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Accessibility Statement

Introduction

Corfe Mullen Town Council (the ‘Council’) want as many people as possible to be able to use their website. For example, that means users should be able to:

  • 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)

The website has been developed to ensure the text is as simple as possible to understand.

AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

How accessible is the Council website

Some content uploaded onto the website may not be fully accessible:

  • older PDF documents are not fully accessible to screen reader software
  • there is a limit to how far you can magnify the map on our ‘Contact us’ page, which is provided by a third party (Google)

What can users do if they cannot access parts of the website

If users need information on the website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille:

Email: [email protected]

Call: 01202 698600 (Lines open Monday to Thursday 9am to 2pm)

Write to us or visit us at: Council Office, Towers Way, Corfe Mullen, Wimborne, Dorset BH21 3UA

The Clerk will consider your request and get back to you within 10 working days.

Reporting accessibility problems with the website

The Council are always looking to improve the accessibility of its website. If users find any problems not listed above or think the website is not meeting accessibility requirements, please contact:

Town Clerk
Corfe Mullen Town Council
Council Office
Towers Way
Corfe Mullen
Wimborne
Dorset
BH21 3UA

Email: [email protected]
Call: 01202 698600 (Lines open Monday to Thursday 9am to 2pm)

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 users are not happy with how the Council responds to complaints, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Contacting the Council by phone or visiting in person

The Council office does not currently have a hearing loop. Please contact the Council office before visiting, the office will try to arrange a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter.

Find out how to contact us https://www.corfemullen-tc.gov.uk/contact/

Compatibility with browsers and assistive technology

The Council website is designed to be compatible with the following technologies:

  • Mobile telephones
  • PC and MAC computers
  • Tablet devices
  • All known internet browsers
  • Screen readers

Technical information about the website’s accessibility

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

This website framework is compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard. For example, buttons are placed consistently to ensure other buttons and links are not blocked, changes have been made to non-text content and improved navigation.

Some content is partially compliant, due to the non-compliance listed below.

Non accessible content

Some pages may contain attachments which may not be currently compliant, such as:

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

The Council does all it can to identify content that is non-compliant.

Some images on the website pages may not have a text alternative, so the information on them is not available to people using a screen reader. See WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).

When the Council publishes new content, it will make sure the use of images meets accessibility standards.

Disproportionate burden

The Council has not identified any areas that they believe constitute a disproportionate burden.

Content that is not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

PDFs and other documents

Not all documents on the website are created by the Council. Some documents and content may be created by third parties or using third party software. Where this is the case the Council will endeavour, on request, to obtain an accessible copy from the original source or to convey the information contained in the document in an accessible way.

Many of the Councils older PDFs and Word documents do not meet accessibility standards, for example, they may not be structured so they are accessible to a screen reader. See WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2 (name, role value).

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

Some PDFs and Word documents are essential to providing the Councils services. For example, PDFs with information on how users can access the Councils services, and forms published as Word documents.

Any new PDFs or Word documents created by the Council will meet accessibility standards.

How the website is tested

The website was last tested in February 2025. Tests were carried out by both internal systems and the Council’s website provider, Aubergine 262 Ltd.

Tests will continue to be undertaken at least once a quarter.

What’s being done to improve accessibility

The Council are working continually to improve the accessibility of its website.

Staff training will be provided to ensure that all new content added meets accessibility criteria.

Quarterly reports are run to identify and address accessibility issues.

Review

The Accessibility Statement was presented to the Full Council, for approval and adoption on 25 February 2025, minute no. TC 24/352.

Future reviews will be carried out annually or when any changes are made to related legislation, whichever is sooner.

References

The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018