format you need, for example, audio, braille, BSL or large print
Reporting accessibility problems with this website
If you find any problems that are not listed on this page or you think we’re not meeting the accessibility requirements, email
webmaster@leeds.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 have reported problems to us and are not happy with how we have responded,
contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).
Technical information about this website’s accessibility
Leeds City Council 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 elements listed below are not accessible and do not comply with the accessibility regulations.
Multiple instances of the same ID
A singular webpage may contain only one unique ID element. Each page on our website has multiple elements with the same ID value and there are 3 instances of multiple IDs. The first is related to the SharePoint framework (DataProvider) and the remaining are attributed to the Granicus newsletter signup overlay (prefix-overlay-form-div), prefix-error-outer. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships and 4.1.1 parsing.
Use of the i (italic) element across the site
The italic element is used as part of the FontAwesome library we use for icons across the site. This is not handled well by screen readers. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.4 Resize text.
The header following an h1 is h1 or h2
The alert banner used across the site is set as h2 when the page should begin with a h1. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.6 Headers and Labels.
<ul> and <ol> must only directly contain <li>, <script> or <template> elements
Some lists have incorrect mark up and may cause problems for those using assistive technology. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.
Radio buttons are marked using fieldset and legend elements
Some radio button groups are not marked using fieldset and legend elements. These are part of a form used by the SharePoint system. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.
Google Captcha
We use Google Captcha on our feedback form to prevent us from receiving spam.
We are aware of a few technical issues with Google Captcha such as a text area having no description, a local link destination not existing, an iframe being used to format content and the iframe having no title. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 Info and relationships, 3.3.2 Labels or instructions and 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value).
We have tested Google Captcha on various devices and browsers, using keyboard only and on screen readers where we found it to still function well. Google Captcha has become commonplace across many websites and most of our users are familiar with it. Due to this, we have no plans to replace it.
Google Captcha is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations because it is neither funded, developed by, or under the control of Leeds City Council.
Link text
Some of the links on our website do not make sense when taken out of context. For example, the same link text is used for links that take users to different locations. These issues do not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.4 Link purpose (in context). We are continuously working to improve our link text by adding in screen reader friendly text where necessary and performing content reviews and re-designs.
Validation
Our website fails to validate using W3C Markup Validation Service. This means that some assistive technologies may not be able to interpret the content accurately. This doesn’t meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.1 (parsing).
We are continuously working towards ensuring our website passes W3C validation tool and we will ensure any new content or components we build meet accessibility standards.
ARIA attributes used on element’s not allowed for their role
Some pages have hidden content with ARIA attributes without the correct role attributed to it. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value.
What we’re doing to improve accessibility
We are currently planning to move this website to a new platform and as part of this work we will fix the areas of non-compliance listed. We are embedding accessibility of the new website into a design system which will apply to new Leeds City Council websites.
Timescales will be provided once confirmed.
Issues with PDFs and other documents
We are aware that most of our documents are not accessible. Documents generally do not comply with accessibility requirements, so we actively avoid adding PDFs and documents in almost all circumstances.
Since January 2019, we have removed around 6,000 PDFs and Word documents from the website. We are continuing to work through the documents that remain on the website.
We have digital or web page alternatives for PDFs in some places like our
check a school's admissions details and
ward maps pages.
Our plan for documents to be made into online forms
We have reduced the number of PDF or Word forms to 36. We will be making these accessible online forms.
Three of these forms are going through research and design, rather than a like for like replacement because of the high number of downloads. These are:
- severe mental impairment claim form (council tax)
- disabilities reduction claim form (council tax)
- commercial permit application form (bins, waste and recycling)
We are looking at options for a forms platform to deliver these new forms, we aim to complete this work by the end of 2024.
The one form we are unable to develop yet is the DVLA mandate form on the
taxi and private hire licensing page. This is because it is produced by the DVLA and we have no control over the format.
Our plan for documents to be made into web pages or removed
Planning
We have 328 complex policies and documents in our planning section. For the most used documents, we will create gateway pages that summarise key information in these documents. We aim to complete this stage of work by the end of 2024.
We have around 55 documents that can easily be converted to webpage content. We aim to complete this work by the end of 2024.
Approximately 3,000 documents form our Site Allocations Plan. These will be reviewed by the secretary of state. We will not be making these accessible because once a decision has been made, most of the documents will be deleted.
There are a number of documents as part of the Local Plan update consultations. These are legislatively required for the duration of the consultation and will be published as web pages or deleted once this is completed.
Your council
We have around 30 documents covering our financial accounts and historical business rates committee minutes. We are investigating how we can make a web page option available for the documents uploaded after 23 September 2018.
If you need a PDF or document in a different format, email
webmaster@leeds.gov.uk with the URL of the PDF and the format you would like the information in.
Disproportionate burden
Leeds City Council believes all content should be accessible for everyone. We do not currently intend to claim disproportionate burden for any website content.
Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
Leeds City Council believes all content should be accessible for everyone. Documents published before September 2018 unless they are crucial to delivering a service, are not in scope of the accessibility regulations, but we intend to make all our content accessible.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 23 September 2020. It was last reviewed on 18 June 2024.
This website was last tested on 9 September 2020. The test was carried out by Leeds City Council.
We tested a selection of pages, ensuring those tested reflected the variety of different page layouts used on our website.
The pages we tested were:
