Accessibility statement

This accessibility statement applies to this Achieving for Children website. 

Our commitment to accessibility

We are committed to ensuring digital accessibility for everyone. We are continually improving the user experience and applying the relevant accessibility standards, in line with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2.
This website is run by Achieving for Children. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

• Find content in two or more ways.
• Change colours, contrast levels and fonts.
• Zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen.
• Control distracting flickering or movement.
• 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).
• Access the content in a logical order even if styling is removed.

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, including:

• Third-party plugins (Recite Me, Google Maps, Google Recaptcha, YouTube embeds) which currently do not meet certain WCAG 2.2 success criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value) and anticipated WCAG 2.2 criteria. We are actively seeking solutions and alternatives.
• The navigation bar may obscure focus elements when using a keyboard to navigate through the site

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 email us:

[email protected]

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in seven working days.

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 us on the details above.

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

Achieving for Children 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

The website has been tested against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standard.

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

Non-accessible content

• 1.4.3 Contrast Minimum - Some text and background color combinations do not meet the minimum contrast requirements, which may make the text hard to read for users with visual impairments.
• 1.4.5 Images of Text - Some images on our website contain text that is not accessible to screen readers. We are working on replacing these images with accessible alternatives.
• 2.4.3 Focus Order - The focus order of some interactive elements is not logical, which can make navigation using a keyboard difficult.
• 1.4.10 Reflow - Some content does not reflow properly when viewed on small screens or when the page is zoomed in, which can make the content difficult to access.
• 1.3.1 Info and Relationships - Some content does not have the necessary semantic structure to convey relationships between elements, which may cause issues for users relying on screen readers.
• 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value - Some interactive elements do not have appropriate names, roles, or values defined, making them difficult to use with assistive technologies.
• 2.1.1 Keyboard - There are issues with keyboard accessibility for certain components, making it difficult for users who rely on keyboard navigation.
• 1.1.1 Alternative Text - Some images lack alternative text, which is necessary for users who rely on screen readers to understand the content of the images.
• 1.3.2 Meaningful Order - The reading and navigation order of some content is not logical, which can be confusing for screen reader users.
• 1.4.4 Text Resize - Some text does not resize properly when the user increases the text size, which can make the text difficult to read.
• 2.4.2 Page Titles - Some pages do not have descriptive titles, which can make navigation difficult for users with assistive technologies.
• 1.4.1 Use of Colour - Some content relies solely on colour to convey information, which may not be accessible to users with colour blindness.
• 1.4.13 Content on Hover or Focus - Some content that appears on hover or focus cannot be dismissed without moving the cursor or keyboard focus, which can cause difficulties for some users.
• 1.3.5 Input Purpose - The purpose of some input fields is not identified programmatically, making it difficult for users with cognitive disabilities to understand the expected input.
• 1.4.12 Text Spacing - Some text does not maintain its spacing when users adjust text spacing settings, which can affect readability.
• 2.5.3 Label in Name - Some form fields do not have visible labels that match the accessible names, which can confuse users of screen readers.
• 4.1.3 Status Message - Some status messages are not announced by screen readers, which can cause users to miss important information.
• 2.4.7 Focus Indicator - Some interactive elements do not have a visible focus indicator, making it difficult for keyboard users to track their location on the page.

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

• PDFs and other documents - 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. Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards.
• Live video - We do not plan to add captions to live video streams because live video is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.

What we're doing to improve accessibility

We continuously monitor website and application accessibility trends and aim to resolve the third-party compliance issues as soon as possible. We are also committed to making all new website content and features accessible.

We have recently conducted a full WCAG 2.2 accessibility audit, completed on 13 June 2024, to identify any additional issues; the problems identified from the audit will be actioned appropriately.

We have invested in the Recite Me accessibility tool which is available on our website. We recognise that this tool does not contribute to our work to make our website comply with accessibility regulations. However, user feedback suggested that some users would find this tool helpful. This is particularly relevant to people that require information in languages other than English.

We are aware that the Recite me/Accessibility tool button does not meet WCAG 1.4.5 Images of Text. We are working on a fix for this.

If you would like to provide feedback about the accessibility of the website, then please email us: 

[email protected]

Developments to the website in line with user feedback about accessibility will be evaluated in line with what is likely to make the largest impact to our users and the cost of achieving these objectives.

Preparation of this accessibility statement 

This statement was prepared on 28 August 2020. It was last reviewed on 9 July 2024.

The website's last accessibility test was conducted on 13 June 2024 against the WCAG 2.2 AA standard. The test was carried out by This is Focus Limited. As recommended by the Government Digital Service, we used this approach to test a sample of key pages, actions and user journeys against the above checklist.