Website accessibility

We have developed this site with the feedback and support of our service users, staff, carers and wider partners to make this site as accessible as possible for all visitors.

Accessibility statement for Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

This accessibility statement applies to the Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust website.

This website is run by Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.

On this website, you should be able to:

  • use the Switch Colours function to change colours and contrast levels
  • zoom in up to 300% with text staying visible on the screen, and most images scaling without resolution loss
  • navigate most of the website using a keyboard
  • navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
  • read most of the website using a screen reader, including the latest versions of JAWS, NVDA, and VoiceOver
  • we’ve used Plain English to make the information as simple as possible to understand

We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.

My Computer My Way has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability, and the AT Hive can help you find assistive technologies that work for you.

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible. You can see a full list of any issues we currently know about in the Non-accessible content section of this statement.

We will continue to work with HMA our website provider to audit and identify any new problems and work towards achieving Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Level AA standards.

This website will work on Microsoft Edge (version 119.0.2151.12 or later), Safari, Firefox, and Chrome. The site will not be fully accessible on Internet Explorer 8 and will not work correctly with older versions of Internet Explorer (IE) such as IE6 or IE7, as these browsers do not support responsive code and do not fully comply with WCAG 2.2.

There are a limited number of pages on the website that rely on JavaScript, these include locations pages which feature Google maps, however each of our services pages contains full address and contact details of the appropriate locations.

Pages using JavaScript will not be accessible to visitors using assistive technologies or those who do not have JavaScript enabled in their browsers.

We know that some parts of our website aren’t fully accessible:

  • we have a large number of publications and documents which are in PDF format, and haven’t been designed for accessibility
  • some of our documents, such as forms, have not been designed for accessibility
  • some of our older PDF files contain broken links
  • some content is displayed on our website as a text-based picture or infographic, such as organisational structures, and these cannot be easily scaled on screen or read by screenreaders
  • some link text doesn’t make sense when read on its own (for example ‘click here’)
  • some links are just the URL
  • some images are missing descriptive alternative text
  • some of pages do not have a logical heading structure
  • some links do not have discernible text
  • some of page content should be contained by landmarks

Feedback and contact information

If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements,:

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

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 14 days.

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

Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust 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

