Accessibility report

Scope of the evaluation

Date: 28th October 2024

Website name: Main website of Torridge District Council

Scope of the website: 

Web content of the main website of Torridge District Council, consisting of:

• https://torridge.gov.uk (https://www.torridge.gov.uk)
• https://democracy.torridge.gov.uk
• https://torridgedc-self.achieveservice.com
• https://myservices.torridge.gov.uk

For the purposes of this report, the term 'website' refers to all of the above domains.

WCAG Version: 2.2

Conformance target: AA

Accessibility support baseline:

• Chromium based browsers (e.g. Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge) with NVDA on Desktop
• Mozilla Firefox with NVDA on Desktop
• Apple Safari with VoiceOver on iOS
• Google Chrome with TalkBack on Android

Additional evaluation requirements:

The report will test a sample of pages on the website against the WCAG 2.2 Level AA criteria.

The sample includes core webpages and forms (e.g. homepage, search, login), help and legal information pages (e.g. accessibility statement and cookie policy), contact pages and feedback mechanism, pages with distinct appearances, frequently accessed webpages and forms, a selection of downloadable documents, and an additional random sample (at least 10% of the number of sample pages).

The web browsers, operating systems and assistive technologies listed in the 'Accessibility Support Baseline' section will be used for manual testing of the sample. Automated testing will also be conducted for the same sample with browser extensions (WAVE, Axe and Microsoft Accessibility Insights for Web).

Sample of webpages

Structured sample:

• Home
• Search
• Customer Self Service - Home
• Customer Self Service - Login
• Customer Self Service - Register
• Accessibility statement
• Cookie policy and preferences
• Terms and conditions
• Privacy policy
• Contact us
• Contact us (form)
• Website feedback (form)
• Northam Burrows Country Park
• Appledore Clean Maritime Innovation Centre
• Council Tax
• Cost of Living Help
• My Property Information
• Parking permits
• Your Councillors
• Request recycling containers (form)
• Pay your Council Tax by Direct Debit (form)
• Council Tax Charges for 2023/24 (PDF)
• Customer Charter (PDF)
• Agenda - External Overview & Scrutiny - 16/10/2024 (PDF)
• Fees and Charges 2023/24 (PDF)

Randomly selected sample:

• Retail Hospitality and Leisure Relief
• Retail Hospitality and Leisure Relief (PDF)
• North Devon and Torridge - Landscape Character Assessment Update: Chapter 1 - Introduction
• North Devon and Torridge Local Plan (Interactive Version): Policy BAR16: Lynton and Barnstaple Railway
• Members of the Ukrainian hub thank Torridge District Council for its support
• Trade Union Facility Time

Summary of audit results

Reported on 55 of 55 WCAG 2.2 AA Success Criteria.

• 32 Passed
• 9 Failed
• 0 Cannot tell
• 14 Not present
• 0 Not checked

1.1 Text Alternatives

1.1.1: Non-text Content

Result: Failures in sample

Pages that failed on this criteria:

• Home -The image alt text for the Halloween recycling tips and cargo ships articles could be more descriptive. These issues mean that information displayed in the images isn't conveyed accurately to people who cannot see it, like screen reader users.
• Customer Charter (PDF) - The Torridge District Council logo image does not have alt text, and it is not represented in text form on the first page of the document.

1.2 Time-based Media

1.2.1: Audio-only and Video-only (Prerecorded)

Result: Not present in sample

1.2.2: Captions (Prerecorded)

Result: Not present in sample

1.2.3: Audio Description or Media Alternative (Prerecorded)

Result: Not present in sample

1.2.4: Captions (Live)

Result: Not present in sample

1.2.5: Audio Description (Prerecorded)

Result: Not present in sample

1.3 Adaptable

1.3.1: Info and Relationships

Result: Failures in sample

Pages that failed on this criteria:

• Northam Burrows Country Park - Empty headings present, this may introduce confusion for screen reader users.
• Council Tax Charges for 2023/24 (PDF) - PDF is not tagged, so it's structure may not be conveyed accurately to screen reader users.
• Customer Charter (PDF) - There are some tagging issues in relation to headings.
• Council Tax Charges for 2023/24 (PDF) - PDF is not tagged, so it's structure may not be conveyed accurately to screen reader users.
• Fees and Charges 2023/24 (PDF) - PDF is not tagged, so it's structure may not be conveyed accurately to screen reader users.

1.3.2: Meaningful Sequence

Result: Passed

1.3.3: Sensory Characteristics

Result: Passed

1.3.4: Orientation

Result: Passed

1.3.5: Identify Input Purpose

Result: Failures in sample

Pages that failed on this criteria:

• Customer Self Service - Register - Labels are present, however autocomplete attributes are not passed across. This means that the browser autocomplete functionality may not be able to be used to assist with form completion.
• Contact us (form) - Labels are present, however autocomplete attributes are not passed across. This means that the browser autocomplete functionality may not be able to be used to assist with form completion.
• Website feedback (form) - Labels are present, however autocomplete attributes are not passed across. This means that the browser autocomplete functionality may not be able to be used to assist with form completion.
• Request recycling containers (form) - Labels are present, however autocomplete attributes are not passed across. This means that the browser autocomplete functionality may not be able to be used to assist with form completion.
• Pay your Council Tax by Direct Debit (form) - Labels are present, however autocomplete attributes are not passed across. This means that the browser autocomplete functionality may not be able to be used to assist with form completion.

