This website is run by Meltham Town Council. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:
- change colours, contrast levels and fonts
- 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)
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:
- the Agendas, Minutes & Meeting Timetables section of the website may be difficult to navigate with a screen reader – in particular, the meetings timetables
- the contact form is not accessible when navigating with keyboard only
- the Meltham in Focus archive has a number of issues that make it difficult to use with keyboard or screen reader
- most of the PDFs and Word Documents on the website are not currently in an accessible format
- some images do not have alt text
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:
- email townclerk@melthamtowncouncil.gov.uk
- call (01484) 362927
We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 10 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: townclerk@melthamtowncouncil.gov.uk giving the page title and the nature of the problem.
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
Meltham Town 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 is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 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
Agendas, Minutes & Meeting Timetables
The agendas, minutes and meeting timetables page is difficult to navigate with screen readers and keyboard only navigation. This is because the page has a complex table-based layout. The page fails the WCAG 2.1 criterion 1.3.2 (meaningful sequence).
We are currently reviewing the design of this page and intend to have a new, accessible replacement by December 2020.
Contact Form
The contact form uses the Ninja Forms plugin which has number of accessibility issues. The form can not be submitted when navigating with a keyboard only, because the submit button does not receive focus. This fails WCAG 2.1 criterion 2.4.3 (focus order), and WCAG 2.1 criterion 2.1.1 (keyboard).
The error messages on the form are too generic and do not adequately describe the errors. This fails WCAG 2.1 criterion 3.3.1 (error identification). The error messages do not include suggestions for how to fix the errors. This fails WCAG 2.1 criterion 3.3.3 (error suggestion).
We aim to fix the contact form issues by December 2020.
Meltham in Focus digital archive
The navigation for the Meltham in Focus digital archive has some issues when using a keyboard only. When zoomed into image, the image can not be moved within the window, and search results within the archive viewer can not be navigated and viewed. This fails WCAG success criterion 2.1.1 (keyboard).
The navigation for the Meltham in Focus archive is missing WAI-ARIA attributes, which could make it difficult to navigate when using a screen reader. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2 (name, role, value).
The Meltham in Focus archive can not be viewed horizontally on a mobile phone, because the archive viewer to not resize to fit the screen. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.4 (orientation).
We are currently reviewing Meltham in Focus to determine the best way to address these issues.
Images and text alternatives
Some images do not have a text alternative, so people using a screen reader cannot access the information. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content).
We plan to add text alternatives for all images by December 2020. When we publish new content we’ll make sure our use of images meets accessibility standards.
Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
PDFs and other documents published before 23 September 2018
Many of our older PDFs and Word documents do not meet accessibility standards – for example, they may not be structured so they’re accessible to a screen reader. This does not meet WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.2 (name, role value).
Some of our PDFs and Word documents are essential to providing our services. For example, we have PDFs with information on how users can access our services, and forms published as Word documents. By December 2020, we plan to either fix these or replace them with accessible HTML pages.
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.
Heritage collections
Heritage collections such as scanned manuscripts are exempt from the accessibility guidelines. This applies to the content of the Meltham in Focus digital archive.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 22nd September 2020. It was last reviewed on 22nd September 2020.We are currently in the process of reviewing this page as at April 2024.
This website was last tested on 22nd September 2020. The test was carried out by our freelance web developer, Dan Booth, using Site Improve, Wave, and manual tests.
They tested our main website platform, available at melthamtowncouncil.gov.uk
We used this approach to decide on a sample of pages to test:
- including each type of page template, content, homepage, news, contact us
- including the different elements of the website, for example, web forms, tables, navigation menus, images, PDFs
What we’re doing to improve accessibility
We aim to fix any outstanding accessibility issues by December 2020. We will update this statement as issues are resolved.