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

  • Some images do not have descriptive alt text. This fails WCAG 1.1.1. Users using a screen reader will not have a description of the image. By the end of September 2025, all images and any new images added will have alternative text.
  • The Recovery College pages are not fully accessible. By July 2025, we will be removing most of this content, ensuring any remaining content is accessible, and signposting to a new accessible third-party booking system. In the meantime, please email the Recovery College to learn more about their courses and book a space.
    • Some links do not have discernible text. This fails WCAG 2.4.4. This criterion ensures that the purpose of each link can be determined from the link text alone or from the link text together with its programmatically determined link context. When links do not have discernible text, users, especially those using screen readers, may not understand the purpose of the link and may find navigation confusing.
    • Some headings are empty. This fails WCAG 2.2 2.4.6. This criterion ensures that headings and labels describe the topic or purpose of the content. Empty headings can confuse users, especially those using screen readers, as they rely on headings to navigate and understand the structure of the content.
    • Some heading levels don’t increase by only one. This fails WCAG 1.3.1. This criterion ensures that information, structure, and relationships conveyed through presentation can be programmatically determined or are available in text. When heading levels do not increase sequentially, it can disrupt the logical flow and hierarchy of the content, making it difficult for users to navigate.
    • Some landmarks do not have a unique role or role/label/title (i.e. accessible name) combination. This fails WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships). This criterion ensures that landmarks have unique roles or accessible names to help users, especially those using assistive technologies, navigate the page effectively. When landmarks are not uniquely identified, it can cause confusion and hinder navigation.
    • Some of the page content is not contained by landmarks. This fails WCAG 1.3.1. This criterion ensures that information, structure, and relationships conveyed through presentation can be programmatically determined or are available in text. When page content is not contained by landmarks, it can make navigation difficult for users relying on assistive technologies, such as screen readers.
    • Some images have text on them. This fails WCAG 1.4.5 because it doesn’t allow users with low vision to scale the text size.
  • Some images, such as logos of partner organisations on the Advice and Support pages, have text on them. This fails WCAG 1.4.5 because it doesn’t allow users with low vision to scale the text size. Text alongside the image and alternative text is provided. We will remove any unnecessary images with text by the end of September 2025.
  • On the search results page, some of the touch targets are not 24px large, or leave sufficient space. This fails WCAG 2.5.8. This criterion ensures that touch targets, such as buttons and links, are at least 24 by 24 CSS pixels in size or have sufficient spacing around them. This helps users with mobility impairments or those using touch devices to activate targets without accidentally activating adjacent ones. We have raised with our digital agency HMA and will work with them to resolve this issue by the end of September 2025.
  • The colour contrast needs improving for some text. This fails WCAG 1.4.3. Text on some of the pages is making it harder for users who are visually impaired to easily read and understand the content. We are currently reviewing all pages and will ensure that the colour contrast for text is accessible by the end of September 2025.
  • Some markup should be amended. For example, using tables for layout instead of tabular data, buttons for filter controls instead of links, lists where appropriate instead of <div>s. This fails WCAG 1.3.1. Assistive technologies will not be able to read or interact with the information as it is intended. We have raised with our digital agency HMA and will work with them to resolve this issue by the end of September 2025.
  • Headings on some pages, such as the urgent help page, should be coded more appropriately. This fails WCAG 1.3.1 and WCAG 2.4.6. Incorrect headings don’t provide users with screen readers a true representation of the page’s structure. We are currently reviewing all pages and will ensure that the heading structure for all pages is logical by the end of September 2025.
  • Some of link text doesn’t make sense when read on its own, for example on the Strategy page. This fails WCAG 2.4.4. It is not clear what some links will do. We are currently reviewing all pages and will ensure that all links are accessible by the end of September 2025.
  • Some of our documents, such as referral forms and patient information leaflets, have not been designed accessibly. This fails WCAG 1.3.1. This criterion ensures that information, structure, and relationships conveyed through presentation can be programmatically determined or are available in text. When documents are not designed accessibly, users with disabilities may not be able to access all the content. We are currently reviewing all documents on the website and are updating them to accessible formats and are improving our processes so that new documents added meet accessibility standards. We aim to complete this work by the end of September 2025. In the meantime, please contact the Translation Support Team for an alternative format.
  • Some of our documents we are required to publish use frameworks provided by external bodies which are not designed accessibly. WCAG 1.3.1 and 1.4.3. The first criterion ensures that the information and structure are accessible, while the second ensures that text and images of text have sufficient contrast to be readable by users with visual impairments. If the frameworks provided are not fully accessible, it can prevent some users from accessing all the content in the documents. We are currently reviewing our processes for documents like this with the aim to have them accessible by the end of September 2025. In the meantime, please contact the Translation Support Team for an alternative format.
  • Some of the page content is not contained by landmarks. This fails WCAG 1.3. This criterion ensures that information, structure, and relationships conveyed through presentation can be programmatically determined or are available in text. When page content is not contained by landmarks, it can make navigation difficult for users relying on assistive technologies, such as screen readers. We have raised with our digital agency HMA and we will work with them to resolve this issue by the end of September 2025.
  • Elements of the third-party survey: ‘Have your say’ do not have sufficient colour contrast due to the gradient background. This fails WCAG 1.4.3 making it harder for users who are visually impaired to easily read and understand the content. We are going to work with the third-party provider to resolve this issue or remove the survey by the end of September 2025. If you wish to provide feedback, please email our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS).

We have reviewed the issues identified as part of our ongoing website redevelopment project and are working through actions to resolve this. We plan to address these issues by the end of September 2025. For more information about the website redevelopment project, please email the Communications Team.

If you find an issue that we have yet to identify, please contact us using one of the routes described in the ‘Feedback and contact information’ section of this statement.

Disproportionate burden

At this time, we have not made any disproportionate burden claims.

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.

3rd party content

Some of our services include third party content which we have no control over such as documents which are sent to us and uploaded. The accessibility regulations do not require us to manage these kinds of content, but if you have a problem with any of the content hosted on this website, please contact us using the methods above and we will try to help.

Video content

We do not plan to add captions to live video streams because live video is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations. We also have some existing pre-recorded video content that was published before the 23rd September 2020. This content is also exempt from the regulations. All new video content we produce will have appropriate captions, audio descriptions and transcripts as necessary.

Online Maps

Our service includes the use of online maps to show certain geographical information. These are not used for navigational purposes and are exempt under the regulations. If you require the information presented in an online map in a different format, please contact us to discuss reasonable adjustments.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 11 April 2025. It was last reviewed on 31 March 2025.

This website was last tested on 11 April 2025. The test was carried out using axe DevTools browser extension by the Digital Communications Officer at Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.

Useful Information

If you would like to share your thoughts on our website, please contact our Communications Team.

If you would like to request information from our website in an alternative format, please contact our Interpretation and Translation Support Team.

 

Page last updated: 24th Apr 2025 8:46am