1.4 Distinguishable

1.4.1: Use of Colour

Result: Passed

1.4.2: Audio Control

Result: Not present in sample

1.4.3: Contrast (Minimum)

Result: Failures in sample

Pages that failed on this criteria:

• Customer Charter (PDF) - The shade of blue used for multiple headings in the document only has a colour contrast of 2.16 which fails for both large and small text, where the minimum is 3:1 and 4.5:1 respectively.

1.4.4: Resize text

Result: Passed

1.4.5: Images of Text

Result: Failures in sample

Pages that failed on this criteria:

• Home - Text featured within Halloween Recycling article thumbnail image that is not displayed elsewhere on the page, or included in the image's alt text. Therefore it is not available to screen reader users.

1.4.10: Reflow

Result: Passed

1.4.11: Non-text Contrast

Result: Passed

1.4.12: Text Spacing

Result: Passed

1.4.13: Content on Hover or Focus

Result: Not present in sample

2.1 Keyboard Accessible

2.1.1: Keyboard

Result: Passed

2.1.2: No Keyboard Trap

Result: Passed

2.1.4: Character Key Shortcuts

Result: Not present in sample

2.2 Enough Time

2.2.1: Timing Adjustable

Result: Not present in sample

2.2.2: Pause, Stop, Hide

Result: Not present in sample

2.3 Seizures and Physical Reactions

2.3.1: Three Flashes or Below Threshold

Result: Not present in sample

2.4 Navigable

2.4.1: Bypass Blocks

Result: Passed

2.4.2: Page Titled

Result: Passed

2.4.3: Focus Order

Result: Passed

2.4.4: Link Purpose (In Context)

Result: Failures in sample

Pages that failed on this criteria:

• Customer Charter (PDF) - The 'website' link on page 3 of the document may not make sense without reading the surrounding text. It should be considered to change the link text to 'Council's complaints policy'

2.4.5: Multiple Ways

Result: Passed

2.4.6: Headings and Labels

Result: Passed

2.4.7: Focus Visible

Result: Passed

2.4.11: Focus Not Obscured (Minimum)

Result: Passed

2.5 Input Modalities

2.5.1: Pointer Gestures

Result: Not present in sample

2.5.2: Pointer Cancellation

Result: Passed

2.5.3: Label in Name

Result: Passed

2.5.4: Motion Actuation

Result: Not present in sample

2.5.7: Dragging Movements

Result: Not present

2.5.8: Target Size (Minimum)

Result: Failures in sample

Pages that failed on this criteria:

• Home, and most other web pages - Links appearing in the footer have a target that is a few pixels too short.
• North Devon and Torridge Local Plan (Interactive Version): Policy BAR16: Lynton and Barnstaple Railway - Links appearing in the article body have a target that is a few pixels too short.

3.1 Readable

3.1.1: Language of Page

Result: Passed

3.1.2: Language of Parts

Result: Passed

3.2 Predictable

3.2.1: On Focus

Result: Passed

3.2.2: On Input

Result: Passed

3.2.3: Consistent Navigation

Result: Passed

3.2.4: Consistent Identification

Result: Passed

3.2.4: Consistent Help

Result: Passed

3.3 Input Assistance

3.3.1: Error Identification

Result: Failures in sample

Pages that failed on this criteria:

• Customer Self Service - Register - When a user attempts to proceed on a form where they have left required fields blank, or there are validation errors, screen readers read out alerts (e.g. 'this field is required'), but don't specify the names of the affected field(s).
• Contact us (form) - When a user attempts to proceed on a form where they have left required fields blank, or there are validation errors, screen readers read out alerts (e.g. 'this field is required'), but don't specify the names of the affected field(s).
• Website feedback (form) - When a user attempts to proceed on a form where they have left required fields blank, or there are validation errors, screen readers read out alerts (e.g. 'this field is required'), but don't specify the names of the affected field(s).
• My Property Information - When a user attempts to proceed on a form where they have left required fields blank, or there are validation errors, screen readers read out alerts (e.g. 'this field is required'), but don't specify the names of the affected field(s).
• Request recycling containers (form) - When a user attempts to proceed on a form where they have left required fields blank, or there are validation errors, screen readers read out alerts (e.g. 'this field is required'), but don't specify the names of the affected field(s).

3.3.2: Labels or Instructions

Result: Passed

3.3.3: Error Suggestion

Result: Passed

3.3.4: Error Prevention (Legal, Financial, Data)

Result: Passed

3.3.7: Redundant Entry

Result: Passed

3.3.8: Accessible Authentication (Minimum)

Result: Passed

4.1 Compatible

4.1.2: Name, Role, Value

Result: Passed

4.1.3: Status Messages

Result: Passed