Public Access accessibility statement

This accessibility statement applies to content published on Public Access external link.

This website is run by Leeds City Council. 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 external link.

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:

the order of our headings is not logical
focus styling is not prominent for elements
quick navigation to sections of the site is not possible
labels are missing from some form elements
some icons on the site do not have alternate text
accessing the submenu only using the keyboard is not possible
PDFs and other documents across the site are not 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 CD, 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'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

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 content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Images must have alternate text

Map icons used in the map tab of the planning applications don't have alternate text and therefore their purpose will not be read out by screen readers. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 Non-text Content.

Elements don't have sufficient contrast ratio

Google recaptcha text does not mean contrast ratio requirements. These fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum).

Using landmarks to identify regions of a page

The website is not split into landmark sections so quick navigation around the page is not possible. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 Info and relationships and 2.4.1 Bypass blocks.

Forms elements must have labels

On the documents section of a planning application the elements without labels are the 'show all' filter and the checkboxes used for multi select of fields. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 Info and relationships and 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value.

The header following an h1 is h1 or h2

The order of headers across the site is not logical and hierarchical. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.6 Headers and Labels.

Focus state must be visible

The focus styling across the site does not meet the requirements for focus styling to be visible. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.11 Focus visible.

ARIA hidden elements must not contain focusable elements

The google recaptcha code that is aria hidden has content that is still focusable and should not be. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value.

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.

What we're doing to improve accessibility

We are in contact with the provider of this system and we will update this accessibility statement accordingly with timeframes for completion.

Discussions are ongoing to address the PDF and document issues across the site.

Disproportionate burden

Not applicable.

Content that's not within the scope of the accessibility regulations