Accessibility statement for iCasework forms

This accessibility statement applies to the:

There’s a separate accessibility statement for the main H&F website.

These services are part of the wider H&F website and are run by Hammersmith & Fulham Council through our third-party supplier iCasework (part of the Civica group).

Using this website

We want as many people as possible to be able to use these services.

For example, that means you should be able to:

  • change colours, contrast levels and fonts
  • zoom in up to 200% without the text spilling off the screen
  • get from the start of the service to the end using just a keyboard
  • get from the start of the service to the end using speech recognition software
  • listen to the service 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:

  • some colours do not have enough contrast
  • some form fields are missing a label or are not grouped in a fieldset
  • mandatory fields are only indicated by an asterisk (*)
  • there is no skip to main content link
  • the same link text is used to go to different destinations
  • the date pickers on the FOI disclosure are not keyboard accessible

Feedback and contact information

If you have difficulty using these services, you can make a complaint or FOI request by:

As part of providing these services, we may need to send you messages or documents.

We’ll ask you how you want us to send messages or documents to you, but contact us if you need them in a different format. For example large print, audio recording or braille.

Reporting accessibility problems with this service

We're always looking to improve the accessibility of these services.

If you find any problems that aren't listed on this page or think we're not meeting the requirements of the accessibility regulations, please use our report form to let us know.

Report an accessibility issue

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).

Contacting us by phone or visiting us in person

We provide a text relay service for people who are Deaf, hearing impaired or have a speech impediment. Please call 18001 followed by 020 8748 3020.

Alternatively, you can use Relay UK service. Relay UK (previously Next Generation Text) - helps people with hearing and speech difficulties communicate with anyone over the phone, using the national relay service.

Our customer service centre is wheelchair accessible and has a portable hearing loop.

Find out how to contact us.

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

Hammersmith & Fulham Council is committed to making these services 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.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

Colour contrast

Links have low contrast with their backgrounds. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.3 (contrast - minimum).

Form fields also have low contrast with their backgrounds. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.11 (non-text contrast).

Interactive tools and transactions

The following input fields are missing a label:

  • search field (all services)
  • address list (FOI and complaints forms)
  • until date (Disclosure log)

These fail WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.2.2 (labels and instructions) and 1.3.1 (info and relationships). The search field will however still be announced by screen readers.

Radio button options are not grouped in a fieldset with a descriptive legend. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.2.2 (labels and instructions) and 1.3.1 (info and relationships).

Some form fields are not descriptive enough and may confuse users. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.6 (headings and labels).

Mandatory fields are only indicated by a red asterisk which is an image. The asterisk does have alt text which can be read by some screen readers such as NVDA, however, there is no on-page text to explain this. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.4.1 (use of colour) and 3.3.2 (labels or instructions).

There are some form fields that are mandatory, but this information is not provided to users. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.3.2 (labels or instructions). On the FOI form, either the title field or first name field must be used. On the complaints form a postal address or email address must be provided.

Error summary messages are given on the FOI and complaints forms, however, they have not been presented as status messages that can be understood by assistive technologies. They also do not identify which mandatory fields were not filled in. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 4.1.3 (status messages) and 3.3.1 (error identification).

The error messages presented next to mandatory form fields do not include a suggestion on how to correct the error. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.3.4 (error suggestion).

A skip to content link is not present. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.1 (bypass blocks).

The focus order does not follow a logical order in the navigation menu. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.3 (focus order).

Accesskeys are used on buttons in the form and provide a way to define shortcut keys. They often conflict with user or assistive technology shortcut keys. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.1 (bypass blocks).

Technology

The date pickers on the Disclosure log are not keyboard accessible. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.1.1 (keyboard).

The form fields on the FOI and complaints forms don’t resize on mobile devices meaning there is horizontally scrolling on the screen. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.10 (reflow).

The bold tag is used to format content instead of the strong tag. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 (info and relationships).

On the Disclosure log, the same link text is used for different FOI responses meaning the links go to different destinations. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.4 (link purpose – in context).

The social media icons in the footer don’t have link text meaning the function or purpose of the link will not be presented to users of assistive technologies. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 2.4.4 (link purpose – in context).

There are two H&F logos on these sites and they are both clickable images. The H&F logo in the header has insufficient text alternative and link text. The H&F logo in the footer has no text alternative or link text. Both fail WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.1.1 (non-text content) and 2.4.4 (link purpose - in context).

Layout tables are used on the summary pages of the FOI and complaints forms. The reading and navigation order are correct, however, the tables don’t have role=” presentation” in their code to prevent screen readers from identifying them as tables. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 (info and relationships).

Website code

The desktop and mobile search fields both have the same ID. This fails WCAG 2.1 success criterion 1.3.1 (info and relationships) and 4.1.1 (parsing).

Disproportionate burden

We’ve assessed the cost of fixing some of the issues detailed in the non-accessible content section and believe that doing so now would be a disproportionate burden within the meaning of the accessibility regulations. This is because these services are due to be upgraded by early 2021.

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.

How we tested this service

This service was last tested on 27 August 2020 by Hammersmith & Fulham Council using:

  • browser inspection tools
  • manual checking
  • NVDA
  • Siteimprove
  • Text spacing
  • WAVE
  • Web developer

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

These services are due to be upgraded by early 2021 and will be compliant with WCAG 2.1 AA. Where possible we will fix some issues before this to make the system more usable for all users.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 15 September 2020. It was last reviewed on 9 April 2021.

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