Accessibility Statement Q2/2024

The University of York is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

This accessibility statement applies to content published on the https://discover.york.ac.uk domain. It does not apply to content on other http://york.ac.uk subdomains.

Development of this website is coordinated by the Digital Technology and Innovation team in the Directorate of Library, Archives and Learning Services. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. On most pages on the website you should be able to:

• change colours, contrast levels and fonts

• zoom in up to 500% without the text spilling off the screen

• navigate using just a keyboard

• navigate using speech recognition software

• listen to content using a screen reader. 

AbilityNet’s My Computer My Way pages have advice on adjustments you can make to your computer, laptop, tablet or smartphone to make it easier to use.

How accessible this website is

We acknowledge that certain sections of this website may not be fully accessible. 

• For deep zoom images we use the open source component Universal Viewer 4.10.x that comes with a dedicated accessibility statement.

• Some images are available in a zoomable format with limited descriptive text-to-speech information. 

• The colour contrast on fonts in the Universal Viewer is below the recommended ratio. 

• Some links lack sufficient colour contrast with the surrounding text. 

• On the homepage, and some collection pages (Aero Girls, Archbishops Registers, Cause Papers), nested interactive controls may not always be announced by certain screen readers and could potentially cause focus issues for assistive technologies.

• Some links on the Cause Papers collection do not have discernible text.

• It is not possible to navigate and open different images for deep zoom using just a keyboard on the Universal Viewer. 

Feedback and contact information

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’re not meeting accessibility requirements, you can report an accessibility issue.

This website is administered by the Digital Technology and Innovation team within the Library, Archives and Learning Services directorate. If you have any queries about the website please email us at dti-service-desk-group at york.ac.uk. 

Enforcement procedure

In the first instance, University of York students and applicants unhappy with our response to reporting of an accessibility issue can follow our complaints 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).

Detailed information about this website's accessibility

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, because of the issues below:

• Interactive controls must not be nested

• Elements must meet minimum colour contrast ratio thresholds

• Links must be distinguishable without relying on colour

• Links must have discernible text

• Heading elements are nested in a logical way

Keyboard Access

Most areas of the Discover@Yorl Digital Library can be accessed using a keyboard. However, there are a few parts that are difficult to use or not accessible. We are aware about that in the Universal Viewer:

• The tab order may not be logical and follows the visual order of elements on the page.

• In the left panel ‘Contents’ it is not possible to select a ‘Thumbnails’ tab with enter but it is possible with space.

• In the left panel ‘Contents’ when the ‘Thumbnails’ tab is selected it is not possible to open a selected image for deep zoom display in the main panel.

Screen Reader Access

MacOS Voice over (page open on Chrome)

• It is not possible to follow instruction Control-Option Space to initiate click on home page, button group.

Colour Contrast

While most text throughout Discover meets minimum colour contrast standards, there are cases where links displayed on the Universal Viewer do not have enough contrast with the background colour.

If colour contrast is a concern for you, we recommend utilising one of the free browser plugins that can increase text/background colour contrast, such as the Colour Enhancer or High Contrast extension for Google Chrome.

How we tested this website

We use a combination of methods to check our site:

• Automated testing: we used automated testing tools including axe, WAVE and Tota11y.

• Manual testing: we used an accessibility checklist to manually check a representative sample of pages from across our website. This included checking that our pages can be navigated using only a keyboard, and testing any colour contrasts that could not be automatically checked.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

• We are ensuring that our development processes include accessibility considerations and testing as standard. 

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 31st May 2024. It was last reviewed on 14th June 2024. This website was last tested on 15th May 2024. The test was carried out manually, and using the axe DevTools v4.8.0, WAVE Evaluation Tool 4.1 on Chrome Web Browser Version 124.0.6367.208.