Accessibility statement
This is the accessibility statement for the DiAGRAM website, run by The National Archives.
Information in different formats
If you need information in a different format like large print or Braille, please ask us by:
- Email: digitalpreservation@nationalarchives.gov.uk
- Phone: 020 8876 3444
- Live chat: via our contact page
We will answer within 10 working days.
Reporting problems
If you find any problems not mentioned in this statement, or if you think we are not meeting accessibility requirements, please let us know by:
- Email: digitalpreservation@nationalarchives.gov.uk
- Phone: 020 8876 3444
- Live chat: via our contact page
Making a complaint
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018, known as the "Accessibility Regulations".
If you contacted us to report a problem with this website and you are not happy with the way we responded, you can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).
Technical information
The National Archives 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 (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA standard, due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.
Non-accessible content
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
We know about the following areas where the website does not meet accessibility standards and we have a plan to address each of them.
Text Alternatives
- Images within PDF reports generated from within the "Download a Report" section of the website are missing appropriate equivalent text descriptions. This means that people who use screen readers will not know what these images represent. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 1.1.1 Non-text content (A). We plan to make sure that all images within generated PDF reports are provided with appropriate text descriptions by though this is subject to finding appropriate technical means to doing so.
Adaptable
- PDF reports generated from within the "Download a Report" section of the website are not tagged. This means that structural elements within the report (such as headings and tables) are not reported correctly to assistive technologies, which will make it difficult for people who use screen readers in particular to navigate to and within the content of the report. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (A). We plan to make sure that content within PDF reports is appropriately tagged by though this is subject to finding appropriate technical means to doing so.
- Some dialog boxes on the website are missing markup that ensures content behind the dialog box is hidden from assistive technologies. Consequently, people who use screen readers may unwittingly navigate outside of the dialog box when reading its contents, and therefore find it difficult to navigate back into it. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence (A). We plan to make sure that all dialog boxes include the required markup by though this is subject to finding appropriate technical means to doing so.
Navigable
- The website is missing a skip link to allow people who use the keyboard alone to bypass sections of repeated content in a single step. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks (A). We plan to add a skip link to the website by .
- All pages within the website have the same page title, which can make it difficult for users to quickly identify the topic or purpose of the page. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 2.4.2 Page Titled (A). We plan to make sure that all pages have an appropriate page title by .
- PDF reports generated from within the "Download a Report" section of the website are missing programmatic titles. This means that the PDF's file name is used in place of a human readable title. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 2.4.2 Page Titled (A). We plan to make sure that an appropriate title is provided for all PDF documents downloaded from the website by though this is subject to finding appropriate technical means to doing so.
- In a small number of cases, such as when dismissing certain dialog boxes, keyboard focus does not move to the expected user interface element when a related action is performed. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 2.4.3 Focus Order (A). We plan to make sure that focus is handled in an expected manner across the website by .
- An offscreen text description is included to provide people who use screen readers with an equivalent for the DiAGRAM node structure that appears on both the website's home page and the advanced customisation page. This text description includes links, which means visible focus is momentarily lost for sighted people when navigating through the related page using the keyboard alone. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 2.4.3 Focus Order (A) and WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 2.4.7 Focus Visible (AA). We plan to remove these links from the offscreen text description and to make sure that they are visible for all users by .
Input Modalities
- The visible label for some buttons on the website is not included in the accessible name for the button. People who use speech input and who activate controls by announcing the visible label of the button may find that their speech recognition software cannot find the element they are referring to. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 2.5.3 Label in Name (A). We plan to make sure that the accessible name for all buttons on the website includes the button's visible label by .
Readable
- The human language of PDF reports generated from within the "Download a Report" section of the wesbite is not indicated programmatically, which means that screen readers and other text-to-speech applications that support multiple languages will not be able to adapt to the correct accent or pronunciation when announcing the PDF's content. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 3.1.1 Language of Page (A) and 3.1.2 Language of Parts (AA). We plan to make sure that the human language of PDF reports is programmatically indicated following their creation by though this is subject to finding appropriate technical means to doing so.
Compatible
- The markup used to build the website contains a small number of validation errors, so people who use assistive technologies like screen readers or voice recognition may find they do not convey content as expected from time to time. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 4.1.1 Parsing (A). We plan to make sure all markup validates correctly by .
- Text fields within tables in the "Advanced Customisation" section of the website are missing an accessible label. This means that people who use screen readers may find it difficult to identify what each field represents, and therefore what they need to enter into the field. This fails WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (A). We plan to make sure that each of these fields is provided with an accessible label by .
Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
The accessibility regulations do not require us to fix PDFs published before if they are not essential to providing our services.
We plan to fix all essential PDFs published before by , and all PDFs (essential or not) published after by though this is subject to finding appropriate technical means to doing so.
Disproportionate burden
Meeting WCAG 2.1 Level AA is not a disproportionate burden.
Statement preparation
This statement was prepared on . It was last reviewed on .
This website was last tested in . The test was carried out by TetraLogical.
As indicated, The National Archives believes that all issues except those related to generated PDF reports have been resolved prior to the formal launch of the site, but this has not yet been subject to an independent retest. We will continue to investigate the technical production of PDF reports in compliance with the regulations, note that all information included in the reports is available in accessible form through the DiAGRAM website itself. We are also happy to work with site users to create accessible versions of the PDF files on an individual basis as necessary in line with our obligation to provide material in alternative formats as necessary.