ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT FOR WEST MIDLANDS AMBULANCE SERVICE
This accessibility statement applies to the website / domain of http://www.wmas.nhs.uk.
The website is owned and managed by West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust (WMAS).
WMAS is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
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. Please note this can only be done by browser.
- 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, for example:
HOW ACCESSIBLE THIS WEBSITE IS
We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:
- the text will not reflow in a single column when you change the size of the browser window
- you cannot modify the line height or spacing of text
- most older PDF documents are not fully accessible to screen reader software
- live video streams do not have captions
- some of our online forms are difficult to navigate using just a keyboard
- you cannot skip to the main content when using a screen reader
- there’s a limit to how far you can magnify the map on our ‘contact us’ page
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: pressoffice@wmas.nhs.uk
- Telephone: 01384 215 555
We’ll consider your request and get back to you in seven days.
If you cannot view the map on our ‘contact us’ page, call or email us – details of how to contact us are available at https://wmas.nhs.uk/contact/.
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 the Press Office via:
- Email: pressoffice@wmas.nhs.uk
- Telephone: 01384 215 555
ENNFORCEMENT 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).
CONTACTING US BY PHONE OR VISITING US IN PERSON
We provide a text relay service for people who are D/deaf, hearing impaired or have a speech impediment. Our offices have audio induction loops, or if you contact us before your visit we can arrange a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter. Find out how to contact us at: https://wmas.nhs.uk/contact/
TECHNICAL INFORMATION ABOUT THIS WEBSITE’S ACCESSIBILITY
WMAS 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
- non-compliances – this means the content in question is in scope of the regulations, but there’s an accessibility problem with it
- an exemption – this means the inaccessible content is out of scope of the regulations, or it’d be a disproportionate burden for you to make it accessible
NON-ACCESSIBLE CONTENT
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.
NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THE ACCESSIBILITY REGULATIONS
Some images do not have a text alternative, so people using a screen reader cannot access the information. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).
We plan to add text alternatives for all images by December 2023. When we publish new content we’ll make sure our use of images meets accessibility standards.
We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible: For example:
- some pages are not capable of zooming to 300% without text spilling off the screen
- WCAG 2.1.1 Keyboard
- WCAG 2.4.7 Focus Visible
- WCAG 2.2.2 Pause, Stop, Hide
- WCAG 2.4.3 Focus Order
- There is no pause button for carousel at the top of the homepage
- The keyboard tabs into the cookie banner at the bottom of the webpage
- WCAG 1.4.3 Contrast (minimum): Some text does not have sufficient colour contrast
- WCAG 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) WCAG and 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value: Links do not have discernible text
- WCAG 1.1.1 Non-text Content: Images must have alternate text
- Some links are not accessible by a screen reader and may not be clear enough as to where the link will take the user
- WCAG 2.4.2 Page title is missing within some PDF documents
- WCAG 3.1.1 Language of Page
- WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships: Tables
- WCAG 4.1.1 Parsing: IDs used in ARIA and labels must be unique
- Some images do not have alternate text. When we publish new content we’ll make sure our use of images meets accessibility standards
- The language is missing within the settings of some PDF documents
- Some PDFs do not have correctly marked up headings
- some pages are not easily navigable without a mouse
We are committed to carrying out full accessibility audits on our main websites. We have commissioned a consultant to carry out WCAG 2.1 AA level technical compliance audit, which we hope to have concluded by the end of September 2023. We will then work through how to address the areas raised.
NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THE ACCESSIBILITY REGULATIONS
Some images do not have a text alternative, so people using a screen reader cannot access the information. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).
We plan to add text alternatives for all images by December 2023. When we publish new content we’ll make sure our use of images meets accessibility standards.
Downloadable documents – file formats
The most common file formats for downloadable documents on our website are Portable Document Format (PDF) and Microsoft Word (DOC).
Most computers already have the software to open these document formats. If you do not have Adobe Reader (for reading PDFs) installed on your computer, it is available to download from the Adobe website.
Accessibility of PDF documents
Useful information about services to make Acrobat documents more accessible is provided on Adobe’s website:
CONTENT THAT’S NOT WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THE ACCESSIBILITY REGULATIONS
PDFs and other documents
Many of our older PDFs produced before 23 September 2018 do not meet accessibility standards – for example, they may not be structured so they’re accessible to a screen reader.
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. For example, we do not plan to fix Board papers from before this date.
Where possible, any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards. Where this is not possible, we will endeavour to make the information available in an accessible format. If you need documents in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille please email: pressoffice@wmas.nhs.uk
Live Video
We do not plan to add captions to live video streams because live video is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.
DISPROPORTIONATE BURDEN
We are committed to meeting our legal obligations set out in The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (“No. 2 Regulations”). However, we have a complex collection of online service information and limited resources to check them all for accessibility issues.
Navigation and accessing information
There’s no way to skip the repeated content in the page header (for example, a ‘skip to main content’ option). It’s not always possible to change the device orientation from horizontal to vertical without making it more difficult to view the content. It’s not possible for users to change text size without some of the content overlapping.
Interactive tools and transactions
Some of our interactive forms are difficult to navigate using a keyboard. For example, because some form controls are missing a ‘label’ tag. Our forms are built and hosted through third party software and ‘skinned’ to look like our website.
We are currently establishing the cost of using an external agency to make all documents accessible. However, based on similar organisations, it is unlikely to be justifiable over other essential service requirements. Should that be the case, or initial view is that we believe that it would be more appropriate to focus our limited resource on maintaining the most-used accessible content. We will update this page once we have received detailed costs. Further details of what is a disproportionate burden can be found here: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2018/952/regulation/7/made
WHAT WE’RE DOING TO IMPROVE ACCESSIBILITY
The Trust has commissioned a third party to fully assess our site and to come up with a plan as to how we can move towards improved accessibility. We expect the initial report to be with us by the end of September 2023. We will then update this page with a roadmap of how and when we plan to improve the accessibility of this website.
Internally we are working with all staff who are expected to produce accessible material going forward to ensure that documents we produce are easier to navigate.
PREPARATION OF THIS ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT
This statement was prepared on 29th August 2023.
This website is in the process of being tested. The test is being carried out by our web developer Stretch Marketing and any third parties they use to carry out specific testing and subsequent certification.