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Accessibility

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UON Accessibility Statement

This statement applies to content published on the www.northampton.ac.uk domain. It does not apply to content on any other University of Northampton domain.

This website is run by the University of Northampton. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you 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)
  • We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.

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

How accessible is this website

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible:

  • Older PDF or Word documents may not be fully accessible to screen reader software

Unibuddy

The University of Northampton uses Unibuddy to host live chat events. Unibuddy aims to meet the W3W WAI’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1, Level AA conformance. Their accessibility guidelines are detailed on the Unibuddy website and undergo regular review.

Feedback and contact information

If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF or large print then please email ASSIST@northampton.ac.uk.

We’ll consider your request and you can expect an acknowledgement within 6 working days and a full reply within 20 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, please contact the Digital Services Team in Marketing by emailing digital.services@northampton.ac.uk providing as much detail about the query or issues as possible.

Enforcement procedure

If you need to escalate your issue further, please contact Fiona Smith, Administrator for Marketing and Student Recruitment, at fiona.smith@northampton.ac.uk who will ensure that your issue is logged and referred to the Chair of the University Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Forum.

You can expect an acknowledgement within 6 working days and a full reply within 20 working days. If your complaint raises complex issues that cannot be answered within 20 working days, we will keep you informed of progress until we can fully respond.

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

The University of Northampton 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

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances and exemptions listed below.

Non-accessible content

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

  • Older 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). When we publish new content we’ll make sure our use of images meets accessibility standards.
  • Older PDF or Word documents may not be fully accessible to screen reader software. When we publish new PDF or Word documents or update existing ones we’ll make sure they are fully accessible.
  • Currently the University’s Access and Participation Plan, provided by the Office for Students, is not accessible as found on our Access and Participation Plans page.
  • Our Northamptonshire Innovation Ecosystem Analysis Workstream 3 Report is not accessible, and we are unable to provide a version of the document that meets Accessibility standards.
  • Our Sustainability Strategy is not accessible but we are due to receive an accessible version of the document shortly.

Disproportionate burden

No disproportionate burden claims at this time

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.

Many documents are not accessible in a number of ways including missing text alternatives and missing document structure.

Pre-recorded audio and video published before 23 September 2020

We do not plan to make audio and video published before 23 September 2020 accessible because this content is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.

Live video

We do not plan to add captions to live video streams because live video is exempt from meeting the accessibility regulations.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

  • The University has an Student Equality Diversity and Inclusion Forum which has two further Groups feeding into it. One is the Disability Coordinators Group and the Staff Equality Diversity and Inclusion Forum. At all meetings, the groups are considering ways in which University accessibility may be improved.
  • Equality Impact Assessments (EIAs) are required for new policies and services and ensure a focus on the range of people expected to access that material.
  • An appropriate accessibility checker (AChecker and Monsido) is used to check for accessibility issues on the website.
  • Training (synchronous and asynchronous) has been developed for all staff to ensure they are aware of the requirements and have the skills needed to update materials.
  • We are currently working with content owners to ensure PDF’s and Word documents are accessible.
  • Any updates or changes to the website are also tested for accessibility before making the changes live.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 3 August 2020. It was last reviewed on 6 August 2026.

This website was last tested on 27 July 2022. The test was carried out by All Response Media on behalf of the University of Northampton.

How we tested this website

This website was tested for compliance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines V2.1 level A and level AA. These tests have been carried out by All Response Media on behalf of the University of Northampton. Any accessibility issues identified during testing were investigated and fixed where possible.