Accessibility statement

This accessibility statement applies to the East Cambridgeshire District Council website. The URL for this website is www.eastcambs.gov.uk. This website is run by East Cambridgeshire District Council. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. This 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

We have 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 is this website

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

• some documents are not fully accessible to screen reader software
• on our step by step webpages, visible label and accessible name do not match
• on our directories the icon used on maps (button) is missing a text alternative 
• our meetings calendar is not fully accessible to screen reader software

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 email: ContactUs@eastcambs.gov.uk or call 01353 665555.

We will consider your request and aim to get back to you within 10 days.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We are always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we are not meeting accessibility requirements, email: ContactUs@eastcambs.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. If you are 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

Visit our contact us page

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

East Cambridgeshire District 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:

• on our step by step webpages, visible label and accessible name do not match - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.5.3 (Label in Name)
• on our directories the icon used on maps (button) is missing a text alternative - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value)
• some documents published between 24 September 2018 to 24 January 2022 may not be fully accessible for various reasons

These reasons include:

• missing headings or headings that don’t follow a logical order - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships)
• missing titles - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.2 (Page Titled)
• default language not specified - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.1.1 (Language of Page) 
• some links to other websites may not be fully accessible - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.4 (Link Purpose In Context)
• some images may not have alternative text - this fails WCAG success criterion 1.1.1 (Non Text Context)
• some tables, including nested tables, may not be easily readable - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.2 (Meaningful Sequence)

Disproportionate burden

Documents

Some of our less popular documents published after 23 September 2018 are not fully accessible for various reasons. We define less popular documents as those that are viewed on average once a day or less.  We keep this list under continual review and if the popularity of a document increases, we will replace with an accessible PDF.  

Issues with documents include:

• missing headings or headings that don’t follow a logical order - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships)
• missing titles - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.2 (Page Titled)
• default language not specified - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.1.1 (Language of Page) 
• some links to other websites may not be fully accessible - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.4 (Link Purpose In Context)
• some images may not have alternative text - this fails WCAG success criterion 1.1.1 (Non Text Context)
• some tables, including nested tables, may not be easily readable - this fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.2 (Meaningful Sequence)

We have assessed the cost and resources required to fix our less popular PDFs. We believe that doing so now would be a disproportionate burden within the meaning of the accessibility regulations. We will continue to monitor these documents and make further assessments when each document is due to be updated (timescales for this vary according to the document) or sooner if resources allow.

We plan to make sure that all new PDFs we publish meet accessibility standards.

Due to time and resources, it may not always be possible to fix all PDFs before they are published.  When this is the case we will assess the cost and resources required to fix them, and in some cases, we may find they meet the criteria for disproportionate burden at that time.

The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix PDFs or other documents published before 23 September 2018 if they are not essential to providing our services.

Live video

We do not plan to add captions to live video streams because live video is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.

Maps

The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix online maps and mapping services, as long as essential information is provided in an accessible digital manner for maps intended for navigational use. Online mapping applications are used on the East Cambridgeshire District Council website. General mapping is used which is traditional online mapping designed to show boundary and location information for themes such as borough and ward boundaries, public rights of way, conservation areas and listed buildings. Maps are also available on our planning applications search. The intention of these maps is to display the boundary of a planning application retrieved through a search. Due to the nature of maps, these are not able to be accessible, although where appropriate are augmented by written text. They maps are not designed for navigation purposes and are thus exempt from the accessibility regulations.

What we are doing to improve accessibility

Document accessibility

We plan to make sure that any new PDFs which we publish meet accessibility standards.  

We have launched new corporate templates which make it easier for staff to ensure their documents are accessible. There are also a number of resources available to staff to support with this. In addition to this each department has an accessibility contact who have undergone training to ensure they have a knowledge and understanding of the accessibility regulations.

All PDFs will be checked for accessibility before they are added to the website and reports on PDF accessibility will be reviewed at least monthly to make sure the PDFs are meeting accessibility standards.

Accessibility monitoring and reviews

We will review our Silktide reports monthly to check for any new accessibility issues.

We will carry out manual accessibility checking exercises once each year, where key user journeys will be checked for accessibility.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 18 August 2020. It was last reviewed on 1 November 2024.

This website was last tested on 28 October 2024. The test was carried out by Silktide.

Silktide's latest index rates this website at 95% (excellent) based on an automated assessment of 125 pages.