Accessibility Statement

This web portal is run by Sustrans. We want as many people from existing and potential partners as possible, as well as our own staff, to be able to use this website.

We also aim to make 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 is the Portal?

The partner side of the Portal system has been redesigned with accessibility and multi device compatability as a key principle, with WCAG guidelines being followed. This redesign was launched in spring 2022.

Unfortunately, there may be some areas where accessibility complience has not been achieved, particularly with regards to some documentation and reports that can be downloaded.

The internal side of the system is in the process of being redeveloped to meet accessibility requirements. We are aware of a number of accessbility issues with the current internal pages.

  • Some text will not reflow in a single column when you change the size of the browser window.
  • You cannot modify the size of the text without some text overlapping.
  • Most older PDF documents are not fully accessible to screen reader software.
  • You cannot skip to the main content when using a screen reader.
  • Low contrast between link colour and background colour makes the text difficult to read for some visitors.
  • Some images do not have equivalent text alternatives.
  • Labels are not explicitly connected to their related form input fields.
  • Some text elements are marked up as a heading when they are not headings.

Accessibility complient versions of the internal pages will be rolled out as they are completed. The full redevelopment is currently planned for completion mid-late 2023.

How do I get information from the Portal in a different format?

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

We will consider your request and get back to you within two days.

What if I have or find accessibility issues with the Portal?

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 the Portal team via projectportal@sustrans.org.uk or 0131 603 4854.

Enforcement Procedure - What are my accessibliity rights?

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 the Portal's Accessibility

Sustrans 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:

  • Some images do not have equivalent text alternatives. WCAG 2.1 reference: 1.1.1 (provide alternative text that serves and equivalent purpose)
  • You cannot skip to the main content when using a screen reader (for example, a ‘skip to main content’ option). WCAG 2.1 reference: 2.4.1 (bypass blocks).
  • Low contrast between link colour and background colour makes the text difficult to read for some visitors. WCAG 2.1 reference: 1.4.3 (Minimum contrast ratio).
  • When text is resized content overlaps. WCAG 2.1 reference: 1.4.4 (text can be resized without assistive technology up to 200 percent without loss of content or functionality)
  • When a browsers is resized the text does not reflow to fit the new width. WCAG 2.1 reference: 1.4.10 (content can be presented without loss of information or functionality, and without requiring scrolling in two dimensions)
  • Form labels are not explicitly connected do form input fields. WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text Content), Success Criterion 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships), Success Criterion 3.3.2 (Labels or Instructions), Success Criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value)
  • Markup does not pass W3C validation tests. WCAG 2.1 reference: 4.1.1 (validation).
  • Text elements are marked up as a heading when they are not headings and not all headings are marked as headings. 1.3.1 Info and Relationships, 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks (Level A), 2.4.6 Headings and Labels

When we plan to fix these problems

For the public facing parts of the Portal, we plan to fix the above issues by August 2021, as part of a complete redevelopment of the interface.

For the internal (Sustrans Staff) parts of the Portal, we do not currently have a timescale for full compliance due to the complexity of the information provided by the system, but will be working through 2021 to resolve as many of the issues as we are able.

When we publish new content and develop new features we'll make sure the contents referred to above meets accessibility standards.

Content that's not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

PDFs and other documents:

  • 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).
  • 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. For example, we do not plan to fix [example of non-essential document].
  • Any new PDFs or Word documents we publish will meet accessibility standards.
  • Live Video streams do not have captions. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.2.4 (captions - live).

We will add captions to live video streams where possible on new videos, but will not be doing this across all videos as videos are exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.

How and when was the Portal last tested for accessibility?

This website was last tested in full on 31/1/2021. The test was carried out by Jim Byrne Accessible Website Design.

Sampling and approach to testing

All of the pages on the public facing part of the system were tested. Pages were chosen to represent the features and functionality of the website.

Where a problem was highlighted in the report this was interpreted as an example of an issue to be fixed across the site. The report was not a definitive list of every error or access issue to be found on the sites.

When was this statement last updated?

This statement was originally prepared on 3/3/2021. It was last updated on 29/11/2022